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The Villages
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Legendary Ronnie Milsap brings impressive catalogue of hits to his fans in The Villages

Ronnie Milsap overcame back pain Saturday and filled the Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center with solid gold country songs and sweet doo-wop harmony.

Milsap’s back had been bothering him most of the day but you couldn’t tell it by the way he sang and played piano.

Country Music Hall of Famer Ronnie Milsap played his big country hits and some doo-wop numbers during a show Saturday night at The Sharon.

“I want to thank you for 40 No. 1 hits, and we’re going to try and play them all for you tonight,” Milsap, 75, said early on. “I love The Villages, it’s nice and warm here.”

The blind performer joked about driving in The Villages, saying: “My driving is getting better, but I’m a better driver than George Jones was. I haven’t hit any bridges lately.”

Like Jones, Milsap is a Country Music Hall of Famer with a catalogue of hits that stretches back to the 1970s. Milsap had a way of giving country music a glossy pop veneer – with some roots rock beats. He created his own unique sound with a knack for country music authenticity.

Lydia Leduc, left, and Susan Voelker, second from right, were having fun at the Ronnie Milsap show at The Sharon on Saturday night. The women say they are huge fans of the legendary performer.

That’s how it was at The Sharon, as Milsap and his six-piece band nearly turned it into a country jukebox, spinning hit after hit. He opened with “Prisoner of the Highway.” The stage lights featured him at the piano, darkened in a silhouette, and when the lights went up, Milsap started singing.

It didn’t take long to delve into Milsap’s thick songbook, as he delivered stirring versions of “Any Day Now,” “I Wouldn’t Have Missed It For the World” and “What A Difference You Made In My Life.”

“I hope you guys remember the ’70s,” Milsap said. “You’re going to hear songs (from that decade) tonight.”

Milsap was a major force in country music during the ’70s and he showed why on such numbers as “I’d Be a Legend In My Time” and “What Goes On When the Sun Goes Down.”

Rhonda Hampton, who plays guitar for Ronnie Milsap, sings the Patsy Cline classic “Walkin’ After Midnight” during Saturday’s show at The Sharon.

Rhonda Hampton, who plays guitar for the band, sang a couple of songs and hit her stride on the Patsy Cline classic, “Walkin’ After Midnight.”

The real treat came during the middle of the concert when Milsap sat on a stool near the front of the stage with his band members beside him for some doo-wop numbers.

“How about some doo-wop; are you ready?” Milsap asked. Then he and his band turned The Sharon stage into a doo-wop street corner with some classic harmony.

Milsap and the singers seemed energized and opened with the old Del Vikings song “Come and Go With Me.” Milsap had some fun at the end of the song, singing “Papa-Oom-Mow-Mow,” sampling another oldie by The Rivingtons.

Ronnie Milsap sat near the front of the stage with his band members beside him for a doo-wop medley during Saturday night’s show at The Sharon.

Next up was The Coasters oldie but goodie, “Young Blood.” The band then returned to their instruments as Milsap took the lead on a jazzed-up version of Joe Henderson’s “Snap Your Fingers.”

Milsap and his crew followed with his Grammy Award-winner from 1986, “Lost In the ‘50s Tonight (In the Still of the Night).” It was originally done by the Five Satins.

“I love it when he does that song,” said Villager Susan Voelker. “It brings back so many memories of when my husband and I used to go out to dances. That song makes it all come back.”

Villager Lydia Leduc shares those feelings.

“There’s nobody like Ronnie Milsap,” she said. “He can sing country songs, old rock songs and ballads.  He makes them all sound great and you want to hear more.”

Irene O’Malley, executive director of the Lake Cares Food Pantry, displays a Ronnie Milsap guitar that was raffled off to benefit the agency. The food pantry served 40,000 people in Lake County in the past year.

Milsap was comfortable in his glossy country groove with “Ain’t No Gettin’ Over Me,” “Stranger In My House” and “Smokey Mountain Rain.”

On this night, he did more than please people with his music. Milsap donated an autographed guitar that was raffled off by the Lake Cares Food Pantry, which served 40,000 people in Lake County in the past year.

“This is a great way to get community support,” said Irene O’Malley, executive director of Lake Cares. “People love Ronnie Milsap and they come to see him and they can learn about what we do. We appreciate what he and (promoter) Get Off The Bus Concerts are doing for us.”

Tony Violanti is a veteran journalist and writes for Villages-News.com.

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