On this blustery Sunday, November 20, 2016 evening, fans from up and down the East Coast escape the wind and duck into the lobby of the cozy Grunin Center for the Arts in Toms River, NJ. All are here to ring in the holiday season by attending the first of two sell-out performances by their favorite country a cappella group —2013 winners of NBC-TV’s The Sing Off — Home Free!
Soon, these audience members of of all ages start to fill the auditorium. Whether they have returned to see Home Free after the group’s sold-out engagement here last February, are members of the group’s fan club, “The Home Fries,” or are simply present to experience the sheer enjoyment of Home Free for the first time, all wait patiently for the show to begin. The entire crowd begins hooting and hollering, however, as the talented members of Home Free — Tim Faust, Austin Brown, Rob Lundquist, Adam Chance, and Adam Rupp — take the stage to present their latest live concert presentation, A Country Christmas!
“What’s up, New Jersey?” exclaims high tenor Austin Brown as the boys hit the ground running with a lively a cappella version of Chuck Berry’s holiday classic, “Run, Rudolph, Run.” As they sing, the guys trade off scatting as beatboxer extraordinaire Adam Rupp keeps the rhythm going.
Moving on to their next number, “Full of Cheer,” the audience laughs as the members of Home Free tell a story about a fictional breakup in this bouncy ditty which goes, “I’m gonna save an arm and a leg this Christmas/ I’m gonna have some money come New Year/Bells are ringing, choirs are singing/And my pockets are jingling/And my baby left me full of cheer.” The crowd smiles and applauds enthusiastically, showing their appreciation for this group’s musical talent in addition to their penchant for whimsical country-style humor.
Taking time to thank “New Jersey for two sold out shows,” bass singer Tim Faust takes a moment to quizzically ask the crowd, “What’s with your Jersey weather? — not the temperature — the hurricane-force winds! What’s that all about?”
Telling beatboxer Adam Rupp to “give us a beat,” Faust introduces “a song for our fellow rednecks, ‘Hairy Christmas.’” Tenor Rob Lundquist takes the lead on this number which all fans of Duck Dynasty could enjoy singing, “Duck season and holiday cheer/There’s nothing like this time of year.” As a special touch, Lundquest comically scratches his beard at the end of the song.
Bass singer Faust introduces the other members of the group, including their newest member, Adam Chance, whom he happily says can “also sing low” — “down in the dumps,” as he describes it — too! Chance recently took over the baritone position in the group, replacing founding member Chris Rupp who went on to pursue a solo career in addition to other musical projects.
Next, Home Free adds their own unique spin to a certified Christmas classic by performing an old-time country version of Irving Berlin’s 1942 all-time hit, “White Christmas,” complete with train whistle sounds made through cupped hands and a cactus background projected on a screen behind them.
Asking the audience to look under their seats for a surprise, several fans in the crowd are excited to find auction paddles. These special audience members are invited to participate in a Home Free auction where they are encouraged to “show some love” for the band. As the guys perform a bouncy cover version of John Michael Montgomery’s 1995 #1 country hit, “Sold!,” the auction participants enthusiastically react. After the song, the boys gather together to decide that the most love of all came from a young girl in the audience whom they name “Small Fry,” because she’s wearing a Home Free “Small Fry” T-shirt.
Inviting the entire crowd to take out their cameras and cellphones, Home Free poses for a what they like to call their “Home Free Family Christmas Photo.”
Moments later, Home Free’s official group photographer, Olena, strides to the back of the stage and takes a photo of the members of Home Free with the entire audience behind them. To celebrate the holiday season, the group posts the image on social media.
Next, the lads perform a poignant cover version of the Zac Brown Band’s “Colder Weather,” the boys crooning, “When I close my eyes I see you/No matter where I am/I can smell your perfume through these whispering pines/I‘m with your ghost again/It’s a shame about the weather/I know soon we’ll be together/And I can’t wait ’til then.”
Following hearty applause, the Home Free boys get the audience singing as they divide the sold-out crowd into three groups. They teach each group its own “Amen” part before launching into a spunky cover version of Maren Morris’ tribute to driving while listening to the radio, “My Church.” This tune not only features a hip-hop country beat, but bass singer Tim Faust performing notes so low they reverberate throughout the auditorium, rattling each listener’s bones and chest!
Next, Home Free performs a dynamic Adam Rupp a cappella arrangement of the Christmas staple, “Do You Hear What I Hear?,” their voices sounding like a country symphony accompanied a full orchestral percussion section.
Before intermission, the boys invite everyone in the audience to compete in the Home Free “Facebook Challenge” by posting any photo snapped during the show and writing “nice things” about the band, the winner getting a chance to meet the members of the group in person at the end of the night.
At intermission, we step backstage and chat with the guys, inquiring about such topics as their return to the Grunin Center, the appeal they have with a wide variety of music listeners, in addition to their latest Home Free recording projects.
