Concert Review: Me First and the Gimme Gimmes

In the pit of the House of Blues Cleveland, chatter was at its peak following the two opening bands for Me First and the Gimme Gimmes. UltraBomb and The Defiant warmed the house up for the Gimmes on the fourth stop on the Let Us Play Your Party Tour on April 16. The audience was as broad as the fashion, with one man running from group to group with a GoPro on his hat and a bubble of cheers following him.

Under blue light, four of the five Gimmes took their places on stage: John Reis and Jake Kiley on guitar, C.J. Ramone on bass, and Pinch on drums. Lead vocalist Spike Slawson strutted out soon after, wearing a glittering sequined coat, snatching the tinsel-tied mic stand to begin the show. From the jump, the Gimmes were electric! With bright pink shirts and slick white boots, their punk rock covers had everyone grooving along. Opening with Dolly Parton’s “Jolene,” there was no doubt that Clevelanders were in for an exciting night.

One cover down. 19 covers to go. 100% covers. That’s MFGG’s calling card.

The Gimmes lived up to their whitty reputation, keeping the fans engaged even when some in the audience were displeased by the lack of Fat Mike, the co-founder and bassist of MFGG and the founder of Fat Wreck Chords. Given the nature of supergroups, each member is still involved with their flagship band outside the Gimmes. When schedules conflict, the members rotate, which is the beauty of this type of band. Despite the irate, Ramone did what Ramone does: rocked the house.

Singing along to every song was to be expected, as their setlist featured new single “Dancing Queen” and fan favorites “Over the Rainbow,” “I Will Survive,” and an exceptionally energized “Country Roads.” With the animated audience, the crowd surfing that accompanied the back half of the act was no surprise. As crowd surfers fell into the arms of security, their grins promised no regrets.

The references and jokes throughout the concert about the quinceañera the band had performed at fostered anticipation for their upcoming album, ‘¡Blow it…at Madison’s Quinceañera!,’ scheduled to drop on June 14. MFGG treated the audience to sneak peeks at the album with “Estos Celos,” “Good 4 U,” and “Love Will Keep Us Together.”

Of course, the end of the show was not the true end, and fans were delighted with an encore of Freddy Feder’s“Before the Next Teardrop Falls” from the new album, as well as Elton John’s “Rocketman” and Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road.“

Fans strolled out of the venue in high spirits and with great excitement for the upcoming album release!