We first saw this group play at the Cavern Club Liverpool(2009) prompting us to check out the Abbey Road On the River Beatles Festival in  Louisville (2010).As part of our 2011 USA Road Trip we were thrilled to see them play at the delightful, flash Stone Villa Winery in ACME, PA.

Early worries about rain during the soundcheck were soon forgotten, and the group, with the serene lake as a backdrop, launched into a Beatles Only first set, the highlights being, for me, This Boy, I’ll Cry Instead and the rarely played It Won’t Be Long. Lead singer Dave Romesberg’s vocals were very strong and spunky here.As the wine flowed, the sun shone and folks relaxed, the afternoon started to take off and the group eagerly tackled such fare as The Who, Stones, CCR a spiffing Last Train to Clarksville and the wonderful Romesberg original, Mary.

The Elliotts are ace at replicating the intricate, soaring  harmonies of the Beatles, Monkees and The Who; Lead guitarist John Bechtold coming into his own, playing concise, melodic solos for fun. By the time of the euphoric third set, the area in front of the stage was awash with well-heeled, attractive, and excitable punters dancing to tunes from the so called British Invasion- or to us Brits,You Really Got Me, My Generation and our favourite, Badfinger’s No Matter What.The driving rhythm section of Scott and Billy was really going in hard at this stage and the Beatles medley of Slow Down, Money and Dizzy Miss Lizzy had the well-lubricated ACME merchants begging for mercy. A superb showpiece for the group who are playing a number of times at the Villa this summer. Bring a picnic, buy tasty wine and rock out to these irrepressible Pittsburgh boys.

Howlin Pete, Somerset, England

The Elliotts kicked off the Legacy Lanes summer outdoor concerts series under the tent on Saturday night. The weather was great and the band was even better. They played two, 22-song sets that really got the crowd involved. Scott got the crowd rocking with his strong vocals on Petty’s “You Wreck Me.” Keith Moon was brought back to life by Billy O. in his high energy drumming in “My Generation.” Dave matched Paul Rodger’s screeching sound in “Alright Now” that got everybody on the dance floor. The Mick Jagger imitators broke into a “Jag Off” during “It’s All Over Now” as John’s guitar solo nearly brought the tent down. Another highlight of the evening was the Beatles’ “Birthday” in honor of Mark T’s special day as he helped the band by whaling on the tambourine while everyone danced and snapped pictures. It was a great night that left me looking forward to next Friday when The Elliotts go back indoors to play at Silk’s at the Meadows Casino.  Mark M