Referring to the positive reception of the crowd, Tim Faust says, “It’s always nice when you get to see this kind of response in an audience.”
Beatboxer Adam Rupp agrees, uttering “Totes!” aka “totally.”
Newest member baritone Adam Chance explains, “It’s a blast to meet different crowds — like this Jersey crowd.”
And Austin Brown goes on to add, “It’s a happy accident that we appeal to all different generations. It’s so great that we have families of three generations who can come and enjoy our music together.”
Tim Faust also talks about the band’s latest recordings saying, “Our new Christmas album,” Home Free: Full of (Even More) Cheer, “features ‘How Great Thou Art,’” a song from a video which went viral for the group. He also reveals that the band is working on a “follow-up” to their popular recording, Country Evolution, which, he notes, “should be available some time next year.”
After intermission, the boys return to the stage with “O Holy Night,” their harmonies filling the auditorium with pure vocal energy, touching the souls of the entire crowd. As their voices morph into sounding like bells, the audience responds with cheers and hollers.
New member Adam Chance is featured on “Children, Go Where I Send Thee.” Then, audience members find themselves spellbound when beatboxer Adam Rupp takes center stage for a vocal drum solo. With dramatic lighting choreographed to accent his vocal fireworks, Rupp creates a spectacular audiovisual rollercoaster ride for the audience to experience. With this performance, Rupp proves beyond a shadow of a doubt he is unquestionably one of the most gifted beatboxers in the world.
Next up is Thomas Rhett’s country ballad, “Die a Happy Man,” featuring Adam Chance’s smooth baritone and Tim Faust’s bass alternating lead vocals, both supported by the velvet backup harmonies supplied by the other members of this world-class a cappella group.
Following a lighthearted cover version of the holiday ditty, “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer,” the boys launch into a dynamic cover version of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire,” Tim’s soul-shaking bass rockin’ the Grunin Center to the rafters.
Next, the group invites the audience to sing along on the “Woah-oh-oh-oh” part of their snappy cover version of Old Dominion’s catchy country tune, “Snapback.”
The boys close the show with producer Darren Rust’s outstanding arrangement of “How Great Thou Art.” Complete with a magnificent video shot in Austria featuring the stunning Swiss Alps in the background, the group’s masterful performance on this song brings the audience swiftly to its feet.
For an encore, Home Free returns to the stage — this time, Adam Rupp in a reindeer outfit and the four other members of the group clad in Christmas blazers and sweaters — where they perform a lively a cappella cover version of The Oak Ridge Boys’ 1981 classic, “Elvira.”
Streaming out of the auditorium with smiles on their faces, members of the audience chat about their experiences enjoying Home Free’s A Country Christmas this evening.
Danella, Julie, and Maddy — three young sisters from Toms River — exclaim, “They were super funny… and so good. They have incredible voices!”
An older gentleman, Bill from Jackson, states, “They seem like a great bunch of guys with their heads on straight — real friendly, down to earth, and talented. They put on a good family show that is appropriate — and which appeals musically — to people of all ages.”
Francesa and Robin are two friends from New York who attended Home Free’s sold-out performance here at the Grunin Center last February. They made the trip back to Toms River together to see the group again tonight — this time, minus former member, Chris Rupp.
These two young women are such loyal fans of Chris Rupp, both have his song lyric, “I’m not afraid of the rain,” tattooed on their arms!
Says Francesa about her experience this evening, “It was so good. I thought it would be weird without Chris, but it was really great; it wasn’t awkward at all.”
Her friend Robin notes, “I’m really happy that I got to enjoy their holiday songs at this perfect time of year. They really made the new member, Adam Chance, feel like he was part of the group.”
Both women go on to add, “We like the small, intimate venue of the Grunin Center” noting each can each “think of many other groups who would benefit from performing here.”
Carol is a retiree who traveled to New Jersey all the way from Panama City, FL to see Home Free. She managed to arrived just in time for the concert via taxi from Newark Airport, revealing she was “bumped from her flight from Atlanta by singer Nicky Minaj.”
Still dressed in her sweatsuit and carrying her luggage, Carol declares, “I’ve seen Home Free 15 times, including in Alaska,” going on to reveal, “Their music has carried me through difficult times in my life.”
When asked whether there are any setbacks which could have prevented her from enjoying Home Free and celebrating a A Country Christmas with “her boys,” Carol scoffs and then replies, her eyes twinkling, “Nothing can slow me down. I’ll be here tomorrow night.”
For more information on Home Free’s latest album, Home Free: Full of (Even More) Cheer, as well as live concert dates and more, please go to homefreemusic.com. For further information on future events at the Grunin Center — including TV’s Tom Wopat and Linda Purl on Dec. 16, 2016 and Rosanne Cash & John Leventhal on April 6, 2017— please go to grunincenter.org.
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