By “Tampa” Earl Burton, Journalist and Chyrisse Tabone, Photographer
Live Review: The Joe Perry Project with support by Jared James Nichols – Seminole Hard Rock Tampa, Florida – August 13, 2025
The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino have arguably had one of the best runs of shows for a concert venue in 2025. With such gatherings as the Metallica Takeover in June and shows from Blue Oyster Cult, Darius Rucker, and David Lee Roth over the last couple of months, the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa Event Center has established itself as a major concert outlet in the Tampa Bay area. The Hard Rock continued this run of excellence on Wednesday night, as The Joe Perry Project hit the stage for what could only be called a breathtaking rock show that had those in attendance screaming for more.
Something for All Rock and Roll Fans
As it was the first show of the 2025 tour for The Joe Perry Project, the audience wondered what was in store for them. With Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes on vocals, Robert DeLeo from Stone Temple Pilots on bass (STP drummer Eric Kretz was intending to be a part of the tour, but he missed this show due to a family emergency), and Brad Whitford, Buck Johnson of Aerosmith, and Jason Sutter stepping up (on guitars, keyboards, and drums, respectively) as “The Project,” there was the potential for pretty much anything to come from the stage of the Event Center. As it turned out, it was a rollicking set that swept across nearly fifty years of rock history that Perry and his bandmates have been a part of.
From the jump, The Joe Perry Project brought the thunder as they kicked off with the tune, “Let the Music Do the Talkin’” (a song originally done on the first Project album of the same name in 1980; it was covered by Aerosmith a few years later), and they didn’t slow down after such a bombastic opening. More Project tunes blasted the enthusiastic Event Center audience (“East Coast, West Coast” and a Perry solo tune, “Fortunate One” from Perry’s remixed 2003 album Sweetzerland Manifesto MKII), but it was Perry’s willingness to branch out from his own (and the Aerosmith catalog) to feature his compatriots’ work that truly stood out.
Robinson’s work with The Black Crowes, and that band’s association with Jimmy Page, received attention as “Twice as Hard” and “Jealous Again” were warmly welcomed by the Hard Rock audience. But it was the tunes of Stone Temple Pilots alum DeLeo that were stunning in their musicality. The Joe Perry Project took on the STP classic “Interstate Love Song,” but instead of playing it in its original, grungy form, made the song an almost soulful rendition by slowing down the tempo. You might not feel that it would work, but Robinson’s still excellent voice and the musicianship of the band made it happen, to which DeLeo hugged Robinson after its completion.
After the dual attack of “Chip Away the Stone” and “Draw the Line,” The Joe Perry Project stepped away from the stage, but clamor from the Hard Rock audience brought them back out for a couple more tracks. The blues classic “Train Kept a Rollin’” and the Aerosmith staple “Walk This Way” would provide an excellent coda for the evening as The Joe Perry Project wrapped up a 150-minute show to conclude their night to a grateful Event Center.
As stated previously, Robinson was in excellent form for the tour opener; I had the chance to interview Robinson thirty-five years ago when I was in radio, and it was a delight to hear him perform just as well today as back then. I noticed that Perry went “old school” for the entirety of the evening, plugging whatever Gibson guitar he was using directly into the amps rather than into a Bluetooth setup, and it seemed that it made his guitar efforts sound even richer (I know…probably projecting there). Whitford was in rare form, especially stepping up for his solo on “Last Child.”
Overall, The Joe Perry Project presented a damn good rock and roll show; the Tampa stop was the first in a month long run of shows that will end in Los Angeles on September 17 (full dates here). If you get the opportunity, DO NOT MISS the show that the entirety of The Joe Perry Project will give you – it is a special chance to see several legends of rock in one setting.
Jared James Nichols: An Undiscovered Gem
Opening the evening of bluesy rock was an undiscovered gem that was a delight to hear on this Wednesday night. Jared James Nichols, originally from Wisconsin and now calling Nashville home, brought his brand of blues-based rock to the Event Center audience. Over a far-too-short forty-five-minute show, Nichols demonstrated his outstanding skills on the guitar while getting the fans whipped up for The Joe Perry Project.
Nichols is not a neophyte to the world of rock; he’s three albums and a couple of EPs deep into his career, and has been able to work with some of the best guitar slingers in the world (Joe Bonamassa is one of them) and has more than held his own. Nevertheless, the fans seemed to be surprised by the depth and power of Nichols’ work.
For a three-man band, Nichols and his mates brought the power with their array of tunes. His rendition of “Threw Me to the Wolves” was stunning in its presentation, and “Nails in the Coffin” could have been a masterclass in blues-based rock. Nichols himself looks like he could share the same gym with Zakk Wylde of Black Label Society, but that appearance belies an excellent guitar player with smooth, resonant vocals.
The closer for Nichols and his band was a special moment. Nichols took the time to build up his “guest performer,” only to introduce Brad Whitford’s son Graham, who also has a burgeoning career as a guitarist. The band and the younger Whitford then proceeded to rip out a cover of Mountain’s “Mississippi Queen” that had the Tampa audience roaring in approval. It was an excellent demonstration of how to warm the crowd up for the headliner AND be able to stamp your name in people’s memories.
A sweep of Canada is up next for The Joe Perry Project and Jared James Nichols, as they will spend the weekend in the Great White North in Toronto and Bala. The bands will return to the States next week, with stops in Perry’s stronghold of Boston, Hampton Beach, and Mashantucket, going through August 22. If you have not gotten the tickets yet, be sure to get them as the entirety of the presentation from The Joe Perry Project and Jared James Nichols will give you all the blues rock goodness that you need!
PHOTO GALLERY
The Joe Perry Project
PHOTO GALLERY
Jared James Nichols
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