Scott Tady: SportsNet Pittsburgh tosses local bands; and don't miss this fun Beaver show

Pittsburgh Pirates telecasts have dropped local rock bands from the lineup.

There'll be no "Friday Night Rocks" segments this season on SportsNet Pittsburgh, which became the new Pirates and Pittsburgh Penguins broadcast channel last October.

In years past, Pirates' pregame and postgame segments each Friday night treated viewers to stage performances by western Pennsylvania rock bands. Those bands also got featured a few times during the ballgames, including a 10-second highlight clip leading into a commercial break.

For Beaver Valley-affiliated musical acts like The Hawkeyes, Dan Bubien, Wine and Spirit, Brighton Boys, The Forty Nineteens and The Subclass, that TV coverage brought valuable publicity, as their name was shown in an MTV-style credit on the bottom of the screen.

Regional bands like The Vindys, Good Brother Earl and Spinning Jenny also basked in the lights of "Friday Night Rocks."

To benefit everyone, the local TV sports network also encouraged bands to play a live show that tied into a promotion for The Pirates.

With no explanation given, inquiring bands recently learned SportsNet Pittsburgh doesn't plan to continue "Friday Night Rocks," despite it being a fixture on the network's predecessors, AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh, and before that, Root Sports Pittsburgh.

Chalk it up as another disappointing decision by SportsNet Pittsburgh, which a few months ago raised its monthly rate by $20 for fans wishing to continue watching Pirates or Penguins games.

I haven't re-upped.

Beaver show you should see

The most beautiful thing I've seen at a concert this year happened in Beaver.

Near the end of his second song Feb. 24 at Beaver Station Cultural & Event Center, St. Louis-bred R&B singer Kenny Stockard ad-libbed a vocal bit, softly singing the chorus of the 1965 hit "What The World Needs Now Is Love." You could tell Stockard's band hadn't anticipated that, but the drummer, bassist and keyboardist all deftly improvised their parts, as Stockard used hand and head gestures to urge the audience to sing along.

Didn't take much convincing, as soon seated concertgoers were softly and movingly singing along with the Burt Bacharach-Hal David song's never-more-true-than-now sentiment: "What the world needs now is love, sweet love/It's the only thing that there's just too little of."

That spontaneous connection between the band and concertgoers was electrifying. Moments like those elevate a concert to true specialness, Stockard, now a Pittsburgher, noted, as he and his band surged ahead with a tremendous performance that witnesses will long brag about seeing.

And THAT, people, is why I keep urging you to check out a Beaver Station concert.

Magic happens there, and the next opportunity comes March 23, with a concert by the Devil Doves, a high-energy quartet that describes its foot-stomping folky garage rock as "clusterfolk."

Featured on the PBS TV station in its native Columbus, Ohio, the Devil Doves mix acoustic guitar, keyboards, bass and trejon, a box-shaped percussion instrument (related to the smaller and similar cajon) that the drummer sits astride. There's some ukelele, harmonica and electric guitar, too.

I caught Devil Doves in its Pennsylvania debut last August outside Fermata Brewing in Ambridge and recommended the group for Beaver Station. The band's sharp lyrics, quirky humor, raw vocals and nimble musicianship should make a great fit for such an intimate setting where the crowd comes solely for the music (and the vibrant pre-show wine and craft beer hour.)

Reserve your seat at beaverstation.org.

"We're looking forward to it," Devil Doves bassist-vocalist Eric Nassau said, adding the band aims to surprise and delight Beaver County concertgoers through its ability "to switch from an up-tempo energetic live band to engaging balladeers."

The Devil Doves will premiere a new single, "Dead Muse Blues," which came out on streaming services this past Tuesday paired with a music video featuring clips from the 1962 public domain psychological-horror film "Carnival of Souls." 

More: Beaver County's Broadway star Amber Ardolino says what's special about 'A Beautiful Noise'

"Blown Away" has Pittsburgh talent

Pittsburgh glassblower Leana Quade competes in Season Four of the reality TV competition "Blown Away" premiering March 8 on Netflix.

Quade works at Pittsburgh Glass Center (PGC), a nonprofit education center, art gallery and state-of-the-art glass studio in Pittsburgh's East End.

To celebrate Quade's "Blown Away" appearance, PGC will present a free open house 6-9 p.m. April 5. Visitors can watch Quade in action creating hot glass art and learn about her experience on “Blown Away.” Joining her in the demonstration will be two of her competitors from the show, Jonathan Capps and Ryan Thompson.

Hunter March from "E! Nightly Pop" is the new host of "Blown Away," where 10 contestants vie for a $100,000 grand prize.

More: 'Barbie' movie concert heads to Burgettstown with all-woman orchestra playing Star Lake

Relive Pittsburgh concert memories

My generation savors fond memories of cool concerts we witnessed at no-longer-there Pittsburgh clubs like Club Laga, Metropol and Graffiti Showcase.

Concert promoter Jon Rinaldo booked many of those shows, and is helping us intensify those memories with his new Joker Productions online store selling vintage posters and fliers that hyped his Pittsburgh shows between 1989 and 2011.

The exclusive collection includes shows by iconic artists including Eminem, Blink-182, Wu Tang Clan, Maroon 5, John Mayer, Death Cab for Cutie, Morrissey, The Roots, Dashboard Confessional, Bright Eyes, Public Enemy, Dropkick Murphys, Less Than Jake, De La Soul, AFI and more.

The original master artwork from those old posters/fliers has been scanned digitally and produced onto Astrobright colored card stock, which was a standalone look to Joker Productions posters and fliers during the company's existence.

Each poster will have a limited print run of 50 available.

In addition, a small print run of 10 will be made of each poster. These short prints will be a different color, serial numbered to 10 and signed by Rinaldo.

Finally, a single super short print poster will be made a different color. Each will be serial numbered 1/1, signed by Rinaldo and framed by Framezilla, one of the top frame shops in Pittsburgh.

"This is a unique opportunity for fans to obtain a piece of Pittsburgh Live Music history that featured some of the most legendary national music artists," Rinaldo said.

To score yours, visit jokerproductionspgh.com.

Scott Tady is entertainment editor at The Times and can be reached at stady@gannett,com.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Tady: SportsNet Pittsburgh drops 'Friday Night Rocks'