It was my first visit to Norfolk’s NorVa club, so no real expectations besides a packed house would matter. I do have to mention that if you plan on getting to a future show there it would be wise to pick up tickets way in advance. The Will-Call section pretty much bites. Anyway, after a 2 hour wait in line chatting with other Tesla fans and J.K. coming out for a brief visit, we headed towards the stage (straight through the bar ofcourse).

Two opening bands (including Norfolk’s Sea Of Souls) opened the set with good responses from the crowd. Then they came; the first time I had seen this ensemble on stage in almost ten years. The crowd went ballistic. They lined up from left to right: Tommy, Brian, Troy, J.K., and Frankie. The opener? Anything less than "Comin’ Atcha Live" would be considered inappropriate. The band plowed through its catalog which included "Little Suzi," "Edison’s Medicine," "Changes" (with Frankie doing the keyboards), "Mama’s Fool" (unfortunately the only track from ‘Bust A Nut’), "Lazy Days, Crazy Nights," and a track from an import album called "Cottonfields". The trade-off solos were breathtaking, especially on "Hang Tough" and "Modern Day Cowboy". There was no acoustic, unplugged breakdown, although the acoustic guitar was set up for intros like "Signs," "Mama’s Fool," and "Little Suzi". Frankie ripped off an amazing guitar solo before hitting the acoustic intro for "Love Song". Troy and J.K. looked like they were having a "who can have more fun?" contest. The chemistry hasn’t gone anywhere, friends If anything it has only gotten better. I’ve waited many years to see this again.

The complete set list: Comin’ Atcha Live/EZ Come EZ Go/Hang Tough/Lazy Days, Crazy Nights/Getting’ Better/The Way It Is/Song & Emotion/Signs Little Suzi/Love Song/Edison’s Medicine/Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)/What You Give/Modern Day Cowboy/Mama’s Fool/Cottonfields

After the show, everyone was backstage except bassist Brain Wheat. We later found out that he was informed before the show that a close friend passed away. Best wishes, Brian...

The remaining members joked and carried on with us all, signing autographs (on t-shirts, tickets, and breasts alike), telling stories, and taking pictures. J. K. was the life of the party, bouncing from one conversation to another.

"Bar 7 is on the backburner right now." J. K. told me. "We’ve got a good thing going here and we gotta stay with it. You’re probably going to see a live Tesla live album coming next."