Eddie Money, Quiet Riot fan favorites at Spudstock> Concert-goers like rockers

At the 103 acres of potato land that was the site for Spudstock ’95, ticket-holders reaped less live music than they expected, but it was clear many still dug the performance of Eddie Money.

One of the lead bands, Blue Oyster Cult, failed to perform for the three-day concert. They showed up Friday night, but due to bad weather, they never took the stage.

Despite not starting his show until the wee hours of Sunday morning, when many in Aroostook County were fast asleep, Money came out swinging on the Fort Fairfield stage.

“I never go to bed before 3:30 anyway,” the singer said, after whipping his microphone around in a circle by its cord.

Money wasted no time in delivering some of his crop of hits to the Spudstock audience and kicked his set off with one of his biggest singles, “Two Tickets to Paradise”.

Despite a very lengthy soundcheck by members of his road crew, Money’s first few numbers were plagued with distracting technical problems on the stage. These were soon taken care of, however, and fans could focus their attention on the tall, shaggy-haired rocker they had come to see.

Money thrilled the rambunctious crowd gathered on the farmland with hits from his heyday in the late 1970s and ’80s, and he also introduced fans to songs from his latest album, “Love and Money.”

“After This Love is Gone,” a ballad and the first release from his latest effort, has the potential to put Money back on the charts. With songs like “Where’s the Party?” and “Shakin”‘ in his arsenal, however, fans wanted Money to make them dance, and he certainly didn’t disappoint during his 1 1/2-hour performance.

In the crowd-pleasing department, Quiet Riot and The Guess Who were the only two acts that really gave Eddie a run for his money during the three-day music festival.

Quiet Riot, a successful heavy-metal group during the mid-’80s that has recently resurfaced with a new album, is not on tour, but traveled 3,500 miles to perform at Spudstock.

“I didn’t travel 3,500 miles not to give you everything I’ve got,” lead singer Kevin Dubrow said. “We’re here to play an evening of politically incorrect rock ‘n’ roll for you, and that’s the way it should be.” Dubrow then went on to give his tender acoustic delivery of “Love’s a Bitch.”

Quiet Riot sounded much like the group of old on all of its material, and guitarist Carlos Cavazo gave an impresssive solo of at least three minutes in length, but it was the band’s familiar songs, such as “Cum On Feel The Noize” and “Metal Health (Bang Your Head),” that struck the right chords with the Spudstock audience. It will be difficult for Quiet Riot’s new work to silence some of the frenzy surrounding today’s hard-hitters, such as Pearl Jam and Soundgarden.

Faced with the job of carrying the Spudstock concert between Quiet Riot’s near-deafening show and Eddie Money’s rockin’ performance, The Guess Who’s often mellow tunes wound up sounding a little like elevator music. Although the group’s harmonies and often boyish stage antics were entertaining throughout the set, it seemed that many in the crowd were eager to hear The Guess Who’s popular 1970s hit, “American Woman,” which the quintet performed near the end of the show.

Most of the other rock ‘n’ roll acts drew sparse crowds to the stage-front area at Spudstock, but the event did give these lesser-known local bands, such as the high-energy, Portland-based Twisted Roots, the opportunity to increase their followings.

On Sunday, the final day of Spudstock, it was country roads that took the concert-goers home, and it was country music that set them on their way. Country acts Silver & Lace, Doug Kershaw and John Anderson added a little twang to the festivities.

Anderson, who was the biggest name in the 20 acts that appeared at Spudstock, belted out hits from his 1993 gold album, “Solid Ground,” and his 1992 platinum work, “Seminole Wind,” in front of the dwindling number of ticket-holders at the site on Sunday afternoon.

The singer performed with few fireworks and gave a straightforward delivery of his hits. After singing such songs as the jukebox favorite, “Swingin”‘ and the ballad “I Wish I Could Have Been There,” Anderson said goodbye from beneath his black, 10-gallon hat to his laid-back and appreciative audience.