Celebrating Foghat’s Many Years of Music at the Belly Up Tavern

Blitz Brothers

With Foghat’s Twang and Bang tour well underway, regulars at the Belly Up Tavern were once again entertained by a slow ride into savory music, taking it easy on a Wednesday night. Originally formed by Dave Peverett, Foghat first emerged from London, and has stayed strong for longer than half a decade. The tavern was packed in minutes, with many individuals bonding over a shared love for rock. People struck up conversations by speaking about the first concerts they attended. Some even revealed seeing Foghat back when the band first appeared in the seventies. Opening for them was The Blitz Brothers.

Blitz Brothers

The proficient trio formed in the seventies, too, and remain prevalent across Southern California. Their members include Richard Livoni on guitar, Barney Roach on bass guitar, and Calvin Lakin on drums. Livoni began with amiable greetings, wishing the concertgoers well. “We’re the Blitz Brothers. We’re going to start off real easy. This is a song about getting a buzz,” he said. Intrigued, the audience listened to “Buzz On You,” a clear demonstration of the trio’s abilities. They knotted together a sound that made each instrument stand out in its own way, with Livoni’s guitar periodically shining through the seams.

Livoni, Roach and Lakin were each charismatic onstage, wearing smiles and stylish shades. In “Dogfood Boogie,” Lakin’s drumming was impressive. By the end of their second song, the audience was verbally praising them in-between applause. Next came a recognizable California tune, redone in the band’s style.

“If you recognize it, sing along with the harmonies,” Livoni said, before playing “California Dreamin’.”

“Here’s a song with a little politics. It fits more now than when I wrote it,” Livoni said. Titled “Don’t Look Back,” the short description was enough to pull at people’s attention. Though the Blitz Brothers played for a slim time-frame, their music spoke for itself, sounding larger than what’s usually possible with trios. They finished after a few songs, appreciative of the crowd and thanking them for their time.

“Ladies and gentleman, would you please welcome Foghat!” Stepping onto the stage was the founding member and original drummer, Roger Earl, Scott Holt on guitar and lead vocals, Matt Barranti on lead guitar, and Rodney O’Quinn on bass guitar and vocals. They began with “Chateau Lafitte ’59 Boogie.” During “My Babe,” percussionist Eddie Lefebvre also appeared to enhance pieces throughout the show.

Holt shared that the Belly Up Tavern was one of his favorite venues to play at. “In case you have been living under a rock for the last while, the world’s gone completely insane. So, our agenda for the night is to tell you what our mantra is and try to drive it home through everybody’s head and heart. All we love is love, peace and rock ‘n’ roll. So forget all your troubles, forget everything, but don’t forget us. Let’s have a rock ‘n’ roll party, shall we? We’re going to make this the best Saturday night of your life. Unless you work on Saturday. We’ll work that out later, let’s get to it!” he joked, as the band played “Honey Hush.”

Foghat’s performance in Solana Beach was one of the earliest in their 2026 tour, hence their discernible excitement to play. “Y’all ain’t got the snow we left behind at home! We might just set up camp here for a while,” Holt laughed. It was now O’Quinn’s opportunity to sing, starting with the song “What A Shame.”

“Take Me To The River” had a groovy bass line, as did “Road Fever.” Holt’s vocals were powerful across the whole night, with his Tennessee upbringing coloring his words and tone. According to him, the band put out a record a couple years ago, with another one expected to be released soon. Their next song was written by Kim Simmonds, titled “Drivin’ On.”

Afterwards, Holt asked if there were any blues fans in the room, sharing that he used to play with Buddy Guy. “We’re going to do a song that I learned from his partner, Junior Wells.” The song was “It Hurts Me Too.” Holt committed to the frustration the piece called for, his love for the genre heard in every verse.

“Remember when you just had to get out of the house and cruise? Once upon a time, I used to plug that 8-track in, roll the windows down, and rev the engine real nice,” O’Quinn said. “If you needed to get out of the house, cause things were getting you down, you just play another track.” O’Quinn was a standout vocalist, effectively playing into the image he laid out. His voice suited “Stone Blue.” The band shone brightly for this song, with all aspects blending together to create a captivating moment. Holt asked the audience to give their crew and manager a round of applause, then the band themselves were introduced.

“Our percussionist, the one and only Eddie Lefebvre,” Holt began.

He turned to Barranti. “This young man on guitar is filling in for our regular guitarist, Bryan Bassett. He’s back home. He had a minor surgery, and he is recuperating. He’s a little bummed out that the Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t in the Super Bowl, but he’ll be back with us before too long. In the meantime, this is Matt Barranti,” Holt said, before turning to face O’Quinn. “He is an actual Florida man, one of the only rock ‘n’ roll bass players to play the bass and sing at the same time! Ladies and gentlemen, Rodney O’Quinn!”

“He is my partner in crime, he is my buddy. We get up here and have a ball, and bless the fact that we get to do this for all y’all. My man on guitar and vocals, give it up for Mr. Scott Holt!” O’Quinn cheered back. The final band member applauded was Roger Earl. Labeled a true rock and roll icon, the man is unstoppable on the drum kit, and has kept the Foghat machine rolling down the highway since 1971.

“Home In My Hand” was a promise fulfilled, one of the showstoppers that made Foghat’s performance the best “Saturday” night of everyone’s lives. “Third Time Lucky,” another song from the “Boogie Motel” record, followed. It was elevated greatly by O’Quinn’s approach to mellow, almost self-reflective lyrics.

“When you have been around for fifty plus years on Foghat, you start to see the anniversaries come in, quick and fast,” Holt said. “A lot of them at the same time. You get into trouble, trying to celebrate all the anniversaries of songs as they come around. We’re celebrating a couple of them tonight. This one is fifty years old. This song is about fishing. It’s about sex. Sex and fishing. It goes like this.” By the first lyric, the audience was singing along verbatim, spurred on by Earl’s drumming. It was “Fool For The City.”

Holt revealed that the next song was one hundred and fifty years old. It was originally written by Willie Dixion, one of the architects of rock ‘n’ roll, for Muddy Waters. Waters recorded this hit song back in 1954, then it was sent to England to see what they would do with it. “The guys in the basement had some tea, and some crumpets,” Holt joked. “Their little fingers on it, because they had been eating fish and chips, and then they made this tune.” Aging like the smoothest whiskey, “I Just Want To Make Love To You,” was a wildly good time. It was an upheaval of excitement that stretched to each corner of the dance floor.

“The next song is also fifty years old. So, we’re now up to three hundred years old? Man, that’s a lot of music. Lots of years and a lot of music. This is a song…that it’s time to get your cellphones out, because you will film this. You will take it home with you, you will pull it out tomorrow and listen to the shittiest video you’ve heard in your life. So, instead of that, if you’re adventurous at all, put your cellphone back in your pocket and let this be for you right now. Exactly for you, right now,” Holt said, cuing to play the most anticipated song of the evening, “Slow Ride.” There’s a good reason why it’s the song that put them on the map. It’s an eight-minute long anthem, wickedly nostalgic for those who grew up hearing it. To learn more about their upcoming tour dates, visit https://foghat.com/.