Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

For more than three decades, Perry Conrad has been playing his music to the delight of audiences all over the area.
What started as a gig or two with his father, Bucky Conrad, and his country band, has turned into a life-long love affair for the Tyrone man.
Yesterday, Conrad and the rest of The Shell Run Band kept the downtown audiences’ hands clapping during the third installment of the Tyrone Regional Arts Council’s “Summer Concerts in the Park” series.
“We really enjoy playing for the hometown people of Tyrone,” said Conrad, before yesterday’s performance. “It’s great to be able to play in a situation like this. It’s pretty relaxed and the people really have a good time.”
Joining Conrad was his son, Doug, on bass, and 13-year-old Clayton Hoover, strumming the six string. The fourth member of the band, Paul Shaw, did not play during yesterday’s performance.
“I’m trying to keep the young people interested in this type of music,” said Conrad. “These guys work hard and play even harder. They do a great job.”
The concert featured a variety of country music and bluegrass, with tones of gospel mixed in.
Stating the performance would be crowd interactive, Conrad kept the audience in tune, as the trio belted out hits from artists such as Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and Merle Haggard.
“It’s great to see the community of Tyrone is providing something for artists,” said Conrad. “This is a perfect venue to play for a perfect crowd. It really doesn’t get any better.”
The “Afternoon Delights” concerts in City Hotel Park are winding down and only two are left on the schedule. Next week, Tyrone will welcome The Servello Family to center stage.
This is a true family singing group from Altoona and for the past five years Jack, Barb and Richard Servello have been delighting audiences with their unique mix of rock and roll, country, reggae and ballads. Jack Servello has been playing music for 20 years and is the primary songwriter for the group. Barb adds guitar and vocals and Richard performs on the drums.
The audience will experience an hour of fun family music and patriotic songs.
The free concert begins at noon in Tyrone’s City Hotel Park on Pennsylvania Avenue and 10th Street. In the event of rain the concert will be held in Joybeans Coffee Shop on 10th Street.
The final “Afternoon Delights” concert will be on July 9 featuring Big Mac & Fries.
This series is supported by a grant from the PA Council on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Tyrone Borough, and Tyrone School District Employee Charity Fund.

By Rick