Tribute to Joe Cocker & Leon Russell – North Shore Center, Skokie, Nov. 8, 2025

Review: Glenn Noble/ Photos: Jennifer Noble

Mad Dogs & Englishmen: A tribute to Joe Cocker & Leon Russell at the North Shore Center in Skokie

November 8, 2025

Review by: Glenn Noble.

Photos by: Jennifer Noble

Music is a peculiar thing -- it lives, briefly and vibrantly, in the moment of performance; but it’s far from uncommon for this transitory experience to change lives and endure in the memory for a lifetime. Given the right alchemy of songwriting, performers and audience, scene and setting, something enduring can be created from almost literally the thin air. So it is with this performance, paying homage to the events of 55 years previously: one Spring weekend in 1970 New York City where a hastily put together band and a singer, tired from touring, created musical magic.

For our tribute performance, the scene transfers from the historic Fillmore East theatre to the impressive North Shore Center for the Arts (incidentally celebrating its 29th birthday). The star performers Derrick Procell and John Kattke take the place of Joe Cocker and Leon Russell, supported and surrounded by a rich array of guest artists, backing singers and instrumentalists. Overlooking the stage, a video projection provided context for the show using archive photos and footage from the Fillmore era, visually connecting the modern day to the past. With this setting established and the band warmed up, the main man bounced on stage. Sporting a colourful tie-dye bandanna and t-shirt outfit, he certainly looked and acted the part, emulating Cocker’s signature dancing and air-guitaring moves.

For the next hour or so the auditorium was transported back to that memorable time as the set rolled along, each of the songs clearly beloved by the enthusiastic fans in the audience and performed with flair by our Derrick. Later, giving Derrick a chance for a breather, featured vocalist Lynne Jordan stepped out from the backing singers’ line to provide a rendering of “Superstar” that would have given Karen Carpenter a run for her money.

With renewed vigour, Derrick returned to the fore to “Give Peace a Chance”, and invited us to “Go Get Stoned” -- which included a rip-roaring tenor sax solo from Frank Catalano. A torrid reading of the BoxTops classic “The Letter” followed, unleashing the full force of Frank and his fellows in the top-class horn section to create a wall of sound that carried through into a rousing “Delta Lady”, bringing the audience to its feet and the first part of the evening to a close.

Returning after a brief intermission revealed a somewhat different arrangement on stage as keyboardist/vocalist Brother John Kattke kicked off the second half with a smaller, more intimate group, turning the spotlight on Leon Russell. A triplet of tunes, “A Song for You,” “Tightrope” and “Youngblood"  also brought out Scott Boyer, Russell’s longtime touring guitarist.

Cranking up the tempo and volume, Derrick Procell returned with the whole band to energetically demand “Unchain My Heart". A few of the more recent songs in the Cocker repertoire followed: soulful “You Are So Beautiful”, raunchy “You Can Leave Your Hat On”; and soaring “Up Where We Belong” - a sublime duet between Derrick and Lynne Jordan.

As the show approached its end, could there be any doubt that the closing number had to be the epic Cocker version of “With a Little Help From My Friends”? There was no disappointment as the massed band and singers raised the roof of the theatre, and likewise raised the audience to their feet in acclamation. An encore was inevitably demanded, and delivered, accompanied by spontaneous dancing in the aisles to “Hitchcock Railway.”

It can only be hoped that if the spirits of Joe Cocker and Leon Russell were watching, they would feel delighted that their legacy survives and thrives in the hands and voices of the cast of this show. Equally, the care with which the show’s producer Doug James staged the production contributed to the successful recreation of the original event while still maintaining a fresh and lively tone. The mix of a talented cast of performers, a thoughtful selection and presentation of repertoire, combined with the superlative theatrical environment of the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts makes for a winning combination that should encourage music loving audiences to make the trip to Skokie.

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