Outstanding Lineup at Pittsburgh Rockin’ Reunion; Jergel’s Hosts Pure Prairie League (CP’s Sat., 4/4/15)

1) Hey man, this is the kind of event that only happens once in a “Blue Moon”! It’s the Pittsburgh Rockin’ Reunion, and with Lou Christie joining Pittsburgh’s doo-wop Marcels, “Lightning Strikes” again!  The concert brings together six great local acts who were instrumental (and vocal) in putting this city on the rock-‘n-roll map.  Along with Christie and The Marcels, the lineup includes Jimmy Beaumont and the Skyliners, Donnie Iris, Jimmie Ross and the Jaggerz … and the pride of Turtle Creek, Chuck Blasko’s Vogues, who just might do “Five O’Clock World.” But don’t let that throw your timing off—there are two shows, and they’re at 4 and 8 p.m. Benedum Center, 237 7th St., Cultural District.

2) “Amie, what you wanna do?” It’s one of the sweetest refrains in country rock, and if you wanna hear the latest incarnation of the group that broke to national fame with “Amie” (above) back in the ‘70s, you can catch Pure Prairie League at Jergel’s Rhythm Grille. PPL’s lineup has changed over the years, of course, and the music has evolved somewhat, too. But when it comes to that easy-rollin’ Pure Prairie sound—with bluegrass inflections, from the band’s origins in Waverly, Ohio, midway between Chillicothe and the Kentucky line—the sound is still there. Country music star Vince Gill was a member of the band in 1979. With guests Steeltown Religion. 8 p.m. 285 Northgate Dr., Warrendale.

Channeling August Wilson is Eugene Lee in The Public’s ‘How I Learned.’ photo: PPT

3) Every theater fan knows about the ten plays of August Wilson’s famous “Pittsburgh Cycle” but there was an 11^th that few have seen. How I Learned What I Learned is a one-man autobiographical show. First performed by Wilson himself in Seattle in 2003, just two years before his death, How I Learned is a memoir of his early days. As a precocious young man in Pittsburgh, Wilson dropped out of high school to become a full-time student of the human condition. He worked odd jobs while reading books from the library; he took notes about the colorful characters he met; he experienced the thrills and laughter—and also the shocks and awe—that came with being young, irrepressible, and African American. How I Learned has been revived in New York and elsewhere recently. Pittsburgh Public Theater brings it home with co-creator Todd Kreidler directing the show, and actor Eugene Lee as Wilson. 2 and 8 p.m. Ends tomorrow. The O’Reilly Theater, 621 Penn Ave., Cultural District.

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