Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
Night Ranger
Ocoee Music Festival @ Bill Breeze Park Ocoee, FL
Friday March 10, 2023
Photos and Review by Jeffrey Howard.

Joan Jett is the best. The Blackhearts are so good. As headliner of this festival she really stuck out from all the other male dominated rock and country acts playing. She starts out with playing a Bikini Kill song over the PA and goes right into a twenty song set full of her best songs and a few choice covers including “Everyday People” by Sly and the Family Stone and The Replacements “Androgynous” — maybe going over the head of the average audience member but appreciated by people in the know. 

Even her new songs, some unrecorded, still sound pretty cool like they’ve been hits for years. It’s my third time seeing the Blackhearts, such a solid band. For an outdoor concert the sound was unbelievably good. Kristin and I were dead in the lively side of the crowd. “PUT THE SIGN DOWN” — that’s an inside joke for those of us on the “fun” side.

Night Ranger was one of the openers. They’ve been at making mediocre radio rock for forty years now. No doubt they are good at what they do, it looks like they’re having fun. They have a part in their show where all five members gather around and bang out a drum solo. I can appreciate their connection for one another. Their most popular song “Sister Christian” is actually sung by the drummer, not the lead singer, who may have lost his voice over the years but makes up for it with enthusiasm. They threw in a few popular Damn Yankees songs for the deep south freedom loving crowd.

Related Links:

Joan Jett Official Bandpage

Setlist from this show.

Joan Jett @ Bike Week (with a cool photo of Joan and myself).

Joan Jett @ Downtown Orlando (Kristin wrote this nicely detailed review. Honestly, it’s a must read. Much better than this current one.)