Peter Frampton made a splash in New York, first appearing at the ninth annual star-studded benefit concert for God’s Love We Deliver at the Beacon Theater. He shared the stage with iconic performers like Cher, Beck, Alicia Keys, and many others. Frampton then on Saturday March 8th in somewhat of a surprise appearance at the Cutting Room joined an all-star tribute band touring to raise money for his own charity, which aims to find a cure for “Inclusion Body Myosis” (a disease he himself is battling.) with the research being done at the Johns Hopkins Medical Center in Baltimore . On stage he humbly noted, “This is the first time I’ve appeared at my own benefit”.
The house band, comprised mostly of musicians who have played with Frampton throughout his career, was put together by Peter Baron, who has worked Frampton as well as the band Mountain. Baron also collaborated with the indefatigable Nancy August to curate a corresponding art show at the Ilon Gallery in Harlem, featuring a silent auction of custom-designed guitars by renowned artists like Al Diaz, Christopher Hart Chambers, Linus Coraggio,, and Todd Monahan. One standout guitar, designed by Coraggio, featured a striking pink and green color scheme with pink strings and jagged, hand-painted shards. Monahan’s guitar, on the other hand, boasted a deep, rich ruby red hue that seemed to resonate with the very essence of music and was further tutti fruti be-dotted with which one could not help but be besotted. All of the instruments which were signed by the visual artists and Frampton sold in the evening’s silent auction.
The evening’s performances were just as impressive, with Frampton taking the stage to deliver iconic songs like his own emblematic “Do You Feel Like We Do” and “I Don’t Need No Doctor,” which was written by Ashford and Simpson for Ray Charles. The tribute band, featuring David Gross on bass and Corky Laing on drums, delivered scorching renditions of Mountain classics like “Nantucket Sleigh Ride” and “Mississippi Queen.” Laing, the drummer for Mountain introduced “Nantucket Sleigh Ride” with a fascinating anecdote about the song’s correlation to the grueling lifestyle of rockers on tour in the 1960s and 70s.
Throughout the evening, the energy was electric, with Frampton’s signature sound and style shining through. It was a truly unforgettable night, with all proceeds going towards a worthy cause.
