This past weekend, the town of Taber Alberta was host to the inaugural carnation of Corn Stock dubbed Corn Stock ’23. While being the home of the iconic sweet and crisp Taber Corn, the sold-out success of Corn Stock ’23 brought by Spider Entertainment will welcome this annual festival for many years to come.
This year’s lineup consisted of a plethora of local bands of different genres opening for a lineup of some of Canada’s iconic Classic Rock scene. Friday, July 28 saw the lineup of Trainwreck performing a wide range of hits showcasing bands from the 80s to the present. Then we had the energy of Runaway – Tribute to Bon Jovi which was a local fan favourite performing hits and a couple of deep cuts from the early years of Bon Jovi.
With the sun beginning to set, Toronto hit the stage to rock the night away. Fronted by the high-energy Michelle Truman with the thunderous rhythm section from Barry Conners and Gary LaLonde, both having a storied history playing on the Platinum-selling “Get It On Credit”. Performing hits like “Daddy Don’t Know”, “Girls Night Out”, “Looking For Trouble” and “Head On” kept the audience on their feet while singing along proving that these songs will hold up for many more generations to come.
Honeymoon Suite is synonymous when recalling some of the most successful selling artists from Canadian 80’s rock. Johnnie Dee brought his intensity and emotion to the forefront of the stage that kept the audience captivated and alive showcasing why this band is still in demand all over the world. Their set consisted of their hits “Burning In Love”, “Wave Babies”, “Feel It Again”, “New Girl Now” and ended with “Love Changes Everything”.
Saturday, July 29 was no different in enjoyment and music. The lineup consisted of local Country band Dusty Road Band performing country hits from all generations; Ransom Note, who had a couple of members of the Taber Police Department performing hits from the 80s; VOLTAGE177 out of Calgary Alberta and fronted by Claudia Santiago, who brought her flair and flamboyance for her take on on pop and rock hits.
Another Simple Solution out of Taber was up next and they brought a different energy to the stage. They brought Hard hitting Hard Rock hits from the late 90s and early 2000s that made them stand out and won over many new fans. Calgary’s own YYC – Tribute To Rush rounded out the night of local openers with their spot-on performance of many Rush Classics. If you had your eyes closed and just listened to the music, you would’ve transformed back to a 1977 sold-out Madison Square Garden performance with RUSH.
Canadian rockers Harlequin was up next with their hits “Innocence”, “Superstitious Feeling”, “Thinking Of You” and “Love On The Rocks”. Singer George Belanger sounds like he hasn’t aged since the debut of these Canadian Rock Radio staples. Harlequin gas tank is still full and they have no end in sight of performing for their fans as well as their power to make new fans from the younger generation.
Prism was announced for the Canadian Walk of Fame coming up in August with other Iconic bands that have transformed the Canadian Music scene and continue to influence up-and-coming musicians. Al Harlow and the gang brought the hits “Take Me To The Captain”, “Armageddon”, “Virginia”, and the song that’s played every morning on the Discovery Space Shuttle, “Spaceship Superstar”.
This Sold-Out weekend of Iconic Canadian Classic Rock bands giving the opportunity for local bands to reach new fans was just what this summer needed. With the closest music festival being 2 hours away, this proved you don’t need the population of a big city in terms of Calgary or Toronto to bring people together under the night sky for an unforgettable weekend of music. Promoter and CEO of Spider Entertainment in Taber has hit a successful business plan that brings a sense of community on and off the stage that had everyone smiling. I can’t wait to see what’s next for Spider Entertainment and watch this festival grow over the years.