I'm asking this question because I noticed that Surfaces, a pretty big show in Las Vegas, is having Kool and the Gang play at their opening reception.
Like you, I've heard several too many renditions of "Celebration" by lousy wedding bands. I didn't like the song when it first came out on an Edison cylinder.
I noticed Kool and the Gang also played the recent ASAE event in Hawai'i. And they do corporate gigs, which is hardly a sign of kool.
That's one reason I miss the big tech shows. You'd usually get something interesting - ethereal "ambient" Radiohead (circa Kid-A) wannabes, club music that could range from Britpop remixes to industrial, or occasionally the real thing, like P-Funk.
I suppose if you're on a budget you get what you can get. I guess KC and the Sunshine Band and Laura Brannigan were booked.
I can only think that someday 30 years from now, those of you still attending tradeshows will undoubtedly encounter the New Kids (who will be in their 60s) or Justin Timberlake/Britney Spears (who will look much like present-day Steve and Eydie) or if you're lucky, Eminem, whom I doubt will mellow much between now and 2033.
Of course by then you should be able to get Kool and the Gang REALLY cheap.
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