Frank Turner Writes An Open Love Letter To Boston At The House Of Blues (11/28)

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Frank Turner. What is left to say about the man? He’s pretty much done it all. Had smash hit songs in multiple countries. Played in front of 80, and 000 people at the Olympic opening ceremonies. Been recognized at Logan airport by both the TSA agent and the guy at customs.

Ok, sickness so maybe he hasn’t quite reached “rock god” status quite yet, advice but it’s impossible to deny the fact that the lanky Englishman has done pretty well for himself since the release of “England Keep My Bones” in 2011.

Turner and his band The Sleeping Souls have built an exceptionally strong following here in Boston, where both “If Ever I Stray” and “Recovery” have recently lit up the airwaves, and he’s had no trouble selling out his last three Boston appearances.

So we’ve established that Frank Turner is a pretty big deal here in Beantown, but was he able to live up to the hype on Saturday at the House of Blues?

Of course he was!

The great thing about Frank Turner is that as his popularity has grown and he’s moved to larger and larger venues, his style of performing hasn’t changed much at all. He still has an uncanny ability to make you feel like you’re watching him strum his guitar while sitting on a stool in some grungy English pub. He also has an amazing ability to develop a connection with the audience through his story telling, and he sure did have a lot to say on Saturday night.

He started by talking about how much he loved Boston. And then he told the crowd some fun facts about Boston, including the fact that in 1984, a dinosaur was delivered to the Museum of Science via helicopter. And then he told us how much he talked up Boston at every other show on the tour. And then he started his encore with a cover of The Standells “Dirty Water” while joined on stage by members of the Dropkick Murphys. Seriously. If this show had happened a month or two ago, you would have though he had the mayoral race all but locked up.

“If this show had happened a month or two ago, you would have though he had the mayoral race all but locked up”

Aside from the portion of the show that may have been sponsored by the Boston Chamber of Commerce, Turner played nearly two hours of music spanning all four of his albums while barely playing his guitar. Turner explained that he wasn’t having “Phil Collins-style delusions of grandeur”, but instead had seriously injured his back months earlier and was advised by his doctor to put down his instrument for a while. I’m not sure how all of his jumping up and down or shuffling around the stage helped in the healing process, but it was clear he couldn’t contain his own enthusiasm.

At the end of the set Turner told the crowd the night had “felt like a London show” –a huge compliment considering what a hero he is in his hometown. Turns out he’s pretty popular in his adopted one as well.