Richard Speight, Jr., Billy Moran, and Jason Manns 2025: A Pre-Con Rave
Plato reputedly once said, “Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything.” Exemplary of that statement was the “Pre-Con Season Post Con-Cert” at The Heist in Bowling Green, Virginia. On the evenings of Friday, February 21st, and Saturday, February 22nd, 2025, Richard Speight, Jr., Jason Manns, and Billy Moran regaled the audience with a perfect composite of stories, comedic bits, and, of course, music. The setlist was thoughtfully designed to include songs from albums by each of the three artists as well as fan-beloved covers and yet-to-be-heard tunes.
On night one, they opened with a cover of Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again,” but added their own entertaining touches in the form of synchronized dramatic pauses and, right before the coda, a sidebar to discuss their performance thus far. Speight’s “Cautionary Fairytale” from his album, The Dance and How to Do It, made the set as an unexpected substitution. The trio’s self-enacted redo of a new cover, The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights,” was uniquely rugged, and, speaking of new music, Moran debuted his song, “Family Tree,” a touching ballad to his wife. Speight’s insistence that we all need a Moran at home inspired Manns to announce a contest for winning the guitarist-songwriter. This in turn inspired Speight to make a few hilarious double entendres, which I won’t spoil for you here. I will, however, spoil the winner of Moran at home; it was Mrs. Manns, who hosted the visiting musicians for the weekend. Hear the full set from Friday, February 21st, 2025:
Video by Nancy Davis. Included with permission.
Remember that carefully curated setlist? There were a few pivots in the tail end of night one, but, on night two, they were “calling audibles” by the second song. I suspect this was at least partially due to an under-the-weather Manns, whose voice (and whistle) was still as lovely as ever. However, tossing aside the setlist allowed for a rarely-seen live performance of the Willie Nelson cover “Me and Paul,” from Speight’s The Dance and How To Do It, as well as “Copperhead Road,” a Steve Earle cover from Speight’s FistFights and Hug-Outs. Thankfully, a seemingly hesitant Moran still played the never-before-heard original “At Peace and Motionless.” To say I’m excited for his TBD sophomore album would be an understatement. I will happily listen to Moran’s “Coyote” from his debut album, Surprise Party for the Introvert, and Manns’ gentle rendition of The Cars’, “Drive,” any day of the week, so I was pleased they played these tunes on both nights. The group also detoured to revisit “24 Hours a Day,” a cover of the Bottle Rockets track featured on Speight’s album, The Dance and How To Do It. Why might this be of note? Well, let’s just say I personally appreciate them revisiting it to confirm that my hair was not, in fact, a mess… at least not on night two. Curious what that means? Listen to the full set from Saturday, February 22nd, 2025:
Video by Nancy Davis. Included with permission.
If attendees purchased early, they may have been fortunate enough to snag one of twenty tickets for a Weekend VIP Package which included a free poster, early entry with Q&A, after parties in the greenroom, pictures with the artists, and Saturday brunch (featuring adorable Chicken & Waffle Skewers hand-assembled by Speight, Moran, and Manns). During the first Q&A, a tentative name for the group, MoMaS, was explained: Mo for Moran; Ma for Manns; and S for Speight. However, by the end of the weekend, contenders for a name hilariously multiplied. The group hopes to make this event a repeat occurrence and, I must say (with love), anything is better than “Pre-Con Season Post Con-Cert.” I myself am partial to Moran’s suggestion: SpeighMorMan (accompanied by the SpiderPig-inspired theme song: SpeighMorMan, SpeighMorMan, does whatever SpeighMorMan does).
GREAT weekend. I needed the laughs. Thnx to all who traveled or logged in to see MoMaS/ SpayMorManns/JillyMorM8/The Audibles/Taint & The Grass Cutters/The Shameless Plugs/The Blowovers/The Blowhards/Tommy Tissue & The Blowholes, etc… Let’s do it again! @Billy_Moran @jasonmanns pic.twitter.com/pTw5ACw7a6
— Richard Speight, Jr. (@dicksp8jr) February 23, 2025
Now back to Plato. While they may not have impacted my morals this weekend, Speight, Moran, and Manns certainly served up spirits and recharged my soul. Minus a minor hangover, I felt joy and inspiration on my commute home. Personally, after a year of several downs, I was hesitant to make the weekend trip to Virginia. However, I’m pleased to report that gaiety was achieved by many if not all in attendance. Here is what a few attendees found to be most memorable about the weekend.
“It’s always so much fun to watch great musicians who are also fast friends have a blast on stage. These guys know each other so well (and play off each other so very well) that you know it’s going to be a special night. And the Heist is the perfect setting.” ~ NEDavis Photos
“I think one memorable moment for me was the guys talking about how they had an assembly line to create the little chicken and waffle skewers. Bily in charge of the waffle toaster and Rich and Jason stabbing them perfectly is hilarious.” ~ Wayward Jen
“The entire vibe never stopped being incredible. Seeing the guys so chill and happy and laughing just as hard as we were at everything is pretty much as good as it gets. Also: the ridiculous endless litany of band names, Billy being an absolute pervert continuously, and Jason’s beard.” ~ Kattie
“Outside of the constant hilarious banter between Rich, Billy, and Jason, and getting to hang out with them the whole weekend, I really enjoyed the performance of Me & Paul. It was my first time hearing it live and I loved the updated lyrics and audience participation.” ~ Miranda
“The music, the laughs, and libations were free flowing at Jason Manns’s music venue, The Heist, in Bowling Green, VA. Billy Moran, Jason Manns, and Richard Speight, Jr.’s two-night extravaganza embodied what a post-con concert experience is like. It’s heaven! If you couldn’t make it here, go to a post-con concert and enjoy!” ~ Vicky G.
Intended to recreate the “Post Con-Cert” experience from Creation Entertainment tours, both evenings provided an intimate and relaxed atmosphere with music, laughs, and cheers throughout the night. “Post Con-Certs” were added to Creation’s agenda just last year so, despite Speight, Moran, and Manns knowing each other for several years, this act is relatively new. Fortunately, the talented trio’s chemistry is strong, as is their ability to adlib, so being a work-in-progress only adds to the allure.
To see a live performance from Speight, Moran, and Manns, purchase tickets to the “Post Con-Cert” for any location during the 2025 Creation Tour. Conventions resume in April. Also, mark your calendar for Thursday, October 30th, 2025. That’s when Speight’s band, Dick Jr. and the Volunteers, will take the stage for their third annual performance at Nashville’s Exit In. To hear about Dick Jr. and show opener, The Station Breaks (featuring Moran, Manns, and Rob Benedict), check out last fall’s interview with frontman Richard Speight, Jr., on my podcast, Denim-wrapped Nightmares.
* Special thanks to Nancy Davis of NEDavis Photos for video footage.
** This month is the one-year anniversary of Dick Jr. and the Volunteers’ latest album release, Fistfights and Hug-outs. Revisit my review at https://www.thewinchesterfamilybusiness.com/92717-richard-speight-jr-2024-same-dick-new-music/.
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