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Waterfront B-52s Concert Cut Short by Lightning

Posted on Aug 19th 2009 11:00AM by Mike Ayers
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Last night at New York City's Governor's Island, the B-52s were performing their hit 'Roam' when a severe thunderstorm quickly rolled through the area, lighting up the sky with enough ferocity to stop the show -- mid-song. At first, the crowd was told that the show would continue after the storm passed, but heavy downpours and nearby lightning strikes forced the show to be canceled altogether.

It was an odd sight to see: guitarist Keith Strickland looked out at the crowd and did the cut motion across his throat, while vocalists Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson looked at each other, confused. Strickland's expression suggested that he was witnessing the lightning and would rather not be holding an electric guitar. Add in the fact that the concert venue, the Beach, is right on the water and the place was an accident waiting to happen.

Before the storms rolled through, the Athens, Ga. new wavers ran through a quick set of favorites from the early days like '52 Girls,' 'Private Idaho' and 'Mesopotamia.' Although singer Fred Schneider seemed like he'd rather have been somewhere else rather than on stage, he did offer an explanation before 'Funplex' regarding the song's origins. "That was our anti-drug song," he said. "Don't go to the mall and take pills."

Still, the weather did sour the evening because a few big hits -- namely 'Love Shack,' 'Rock Lobster' and 'Planet Claire' -- were left unheard. Much to fans' dismay, they can now unfortunately say they've been to a B-52s show and without hearing Cindy Wilson scream the 'Tin roof, rusted!' line.

B-52's Sing 'Rock Lobster' at Sessions