Bob Thompson Unit Valentine’s Day Show – Guest Review

John Walsh, of The Fossils, has provided a Guest Review of this past Friday night’s Bob Thompson Unit Valentine’s Day Show + Dinner, which was impacted by the Front Street fire that same evening in downtown Marietta.

Yeah, the fire on Front Street caused the FD to cut power to downtown for a couple of hours.  BTU was about 45 seconds into their first tune when the power went out.

Disaster??  No, quite the contrary…

Photo courtesy Dave George

The Galley staff brought out the candles and illuminated the hall and continued to serve the meal courses.  Doug Payne, the saxophonist; and Ryan Kennedy, the guitarist, roamed from table to table playing beautiful acoustic duets for the guests In the meantime, the boys from Promanco saved the day by setting up a generator outside the building and getting the band’s soundsystem and electic instruments fired up.  They also brought a gas grill, which enabled the kitchen staff to prepare the entrée.  The meal was presented virtually uninterrupted and was delicious.

Interestingly the atmosphere became even more intimate as a result.  The power came back on with about an hour left in the BTU set.

Photo courtesy Dave George

The performance was dedicated to the memory of Marietta’s Bill Thompson.  The absolute highlight of the evening occurred when Bill’s widow, Elsa Thompson sang “My Funny Valentine” with the band.  An accomplished jazz vocalist, Elsa gave the audience a heartfelt, soulful performance that she had no idea was going to happen.  She graciously agreed to sing without notice.  There wasn’t a dry eye in the house by the time Elsa finished.

This was truly a special evening of intimate music, cuisine, and socializing at The Adelphia.

Thanks to John Walsh for this Guest Review! John is a Mid-Ohio Valley based singer-songwriter, a member of The Fossils, and serves on the Board of the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame.