Rob Thomas is a Florida boy done good, and he’s a holdover from the days when alternative rock dominated both the radio and the shelves at FYE.
On Friday at Mahaffey Theater, the 47-year-old “Smooth” singer and Matchbox 20 frontman will make real (and not forget about) the songs from his latest solo album, Chip Tooth Smile, which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Album Sales chart.
“I’ve always been a radio kid,” Thomas said in a release. “I grew up listening to all of this music from the late ’70s and early ’80s in the car with my mom. I knew every lyric to every song on the air. There’s a sensibility to the way I write that’s been informed by ’80s songwriters, especially. I feel like I grow each year. Hopefully, that trend will continue until I am ready to stop.”
Country singer Abby Anderson opens this show that’s hot enough to feel like it’s seven inches from the midday sun.
Rob Thomas w/Abby Anderson. Fri., July 5, 8 p.m. $64 & up. Mahaffey Theater, St. Petersburg. themahaffey.com.
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This article appears in Jun 27 – Jul 4, 2019.