By John Johnson

[ Mahaffey Theater 60th Anniversary Celebration Featuring Cheap Trick – This Sat. May 3rd., 8pm | Patrons are invited to come early to the show to celebrate this milestone with 98.7 The Shark and enjoy DJ  music, drink specials, and a chance to win front row tickets!* Doors for the pre-party open at 5:30pm, A DJ from The Shark will be playing music in the Atrium at 6pm before the show. Cheap Trick takes the main stage at 8pm for the night’s main concert.]

This past Monday I had the opportunity to chat with rock and roll icon Robin Zander, about their upcoming show at the Mahaffey Theater. The beautiful theater in St. Pete is celebrating their 60th Anniversary, and Zander’s band Cheap Trick has been slated to do the honor’s of providing the tunes. Affectionately known as the Mahaffey, the Duke Energy Center of the Arts – Mahaffey Theater, is one of the bay area’s top rated performing arts venues. The world class theater hosts top-quality national and international artists and performances, from rock, pop and dance to comedy and classical, actually being the home to the Florida Orchestra. But this Saturday, the only classic aspect about the music that will be permeating from the hall will be of the classic ROCK variety. Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Cheap Trick will be bringing their special brand of pop rock to the arena to help celebrate. The band who is celebrating their own milestone themselves, an impressive 50 years together as a group, will hit the stage around 8pm, with a pre-party with 98.7 The Shark starting at 5:30.

Mr. Zander is a Bay Area resident for the past 30 years, so I wanted to chat briefly with him about what the Mahaffey means to him. He was currently at home enjoying some much deserved downtime, being on the road probably close to 300 days a year, I wanted to keep our chat short and sweet. I fired up the Zoom a little after 1pm and was soon greeted by the ever young looking Zander. Wearing casual white and beige attire, round specks and floppy black hat atop his long blonde locks, he looked decades younger than 72. I feel the need to address this by telling him, that although 12 years my senior, that he hasn’t aged a bit in the 23 years I’ve know him and that I look like “Sean Connery from the hunt for Red October”. He chuckles and asks “Are we recording? Don’t talk to yourself like that.” Before I could even move on to the next subject, he jumped ahead of me and proved once again why I always describe him as a down to earth and a genuinely good guy. You see, Zander and I met back in 2002 when I was working for the Buccaneers and we’ve remained friends to this day. He reminded me of this fact and added “I just want to say thank you for all the help you’ve given Cheap Trick”, and continued humbling me by mentioning the two album covers I did for the band, “and now you jumped on board with this new project of ours. Have you heard it?”. He’s referring to the legendary bands upcoming 21st studio album, tentatively titled “All Washed Up”, which I have submitted cover artwork for. I assure him that I have not heard any of the music as of yet, as he graciously offers, “I’ll have to send it to you” he says, much to my delight, “It’s pretty good” he adds with pride, “It’s Cheap trick. It sounds like us. It’s got some good, bad and ugly on it just like our other records.”

I ask him where he is currently, as mentioned he’s forever on the road, and he confides that he is zooming from home. “When I’m home I like to sit on the couch and watch TV. Play with my pups. BUT, I’m really looking forward to this show. You and I have a history with the Mahaffey don’t we?” I laugh knowingly, as he refers to our time with Big 3 Records and the various times the band played there. I ask him how many times over the 50 years of playing, does he think they have performed at the venue. “…even back when it was the Bayfront Center…” I add. “We played there as the Bayfront,” he ponders more, “I don’t know, over the 30 years that I’ve lived here, maybe close to a half a dozen maybe.” I assure him that I personally saw Cheap Trick there at least 4 times, as we both concur that it’s truly a “great venue”. I wonder aloud if he was going to “be there early enough for the pre-party”, he half jokingly informs, with a sly smirk, “I don’t party any more John, you know that. I can’t do that anymore.” I’m sure the implication in the word “party” for a seasoned rock veteran like Zander is more intriguing than the cocktails and finger food available at said pre-party, but it will be the ‘place to be’ regardless. That being said, I ask if he’s home until after the Mahaffey show. “No, I leave tomorrow for San Francisco,” he answers “I’ve got a show with Steven Tyler and Joe (Perry). We occasionally get together to do stuff.” “It’s for charity, it’s like an all children’s but it’s not All Children’s.” He continues by filling me in on Tyler’s health condition and that, to my surprise, Tyler is his “favorite singer.” “He’s just felt indestructible all along. And we’ve probably done more shows with Aerosmith than any other band.” He then, excitedly tells me of the time he was at Joe’s house when he wrote “Draw the Line”. “Rick and I were there, and Joe comes out and plays the opening riff (he mimics the famous intro) and says ‘What do you think about that?”. Of course Nelson and Zander were equally impressed. I mention that “people should be careful what they share. That riff could have ended up on a Cheap Trick album.” He laughs and agrees “Yeah, that’s right.” he says with a mischievous grin.

