Fifteen years ago, Dwayne Gretzky was born when Toronto musicians Tyler Kyte & Nick Rose got together in a basement with some of their friends to jam on some cover songs. And after years of just releasing videos on their youtube channel, they’ve finally put out their first album with Dwayne's World, Vol. 1, hitting the road across Canada to celebrate. I caught them earlier this year when they did a free show at the PNE, and they were so fun I knew I had to see them in a proper venue. And what better place than the Commodore.

Of course, the rare times I’m running late are when a show actually starts on time, and I got there just as they were wrapping up the first song (I hope) as the eleven(!) members on stage then kicked in to “Walk of Life”. From there they blasted through two sets of selections from the 880 songs they’ve covered, mostly rock favourites from the 70s and 80s. The four singers — Tyler Kyte, Nick Rose, Lydia Persaud, and Carleigh Aikins — traded off songs, often providing backup vocals and/or dancing along when not on lead. They all had a chance to show off, but none more powerful than the one-two-punch of Lydia and Carleigh, respectively, on “Don’t Stop Me Now” and “The Best”, each letting loose. Other highlights from the first half included a stellar “Heart of Glass” and a version of “Once in a Lifetime” almost as good as my favourite cover of the song.

The first half of the evening came to a close with a raucous “Dancing in the Dark”, taking a half-hour intermission before they wee back to make the ballroom bounce with “Jump” and a sentimental favourite of mine, “You Can Call Me Al”. They kept pumping out the hits as Ian Docherty got to shred on guitar for “Let’s Go Crazy”; “9 to 5” was heartwarming; I very much appreciated Nock Rose doing the Scottish accent on “I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)”; and they teased their 881st cover with “Goodbye Stranger”. They only dipped into the 90s a few times during the set, including “Come to My Window” and drummer Adam Hindle taking over lead vocals for “Sabotage”, power-stance and all.

After some more (mostly) synchronised dancing to “Radio Ga Ga” and “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)”, the band wrapped up the main set with the whole room clapping along to “Under Pressure”, but were of course back out for a couple more, going back to the 60s. First, the Erma Franklin classic “Piece Of My Heart” (though they were clearly inspired by the Big Brother & the Holding Company version with Janis Joplin) and then sending everyone home with campfire vibes and the Canadian classic, “The Weight”.

It’s easy to see why they have earned the nickname of Canada’s Favourite Party Band, as it would be quicker to name which songs people were not dancing & singing along to. Though it would have been fun to hear them branch out a little from the ‘classic rock hits’ umbrella, they still put on an incredibly fun show.

setlist
[missed song(s)]
Walk of Life by Dire Straits
Heart of Glass by Blondie
Everywhere by Fleetwood Mac
Grease by Frankie Valli
We Got the Beat by The Go-Go's
Domino by Van Morrison
Don't Stop Me Now by Queen
The Best by Tina Turner
Once in a Lifetime by Talking Heads
Walking on Broken Glass by Annie Lennox
Cecilia by Simon & Garfunkel
Dancing in the Dark by Bruce Springsteen
(Intermission - half hour)
Jump by Van Halen
You Can Call Me Al by Paul Simon
Come to My Window by Melissa Etheridge
Let’s Go Crazy by Prince and The Revolution
9 to 5 by Dolly Parton
Fast Car by Tracy Chapman
Can’t Take My Eyes Off You by Frankie Valli
Sabotage by Beastie Boys
I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers
Goodbye Stranger by Supertramp
Radio Ga Ga by Queen
Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) by ABBA
Under Pressure by David Bowie and Queen
(encore)
Piece Of My Heart by Big Brother and the Holding Company + Janis Joplin
The Weight by The Band