Maroon 5 brings "Hands All Over" to Tulsa

There was no reason to sit on the couch and veg-out in front of the T.V. Tuesday night with entertainment like we had at the BOK Center. It was a combination of pop, rock, funk, and soul with Ry Cumming, OneRepublic and headliner Maroon 5. Hope you were there to sing and dance along but if not, here is a recap of what you missed out on.

Ry Cuming, fairly new on the scene is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist.  Being in the right place at the right time caused Ry to meet a film producer from California that eventually led him to a record deal with Jive Records. His self-titled debut album came out July 20, 2010.

Ry Cuming had a full band with him and opened with his song “Chemistry”.  Ry has a smokiness to his voice that captures you right from the start.  As he went through his set of pop-rock songs, it was evident the crowd was receptive to this newcomer. He mentioned this was his first time ever to Oklahoma and was very gracious to the crowd for such a warm welcome. He and his band did an outstanding Beatles cover of “I Want You”.  Ry Cuming is definitely a star in the making, you will want to check him out.

After a short break, OneRepublic took the stage and blew us all away. Lead singer, Ryan Tedder is originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma and graduated from ORU.  He is a self-taught vocalist and with the range and control he has with his voice, he is definitely qualified to be teaching others.

The band opened with their funky-groove song “Everybody Loves Me”. To this, everyone was on their feet and getting in to the groove with them. OneRepublic is electrifying on stage, never a dull moment.  The band continued to play hit favorites like “Stop and Stare”, “Apologize” and “Secrets”.  Towards the end of their set, they did a medley cover of Stand By Me (Ben E. King), Seven Nation Army (White Stripes) and Sexy Back (Justin Timberlake). The audience loved this rendition and was singing along on point. OneRepublic then played their moving and anthem style song “Marching On” to which we were all engrossed in. This band gives their all and pours their heart and soul into every song. If you haven’t checked these guys out yet, I highly recommend you do so.

 Maroon 5 is on tour in support of their 3rd studio album Hands All Over that was produced by legendary producer Robert John “Mutt” Lange. The album was released September 21, 2010 with the first single being “Misery”.

 When the lights dimmed ending the final intermission; screams were being heard all across the room when Maroon 5 was spotted going up the stairs to the stage. Shockingly, this was not a sold-out show, but those that did come out were definitely huge fans because the BOK Center was as loud as any sold-out show that I have been to.
Maroon 5 opened with their new hit single “Misery”.  Adam Levine (lead singer) is a natural at engaging with the crowd. He has a real care-free way about him that makes him seem very approachable.

Maroon 5 went on to sing other song favorites like “If I Never See Your Face Again”, “Harder to Breathe” and “She Will Be Loved”.  The older hits seemed to really hit home with the fans and it appeared that most of the audience already knew nearly all of the new songs played as well.

Adam Levine was a bit comical with the crowd by finding a designated person to hold his water bottle in between songs. The first person he threw it to was a girl who did not want to throw it back, and she didn’t. So Adam was given another water bottle and decided to find a guy who would throw it back and forth as needed; that idea worked out much better for him.

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Photos by: Kevin Pyle

Maroon 5 did a great cover of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” and had everyone swaying together in a good mood.  They ended the night playing the infamous “This Love” only to come back for a two song encore of “Makes Me Wonder” and “Sunday Morning”.Adam is a very charismatic front-man and the band sounded spot on. They really delivered to their fans. I am sure they all felt that they got what they came for and then some.