After he remarks that this zoom call “feels like a podcast thing,” I inform him that I was conducting this interview in an empty office at PDQ headquarters and that my Tampa Music News reporter gig is my artistic side hustle. I tell him that I have been fortunate enough with my TBMN position to interview Joe Bonamassa, Jason Bonham and Lawrence Gowan (Styx), to name a few, and he exclaims “Next time you should call me, and I’ll fill you in on these guys, ‘cause I know them all.” I apprise him that, I indeed mention Zanders name when speaking with famous musicians because, although an obvious name-drop, it’s a “good way to break the ice and it holds clout”. He responds with a chuckle, “Hopefully that’s gonna work for you. Might turn out to be the opposite” he replies with great humility. I couldn’t imagine anyone in the industry, or otherwise, responding negatively in regards to “the man of a thousand voices”, as he is often referred to.

I was cognitive of his need to have “couch and TV” time while at home, so I glazed over varying topics to keep the conversation short. Those topics being the upcoming Cheap Trick album, his son Robin Taylor Zander’s second LP and daughter Sailor’s first release, currently in the very early stages. “Yeh, she’s currently working at Johnny Depp’s studio…”, he proudly continues “…and Robin (Taylor) is helping produce it. She’s almost got a whole album…written anyway.” I ask if “Z’s album is about done”. Z is what I’ve always called Robin Taylor as not to mix up any of the three Robins living in the Zander home. “Yup. It’s almost done” he says, “and that’s going to be interesting as they plan on releasing a song a month.” I remind him of the obvious, that these are “different times” in the industry, and unlike the “good old days, when Cheap Trick released 5 of their best LPs in 5 years”, back in the mid to late 70’s. With their new collection about to come out, I ask if they will be “playing any of the new tunes this Saturday.” “No. We won’t be doing that. We’re going to wait until the…” he stops mid-sentence and jokes further with me, “…well the covers not even finished yet John, you know that.” I dodge the poke a bit and ask about the new management company the band is working with now. “I love the new management, they’re very cool.” The majority of which I hear will be in attendance at the show Saturday. I query if there will be an opening act, and he discloses, “I don’t believe so. I think it’s just going to be ‘an evening with (Cheap Trick)’. If anybody was going to open it would probably be my son.” That would be nice to witness, I certify, and we discuss for a few minutes how amazing Robin Taylor’s album “The Distance” was/is, now almost two years old. I pronounce that it’s one of the vinyl selections that my daughter has pilfered from my collection.

I rap up our all to brief chat with questions regarding the set for the anniversary show Saturday. “It’ll be a whole set. 90 plus minutes.” Upon asking him if he has anything special to add about the Mahaffey, he confides, “We enjoy playing theaters, and Mahaffey is a beautiful theater. Sound is great there and everyone has a good seat, I love it.” I wholeheartedly agree, as the state of the art venue perched bayside, sits an intimate 2,031. Not a bad seat in the house as they say. And with Cheap Trick providing the musical entertainment for their special occasion, all 2,031 lucky attendees are sure to savor a celebration worthy of Mahaffey’s first 60 years.

Tickets are still available for this once in a lifetime event.
They can be purchased online through Ticketmaster, by calling Bill Edwards Foundation for the Arts at (727) 300-2000 or by visiting the Box Office, located outside the venue at 400 First Street South in St. Petersburg, FL. Call (727) 300-2000 to learn more about the perks of membership.