The Jim Irsay Collection: A Veritable Gold Mine of History, Pop Culture, and Music!
“To collect is to ‘bring or gather together.’”
When it comes to the Jim Irsay Collection, it is truly a gathering together. Mr. Irsay, the billionaire Indianapolis Colts owner, has a huge rock and roll heart. His collection is far more than the treasured objects he has acquired and takes on tour each year: objects that would rightfully sit alongside any in the Smithsonian OR the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Handwritten letters from Washington and Jefferson, Kerouac’s original manuscript (a 120-foot-long typewritten scroll) for On the Road, Ringo’s ’64 kit with the drum head from The Beatles’ Ed Sullivan debut, John’s piano from the Sgt. Pepper sessions, and Dylan’s Strat that shook Newport Folk in ’65 from a collection Guitar.com dubbed “the greatest guitar collection on earth.” This dude loves the music and the culture that spawned it.
Sure, the Collection is a traveling museum, but it’s also an all-star band of veterans that hits four or five cities a year. The 2024 Los Angeles edition January 11 featured blues slinger Kenny Wayne Shepherd, drummer Kenny Aranoff, and Mike Mills of REM, among others, and the likes of Buddy Guy, Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Ann Wilson (Heart), Peter Wolf (J. Geils Band), and Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon) all taking their guest turns (Stephen Stills and Mr. Irsay himself were unfortunate scratches due to illness).
But here’s the belly rub: these shows are all free! Heck, there was even a free VIP lounge (if you RSVPed) with excellent food and a wide open bar. While l heard of some entry glitches (long waits getting in), in this age of stupid ticket pricing, the show was a huge giveback to the 6,300 or so who packed the old Shrine Auditorium.
This date was only peripherally on my radar, and I hadn’t been to the Shrine this century, but I have to say that the production values, especially lighting and video, were top notch. In fact, it was some of the best lighting for shooting I’ve rencountered in a room that size in recent memory, and with no photo pit to speak of, staff provided all the photographers with chairs (uh, that’s a first).
Given the announced guests, it wasn’t surprising the evening leaned heavily ’70s, which was fine by me and the capacity crowd of a certain vintage. Buddy Guy kicked it off, and any chance to still see the 87-year old blues legend is special, let alone trading licks with Kenny Wayne Shepherd, who followed with his own mini-set including his best known tune, “Blue on Black.” Mike Mills followed with two REM tunes, and I have to say that hearing “Superman” in all its punchy, chime-y glory lit me up for the rest of the night.
The band went deep on Pink Floyd’s “Have a Cigar”and “Comfortably Numb” with Kenny Wayne Shepherd doing justice to David Gilmour’s black Strat from The Wall, and some furiously satisfying soloing. Ann Wilson’s pipes still stand up to “Barracuda” and a take on The Who’s “Love, Reign O’er Me” (shoutout to guitarist Tom Bukovac on these tunes and many others). By the time Kevin Cronin went full REO hits, including “Keep On Loving You,” “Riding the Storm Out,” and “Roll With the Changes,” everyone was on that Speedwagon.
Peter Wolf hasn’t lost his swagger and was a blur of energy while reaching into the J. Geils’ wayback machine for “Hard Drivin’ Man” and mega hits like “Centerfold” and “Love Stinks.” And, after some two dozen songs at this point, Billy Gibbons, the final guest for the evening, brought it all home with “Sharp Dressed Man,” “La Grange,” and “Freddie King’s classic “Going Down,” an appropriate bookend to the night with Gibbons, Shepherd, and Bukovac all going at it with glee.
The Jim Irsay Collection is not a place, not just stuff. It is a shared rock and roll experience curated for all. Rest up, Jim.
The Jim Irsay Collection
Website
Facebook
