Little River Band’s classic rock and dedicated fans hit the Paramount

By Cristina Kumka Herald Staff

Fernando from Spain writes: “I’m from Spain and I’m 16. I love LRB (Little River Band) music and I founded the Spanish LRB fan club.”

Tom from Albuquerque, N.M., writes:

“I want to start by saying thank you for the years of not just great music but for inspiration through good and bad times. I am 35 years old and first remember hearing your songs as my mom would sing them around the house. I fell in love with my wife when I was 23 and have great memories of us driving the mountains with the top off the Jeep blaring your songs.”

That’s what Little River Band fans wrote on a message board about the reorganized and reenergized group of classic rockers set to play at Rutland’s Paramount Theatre Friday night.

Some fans have made personal connections with band members while others just like to follow the music.

Bassist Wayne Nelson said the band’s rock lifestyle hasn’t been as glamorous as one would think.

And that’s why, he said, the band has had such a great following, after nearly 30 years of touring.

It’s never been about a lifestyle or even the image of the band’s members - it has always been about the music, and keeping it original.

Nelson, speaking from a California airport waiting to see his grandson for the first time in five months, said touring takes focus, dedication and devotion to keeping the music alive.

The band leader hopes the Rutland audience connects to those sentiments, as they listen to some of the band’s rearranged classic hits such as “Cool Change,” “Help Is On The Way,” “Lonesome Loser” and “Reminiscing.”

“It’s going to be a lot of fun, I could promise you that,” Nelson said. “The audience will make emotional connections reminding them of proms, weddings and maybe even divorces. It brings people through their history.”

The Australian-born group came together in 1975, but the original lineup fell apart after the band’s first hit. Since then, the Little River Band, named after Little River Road just outside Melbourne, Australia, had 16 Top 10 singles and by 1982 it was the only band to have a Top 10 single every year for six years in a row, according to Nelson. Today, more than 30 million albums have been sold worldwide, he said.

The success is due, in large part, to the band being forever focused on keeping the music consistent, even as old members left the band and new ones signed on.

“The band was always about the music and not about the personnel,” Nelson said. “It was always faceless, anonymous. It’s always been about the music, not an image.”

The audience should expect a classic sound with a new twist for 2008, described as “adult rock with lots of vocals.”

“We’re staying true to our sound,” Nelson said.

“At this stage of our lives, we’re not out to change the world and if we were, we would do it through music and taking people away.”

Tickets for the 7 p.m. Friday show, priced from $32.50 to $42.50, are available at the Paramount Theatre’s box office at 30 Center St., open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and Friday. Tickets can also be purchased online at www.paramountlive.org.

For more on the band and its members, visit www.littleriverband.com.

Contact Cristina Kumka at cristina.kumka@rutlandherald.com.