Rock bands raise money for Boston Marathon victims
BOSTON (AP) — City residents rocked Thursday at a benefit concert for victims of the deadly Boston Marathon bombing, jamming to songs from the J. Geils Band, Boston and other musical acts and even laughing at a joke about the capture of a bombing suspect.
The Boston Strong Concert kicked off with the rock band Boston playing songs including its 1970s hit "More Than a Feeling."
"Tonight, we are all Boston," lead singer Tommy DeCarlo declared to a crowd of thousands of people, including victims and first responders, at the TD Garden.
Concertgoer Harry Donovan said Boston residents weren't going to let "any violence, any hatred bring this town down."
"This city took a hit, there's no doubt, but Boston, like a lot of other cities, is resilient," said Donovan, of nearby Wellesley.
The show was to feature acts including Aerosmith, James Taylor and Jimmy Buffett, Dropkick Murphys, New Kids on the Block and Carole King.
Country singer Jason Aldean performed at the show, which was to include more than a dozen acts. Comedian Steven Wright also was part of the show's lineup.
More than once, the words "Boston Strong" were met with cheers and fist pumps from the energetic crowd.
"I love that phrase," enthused Boston comic Lenny Clarke, whose cathartic set featured a foul-mouthed, one-man reenactment of the capture of bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. "You know what I don't love? 'Shelter in place.'"
Boston area residents were locked down, told to shelter in place, a few days after the April 15 bombing while authorities searched for Tsarnaev, who was found hiding in a boat in a backyard in suburban Watertown. Tsarnaev's older brother, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, had died after a shootout with police.
The suspects, ethnic Chechens from Russia, are accused of setting off two pressure cooker bombs packed with shrapnel near the marathon's finish line, killing three people and injuring more than 260 others. Their mother has insisted they are innocent.
Concert proceeds will go to One Fund Boston, the compensation fund established by Gov. Deval Patrick and Mayor Thomas Menino to help bombing victims.
The amount of money raised by the concert won't be available until next week, a spokesman for the event's producer said. Ticket prices for the sold-out show ranged from $35 to close to $300.
