Hanson MMMBops Lakewood
By Russ
DeVault, The Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Beer and wine
sales may have been flat Sunday night at Lakewood Amphitheatre, but the level of
enthusiasm had a stratospheric peak. It was focused on Hanson, the trio of brothers from
Tulsa, Okla., best known for the hit "MMMBop" and their loving legion of preteen
and teen females.
What was surprising -- even to some fans -- was the quality of the music Hanson delivered
live, although it was best appreciated during an acoustic interlude. "I was expecting
something stupid," said Allison Gillogly, 10, of Atlanta. "They're really
cool,'' brother Bennett Gillogly, 7, agreed, saying that his first concert
experience was a good one and that he liked "the music'' best of all.
The Hansons -- guitarist Isaac, keyboardist Taylor and drummer Zac opened
with "Gimme Some Lovin'," a well-traveled Spencer Davis Group hit from the
1960s, but it was purely a rhetorical request. By then, the young fans in the capacity
crowd of 19,000 had been sending screams of adoration toward the stage every time a
stagehand appeared or a curtain billowed. (Don't even try to imagine the nerve it took for
Zac to leave the stage and run through the crowd midway through the show, a move that so
surprised fans he returned safely.)
It was hardly surprising and a reason so many of the
adults were sporting earplugs. "I don't mind the girls and I
don't mind the music,'' said Alan Walker, a golf club pro from
Alpharetta. "It's the screaming.''
Like other parents, Walker made the best of the situation, saying, "It's my daughter
and it's what she wants.'' In addition to daughter Melissa Walker, 9, the senior Walker
brought along Megan Ulatowski, 8, and Blair Leach, 10, all from the same neighborhood.
Blair had seen the Pretenders on the Fourth of July at Lakewood, but seeing Hanson was the
first concert for Melissa and Megan, who bombarded their escort with questions about seat
location, when the show would start and were they missing anything by eating hotdogs and
having drinks in the plaza area.
But the youngsters were certain of one thing -- the reason they like Hanson. "They're
cute,'' Melissa Walker said, while her friends grinned and nodded their agrement. Clay
Schell, Lakewood general manager, noted that the level of excitement overshadowed that
generated by fans of the Spice Girls, who were at the amphitheater June 18. "It was
up-and-down for the Spice Girls,'' Schell said. "With this crowd, the hysteria has
been full time.''