FEATURES

BBMAK & JESSICA RIDDLE
House Of Blues
Chicago, Illinois
November 3, 2000

    On Friday, November 3rd, BBMak performed at the House Of Blues which is
located in Chicago, IL. All I can say is...Wow! These guys put on an
amazing show.
    The crowd, which was made up of mostly girls between the ages of 14 and
28, went wild when the curtains opened and BBMak walked out singing " I'm Not
In Love."
     The concert went really great, and the guys really sounded good with
their full band playing alongside of them. This show, which sold out in less
than three days according to the folks at the House of Blues, was the first
time that BBMak have ever performed as a full band for their fans in Chicago.
    On past visits, such as when opening for Ms. Britney, the BB boys had to
strum guitar and sing to pre-recorded rhythm tracks. This time it was all
live and no Memorex and let me tell you, the audience loved 'em for it.
    Aside from Ste and Christian playing guitar, and Mark blowing a little of
the penny whistle and bagpipes, the music came from a backing trio who bashed
it out on drums, bass and guitar in true rock 'n' roll fashion.
     They did most of the songs from the album and suprised some of their
fans by covering an old radio hit by the group, Extreme, called "More Than
Words," a song they released on CD only in the U.K.
     They "ended" the concert after they had done ten songs, the last one
being their mega-hit single, "Back Here."
      A few minutes later after the SRO crowd screamed, stomped and begged
for more, BBMak, gave them just that. The boys came returned to the stage
and began singing, "Ghost Of You And Me," which they followed with "Still On
Your Side," there second single. The wonderful night concluded with the
song, " Unpredictable."
        BBMak were not the only great performers on stage that night. Their
support act and label mate, Jessica Riddle, gave a truly wonderful
performance as well. I must admit that she rocked a lot harder than I had
expected judging from what I heard on her debut album, "Key of A Minor." She
sort of reminded me of Alanis Morrisette with a little Sheryl Crow thrown
in there too.
      Sadly, her powerful set was awfully short, but it was long enough to
see that the crowd certainly did seem to love her music. I was so happy she
played my favorite from her album, a great tune called, "I'm Sorry."
     There was no denying that no one had the blues leaving the House of
Blues that night. Great job on your first headline dates guys...and please
keep the band and burn those old rhythm tracks. There's no going back now!