Tribute bands are often misunderstood. People assume they’re cover bands—they’re not. People think the shows are only for an older crowd—they’re not. People believe the bands are all imitations—which, yes—that’s kind of the point.
Really, everything is right there in the name.
A tribute is an act, statement or gift meant to show gratitude, respect or admiration. For me, that last part really shines. These bands are, above all, devoted fans—sharing their time and talent in deep reverence for the original acts. They take on a real responsibility: to capture the spirit, sound and magic of the artists they honor. In the case of this story, that includes Fleetwood Mac, the Rolling Stones and the Tragically Hip.
Songbirds
Jeffrey Fischer on bass for Songbirds.
“We study how Fleetwood Mac plays the song and interprets the music and behaves on stage. We aren’t trying to necessarily look like them. We aren’t impersonators. But we are trying to behave like them and how they perform the music live,” explains Maryssa Peirick, of Songbirds, a Fleetwood Mac tribute band. She plays the role of Christine McVie.
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Songbirds is a supergroup of musicians: Dave Cocuzzi, Jeffrey Fischer, Christian Hawk, Maryssa and Julia Riley, who all have been in and around the WNY music scene for years.
It all started with “The Dance,” a 1997 recording and live album of Fleetwood Mac performing at Warner Brother Studios in California. Growing up, Dave watched with his grandparents and became a forever fan right then and there. He credits Mick Fleetwood with getting him to pick up drumsticks in the first place.
After playing in various local bands, he met Jeff and shared his pipe dream to form a Fleetwood Mac tribute band.
“I’m sort of the six degrees of Kevin Bacon here. I knew everyone and helped bring us all together,” says Jeff, who plays the role of John McVie for the group.
It was an easy sell for the others and not limiting, as one may assume.
“I never feel confined by what we’re doing. Because we focus on the live element, you can listen to 10 different versions of a single song and there’s always something new there. Because of that, you can study more than the notes being played but how it’s being played,” says Christian, who plays the part of guitar god Lindsey Buckingham for the group.
Christian Hawk on guitar for Songbirds.
The story of a song changes when performed live versus in a studio.
“I really try to figure out why Stevie [Nicks] was channeling that energy for a given song. Why was she so intense? What were the lyrics about? I use that to drive the emotion behind my performance,” says Julia, who plays the role of the mystical Stevie Nicks..
You know these songs. They’ve been playing on the radio for over 50 years. But you’ve never heard them like this unless you were lucky enough to see Fleetwood Mac in their heyday. The British-American band is known for internal drama including romantic entanglements, breakups, betrayals and creative tension. Songbirds wants you to feel that in their performances.
“If you want to hear the studio cuts, listen to ‘Rumours’ or ‘Mirage.’ If you want to see a show, find a band that captures that live element and energy. That’s our thing,” Christian says.
Dead Flowers
When the Rolling Stones were headed to Buffalo in 2015, it was the only Saturday show of the entire tour.
Gary Zoldos, a longtime Stones fan, wanted to properly celebrate this rarity. He posted a Facebook status that read, “I want to host a party for Rolling Stones fans who are coming in to town. Who wants to form a band to play this one gig?”
The result was a group of musicians Gary calls “bonus brothers” who are made up of Geoff Boulden, Kenny Jay, Bob Kupczyk and Ronal Lee. The show was at The Cove in Depew (a venue the band still performs at).
“We did the gig, and it went so well that my phone started blowing up with people that were there or heard about us and wanted to book us for other events,” says Gary, founder of the Dead Flowers. “Ten years later, here we are.”
Gary and the Dead Flowers know they don’t have moves like [Mick] Jagger, the Stones’ front man known for his distinct, hip-swiveling strut. But they channel the band by covering songs from all eras with their carefully curated setlists.
“When you come to our shows, you’ll notice we have a dinner set and dessert set,” Gary says. “Quieter Rolling Stones songs that are more folksy, country or bluesy are played in the first hour. [Then,] the dessert set, which I like to say is all killer, no filler. It’s just hit after hit after hit, the upbeat songs that fill the dancefloor.”
Crowd work is a priority for Dead Flowers. Gary chats with the audience pre-show and asks about favorite songs, information he later uses to personalize shoutouts throughout the show. You get the sense the stage is exactly where he wants to be.
“A lot of my friends are in bowling leagues or softball leagues, but none of that is for me. I sing Rolling Stones songs on the weekends,” he laughs.
The Strictly Hip
Gord Downie, front man of the beloved Canadian rock band the Tragically Hip, passed away in 2017. The Strictly Hip has been tributing them since 1995.
It is not lost on lead singer Jeremy Hoyle that his band is now one of the main ways people can experience this music in a live setting.
“I view it as a responsibility to do it correctly and with class,” Jeremy says. “Gord Downie used to quote Henry David Thoreau, and he said, ‘You have to read something as intentionally as it was written.’ We take that mantle to our performance. We don’t take it lightly at all. We understand what’s the expectation, and we try to live up to it.”
The current lineup is Jeremy, Frank Nicastro, Steve Padin, Alan Sliwinski and Bruce Wojick. Each member writes their own music and has their own records out, but they’re also performers. Just like Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley or even the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, it’s not always about playing your own stuff. To be in the Strictly Hip is a choice they all knowingly make to be in service of the original band’s music.
“We’re evangelists for the music,” Jeremy says. “That’s the creative side of being in our band. We come up with new ways to listen to the music or to experience music. Be it themes of shows, or we’ll do set lists from specific dates in cities. It’s about finding different ways to experience that music.”
Tribute bands like Songbirds, Dead Flowers and the Strictly Hip aren’t just reliving the past — they’re reviving it. These are musicians who pour their hearts into honoring their heroes, not by copying them, but by breathing new life into the music night after night.
So if you see a tribute band playing at your favorite bar, go! Experience it live. You might be surprised by just how real it feels.
