| Band: | Michael Knott Band |
| Date: | July 3, 2003 |
| Venue: | Gallery Stage, Cornerstone Festival |
| Location: | Bushnell, Illinois |
| Michael Knott: | Vocals, Guitar, Bass on “Wino of the Red is Stained” and “Cool” |
| Andre Neely: | Bass, Guitar on “Wino of the Red is Stained” and “Cool” |
| Jason Chu: | Drums |
| 01) | English Interpreter of English | |
| 02) | Rock Stars on H | |
| 03) | Kitty Courtesy | |
| 04) | Rocket and a Bomb | |
| 05) | Double | |
| 06) | Skinny Bones Jones | |
| 07) | The Bomb / Cussword | |
| 08) | Finding Angel | |
| 09) | Wino of the Red is Stained | |
| 10) | Cool / Thru |
Flier
Video
Michael Knott also joined Squad Five-0 on stage during the Cornerstone Birthday Bash to perform one song.
| Band: | Squad Five-0 with Michael Knott Band |
| Date: | July 4, 2003 |
| Venue: | Main Stage, Cornerstone Festival |
| Location: | Bushnell, Illinois |
| Michael Knott: | Vocals |
| Adam Garbinski: | Vocals, guitar |
| Jeff Fortson: | Guitar |
| Kris Klein: | Guitar |
| John Fortson: | Bass |
| Dave Petersen: | Drums |
| 01) | I Don’t Wanna Change the World, I Just Wanna Change Your Mind | |
| 02) | Rock Stars on H |
Videos
Fan Thoughts
David _____ (missing last name – let me know if this is you):
In some ways, this was the real Cornerstone comeback year for Mike. The Squad Five-O duet was a blast; their lead singer introduced Mike as “the legend, the man himself” and “the cornerstone of Cornerstone, besides Jesus Christ.” (Wouldn’t Mark/Jane have fun with that comment?) Mike greeted the crowd with a loud, “Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ … is … Lllooorrrddd,” before the band kicked into a raucous version of “Rock Stars on H.” Glad I got it on tape.
Mike’s gig on the Gallery Stage was sandwiched between the Lost Dogs and the 77s, a much better time than last year’s Encore set at midnight. During press conferences I sat in on, members of Bleach called Knott a major influence and Five Iron Frenzy paid him tribute by passing around a pinata filled with pork and beans. The clincher came during Joy Electric’s “acoustic” set. After Ronnie Martin forgot the words in two of his first four songs, he muttered, “Man, I’m pulling a Mike Knott.” Good times, good times.
Mike put on a good show himself, as usual, although the sound quality was iffy and he ran out of time (five minutes too early, according to my watch) with three tunes still on his set list. His hair was buzzed but black again, and he seemed in good spirits about things to come. It was great to hear a pair of tunes from “The Grape Prophet” (“English Interpreter of English” and “Wino of the Red is Stained”).
Trae Cadenhead:
Cornerstone is one of the few opportunities to see Michael Knott play with a band supporting him. Having a drummer and bass player helped the music, but they had no way of channeling Knott’s unpredictable, nonsensical ways into a musical package that had any value aside from novelty. I often found myself wishing Knott had a lead guitarist playing with him. The set consisted of old songs that Knott had been playing for years. I wanted to hear some songs from his new CDs which show him developing as an artist but he neglected these songs for his live show. I suppose the problem is that I’ve developed so much respect for Michael Knott through his CDs that I want to see him carry to his live show. But these days he seems incapable of doing so. Not to say it wasn’t fun, but if I weren’t already accustomed to Michael Knott, I would probably not have found much to enjoy.
Pretty much everyone and their dog ended up at the Birthday Bash at main stage. About a dozen bands and artists from various eras and styles played along with archival footage of previous Cornerstone years. During Squad Five-O’s two-song set they brought out Michael Knott to sing “Rock Stars on H.” The next few minutes resulted in a lot of fun and Knott ripping his shirt off while going crazy during the song.
An Old Timer’s Thoughts on Cornerstone
by Chris MacIntosh aka Grandfather Rock:
Tuesday, July 1st.
Up next was the man who rightly holds the title of the father of Christian punk rock, the one, the only Michael Knott. Mike had the crowd in the palms of his hands from the first note to the last. What followed next was nothing short of amazing.