Joan Jett At The Seaside Summer Concert Series, Coney Island: The Atlantic Ocean's Hit List Ever been envious of an ocean? Probably not, unless the idea of fish pooping in you seems like a party. But on July 14th, 2011 Coney Island essentially turned their speakers towards the ocean, and let Joan Jett and her Blackhearts rock and roll their way across the waves. Pacific, be jealous. Opening their set with the perennial 1-2-3 punch of 'Bad Reputation", "Cherry Bomb", and "Light Of Day", the just over 50 year old (going on 22) Joanie showed the packed beachfront property that rock and roll is the fountain of youth, and its waters run deep. With a set list peppered with the hits you'd expect ("I Love Rock & Roll", "I Hate Myself For Loving You") the Blackhearts knew what the crowd was there for, but also what her tried and true fans wanted as well: they dipped into obscure stuff like "Go Home" from the "Pure And Simple" album, "The French Song", from "Album", the cover of The Replacements "Androgynous", "Love Is Pain". It was a dream set list, played with a fire and verve of a band that loves their craft. The crowd itself were a mix of all ages. Young kids next to the elderly, all having a great time. It just went to show, that great songs are GREAT SONGS, no matter what era they come from. The show itself was free, but if you wished to donate 5 bucks (that went to producing more shows like this - which considering Cheap Trick, Mary Wilson, and The Monkees are coming up, it's a good thing) you could get yourself a seat and relax for the evening...and speaking of the evening, it was beautiful night for an outdoor show. With the lights from Cyclones Stadium combining with the sounds of Astroland just beyond it, it was a near perfect setting for a fun night of rock and roll. A stop at Nathan's for some hot dogs was the literal high-five to the festivities. The only issues with the event that weren't so happening was that the organizers only had one entrance into the event, so it took quite some time to get everyone herded into the show area, hence pushing back the start time by about a hour. The promoters kept apologizing, and claimed they will have more then one entrance for the next show (This was their first time doing shows here in this particular area). If they get that sorted out, this concert series will be one of the best events of this already sweltering summer. One other thing: Girl In A Coma opened the show. As far as I can tell, they like Nirvana a lot. -Jay Mazeffect www.joanjett.com