Corey Taylor in Concert at the Turf Club

Of the many shows I've reserved tickets for this year, one of the ones I was most looking forward was seeing Slipknot/Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor's solo show. I booked a ticket for his show last night at the Turf Club in St. Paul the minute they went on sale! Because he was touring behind his third book, I wasn't sure quite what to expect, but I'm really glad I attended this unique evening of entertainment!

I got to the small club on University Avenue in St. Paul just ahead of some nasty summer storms. I made my way through the small, crowded venue to the front of the stage, and found my friend who attended Corey's book signing earlier in the afternoon. I saw the mike stands, stool and quartet of acoustic guitars set up on the small stage, and was laughing with a fellow fan about the old-time movie that was being played on the TV screens above the bar just before the show started.

Corey started the evening with about 40 minutes of discussion and Q&A regarding chapters from his new book You're Making Me Hate You, as well as some interesting talks about music. Corey shared a very memorable tour bus story with his friend, the late Slipknot Bassist Paul Gray that had everyone in stitches!

After a short break, Corey returned to the stage and picked up one of his acoustic guitars, strumming the familiar opening notes to the Alice in Chains classic "Nutshell." This was followed by Stone Sour's hit "Bother," one of the earliest songs Corey had ever written. Before long, Corey was joined onstage by Prong bassist Jason Christopher, who joined him on acoustic guitar and a few funny high-pitched notes!

The rest of the evening was a nice mix of Corey's Stone Sour and Slipknot material, and some intriguing cover songs by Pink Floyd, Live, Green Day and even a Minnesota legend (who for legal purposes, shall not be named). Some of the highlights included the most requested cover, a faithful rendition of Chris Isaak's song "Wicked Game" that Stone Sour originally covered on the deluxe edition of Come What(ever) May, and a stirring rendition of Snuff, a great tribute to Corey's late bandmate Paul Gray.

I ended up hanging out for a while with my friend at the Turf Club after the show, waiting out the storm. It turned out to be a good thing I waited, because about an hour later, Corey came back through the club and we were able to say hello and shake his hand. He had almost no voice left, but everyone who had stuck around really appreciated that such a famous person would take the time to thank the club staff and remaining patrons.

I got home early this morning with a wide grin, thinking back to the memories of yet another successful rock show! Next up is a free show on Wednesday at Pickle Park in Fridley, MN by rockers Screaming for Silence - great way to spend my birthday! Until next time, have a great week, everyone!