Mount Gilead, Ohio. It’s a small village in rural Morrow County. At the last census, Mt. Gilead only had a population of 3,500. However, in 2022, a group called Finley’s Entertainment organized an event at the Morrow County Fairgrounds called Freedom Fest Ohio. Apparently, the event was so successful that its second incarnation was held this past weekend at the same venue. This is big news for Morrow County. We don’t get concerts like this. When an evening of rock acts were announced for this year’s four day event, I knew that I couldn’t miss an event like this that was virtually in my back yard (Go Cardington-Lincoln Pirates!).
The event serves as an entertainment option for our rural county but also is a major fundraiser for the United States Law Enforment Foundation (USLEF) where a dollar of every ticket sold was donated to that organization. Friday night headliner, Poison’s Bret Michaels and his band announced that they would also match the donation made to the charity.
When I say that this a huge opportunity for my county, I can’t overstate that. We don’t have concerts here. We don’t see many celebrities roll through our towns. To say that I was nervous of the impression we would make on these rock heroes is an understatement. Boy, was I wrong. The organizers of this event did it right. This was a truly professional concert. A real, and professionally built stage was there for the acts, complete with professional sound and lights. Like other major festivals in the area, there was plenty of food truck options as well as restrooms. The crowd was big and appropriate size for these acts. Being from such a rural area, I had reservations on whether our community would support the concert. They turned up in a big way, even with a less than ideal weather forecast. I was proud to be there, and proud of my fellow Morrow County community for turning up.
San Francisco’s Jefferson Starship kicked things off at 6:00 and really surprised me. I’d seen the two acts that followed them many times, but I wasn’t sure what to expect from Starship. I thought they did an admirable job of mixing in the appropriate amount of Jefferson Airplane songs into their set list. Jefferson Airplane, who were one of the leaders of the psychedelic rock movement of the mid to late 1960’s, would later face turbulence in the group before forming Jefferson Starship in 1974. Their show was good, particularly with their vocalists Cathy Richardson and original member David Freiberg. I thought the highlights of their performance were the Airplane classics “Somebody To Love” and “White Rabbit”.
After a short break, 1980’s rock radio staples Night Ranger took the stage. This marked my third time seeing these guys after previous concerts in Mansfield and Marion, and as usual they were excellent. I know that this tour is celebrating the 40th anniversary of their sophomore album, Midnight Madness, which features several of their biggest hits, including the iconic “Sister Christian”. With that said, “Eddie’s Comin’ Out Tonight” from their debut record needs to permanently be in the set list! Although, this was my first time seeing them in a support role, so I’d imagine putting a set list together when you are used to being the headliner must be a daunting task. I enjoyed that they mixed up their set a bit and that they include the Damn Yankees two biggest songs as well, a nice nod to bassist and vocalist Jack Blades time in that super group as well. Their performance certainly made it known that the headlining act was going to have to be on their top performance to earn that title.
Night Ranger Set List Mount Gilead, OH
- 1. You Can Still (Rock In America)
- 2. Four In The Morning
- 3. Sing Me Away
- 4. Coming Of Age (Damn Yankees cover)
- 5. The Secret Of My Success
- 6. Night Ranger
- 7. *Drum Solo*
- 8. High Enough (Damn Yankees cover)
- 9. When You Close Your Eyes
- 10. Don’t Tell Me You Love Me
- 11. Sister Christian
Moments after Night Ranger left the stage, the skies opened and the heavens fell down in the form of monsoon conditions for about 15 minutes. The Morrow County faithful stayed strong, and settled in, after all this agricultural community isn’t afraid of playing in the mud. Quite literally, there were folks that made an impromptu slip-n-slide out of a tarp and were having a great time. The rest of us sat in the pouring rain and drank beer. Besides, this rain was nothing compared to the literal monsoon that I was in for a Poison/Def Leppard/Cheap Trick concert at Blossom Music Center some 14 years ago or the Iron Maiden/Alice Cooper show in Indianapolis of 2012. It was a good, solid summer rain though, and I didn’t see a soul heading for the exits.
The headliner on this tour, dubbed “Parti Gras 2023”, is of course the Bret Michaels band. He’s most well known as the lead vocalist for the 1980’s hair band Poison. Bret takes a lot of flak from every direction. Certain bass players, from other certain hair bands that possibly don’t even play live and like to pretend that they weren’t also a hair band, (cough, Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue) have taken shots at Poison. The former reality TV show “Rock Of Love” also made Bret an easy target for criticism. Here is what I’ll say about all of it: The dude was and is still one of the best entertainers in the industry, and he was willing to bring that to little, ole Mount Gilead, Ohio. Sure, I know the ladies love Bret Michaels, but I’m a fan of his songs. He has played them on the biggest stages in the world. Just last summer, he played with Poison in the Cleveland Browns football stadium, and here he was on Friday night at the Morrow County Fairgrounds. Say what you want about hair metal, or the eyeliner, or any of it; but the guy is a genuine and down to earth rock star. I’ve seen his solo band once before and Poison a handful of times and he has always made sure to acknowledge who the real heroes in this country are, without making it a political thing. Because guess what, patriotism is not something that is supposed to be political, and he hasn’t forgotten that. On this night it was heroes of law enforcement that were brought on to the stage for some recognition, just as I can recall him bringing out cameras to send love to troops overseas during Poison concerts during the height of the War on Terror. That’s not being political. That’s being a stand up dude that has perspective. I’ve always appreciated that about Bret and his live shows. He’s there to party (or Parti?) and there is no mistaking that, but the freedom to live the life he lives and do the job he does came at a price, and he takes the time to acknowledge that. Every time.
Again, like Night Ranger before him, we’ve got to find a way to get “Fallen Angel” and “Cry Tough” back into the set, but I digress. The vocalist has put a solid band around him while he worked through a set list of mostly Poison classics. The crowd ate up every moment of it. The thing that gave me hope was a teenage couple, whom I assume was from out of town (he wore a Bishop Watterson football shirt), who were belting out every word to every song a few feet away from my wife and I. I wasn’t even born when Jefferson Starship and Night Ranger had their biggest success and I was an infant when Poison burst onto the scene. To see kids, who weren’t even born when I saw Poison on their 20th anniversary tour in 2006, being the next generation to keep classic rock music alive is a heartwarming thing. I hope the folks at Freedom Fest Ohio will continue to bring rock acts like this to our community and that hopefully the festival is here to stay.
Bret Michaels Band set list Mount Gilead, Ohio
- Talk Dirty To Me (Poison cover)
- Look What The Cat Dragged In (Poison cover)
- Ride The Wind (Poison cover)
- *Bret Michaels harmonica solo*
- Your Mama Don’t Dance (Loggins and Messina cover)
- Something To Believe In (Poison cover)
- Give It Away (Red Hot Chili Peppers cover)
- Unskinny Bop (Poison cover)
- *Drum solo*
- Every Rose Has Its Thorn (Poison cover)
- Nothin’ But A Good Time (Poison cover)
- *Encore* Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover with members of Jefferson Starship)
Rock Lives Here 