Music legend Jackson Browne recently wrapped up another successful tour, including four back-to-back performances at New York’s Beacon Theatre with long time lighting provider, Bandit Lites. Bandit supplied lighting designer Chris Stuba with a package consisting of Ayrton Ghibli, Chauvet Rogue R2X Washes, Elation SEVEN Batten 72, Martin MAC Viper Profiles, Robe ROBIN LEDWash 600, and VL 3600 Spots.
Browne’s longtime Production Manager Dennis Scrimo gave Stuba carte blanche with the lighting (“as long as it didn’t suck,” Stuba noted.) “I try to set a mood and stay out of the way,” he explained. “It is an old school show with very little movement: there is nothing symmetrical in the rig and I use no gobos on the band.”
With Browne forgoing Follow Spots, Stuba relies on the VL 3600 Spots for key lighting saying, “They have a nice color for an LED fixture and I liked how even the fixtures were together.” And with no cues to call, Stuba could lean into the music of Jackson Browne whose discography spans from the early 1970s to his most recent album Downhill from Here, released in 2021.
“There are more guitars on the tour than lights,” Stuba shared. “There are 100 year old guitars on the stage so I always make sure the band has good light level on them so they can see their work. It is a very creative camp and they set the bar high. It is fun to play here.”
“Chris coming on board to take the helm worked out really well,” said Bandit Lites Vice President of Production, Dizzy Gosnell. “His long history in this business with the likes of Jeff Beck, Brian Wilson, ZZ Top and many, many more fitted really well with Jacksons desires for his show. Chris’s approach of not bowing down to symmetry is actually quite relaxing and perfectly suited to the really tight band Jackson has gathered over the years. The opening comment to Chris by the venerable Dennis Scrimo, PM for decades, pretty much sums up the ethic and approach for the whole show.”
“Dizzy has been fantastic in getting this all together for us,” finished Stuba. “Bandit has been the provider for Jacksons tours for 21 years. We were up and running early each day with a very positive attitude, a really fantastic crew and that makes it great and enjoyable.”
“We would like to thank Jackson, Cree and Buddah Miller, and Scrimo for having Bandit along for all these years,” added Bandit Lites Founder Michael T. Strickland. “We are particularly thankful for Jacksons boldness and vision in 2008 to encourage Bandit to deliver the world’s first all LED lighting system.”
More information available at www.BanditLites.com
