By David Ball
Staff Writer
From the opening note of “Two Tickets to Paradise,” to the final strum of “Take Me Home Tonight,” the capacity crowd at the Jacksonville Landing Friday night was all about Money, Eddie Money.
The free concert was the first of two this summer that will commemorate the Landing’s 20 years as one of the most visible landmarks in Downtown, and organizers expect the second show, the Little River Band in August, to be even better.
“When we announced our two big shows, we got as much feedback for the Little River Band as Eddie Money,” said Landing Public Relations Director Rachel Kaltenbach. “They are so excited for LRB (as fans call it), and we anticipate a really great show.”
Kaltenbach said it would be hard to top the Money show, which featured St. Augustine group Those Guys as opening act. She said the event drew more than and estimated 5,000 people into the Landing’s courtyard and out onto the many restaurant balconies and patios.
She said the show roughly cost organizers $35,000 to put on, and initial word from Landing merchants was that it drew fairly good business.
“You can almost bet when you get the folks here, they will buy something,” said Kaltenbach. “But we also want them to walk away with a feeling that they had a great time at the Landing.”
The choice to bring in Eddie Money, Kaltenbach said, seemed to fit exactly what the Landing is about.
“We wanted to have an entertainer who appealed to a large mass of folks,” she said. “And celebrating 20 years, having an older artist who was big when the Landing opened we thought would be kind of fun.”
The crowd definitely responded to Money, and Money to the crowd. One lucky fan — who entered the show holding a vintage Eddie Money LP — was lucky enough to grab Money’s dark shades as he tossed them into the crowd.
Kaltenbach said after the concert she spoke with Money’s daughter, Jessie, who performs with her dad and sings the famous “be my little baby” line in “Take Me Home Tonight.”
“She said this was by far one of the most fun concerts she’s had,” said Kaltenbach. “They were just so surprised that everyone in Jacksonville was so into it and giving them feedback during the show. That’s not the first time we’ve heard that about our crowds.”
There were some tense moments, however, as Kaltenbach said organizers were scrambling to deal with the intense rain shower during sound check, as well as the simple requests of a rock star.
“Well, Eddie needed lactose-free soy milk,” she said. “I wouldn’t even think about having any kind of milk, but we needed it.”
Room-temperature water, a coffee maker brewing all night and a dressing-room switch were some of the accommodations needed as the Landing staff organized its first big concert.
“This was the first concert we’ve done from start to finish on our own,” said Kaltenbach. “One thing I think that we learned specifically is we didn’t anticipate to the degree of how everything is so last-minute. You have to be prepared to act quickly and use staff to the fullest.”