All right, so it’s obvious that some people don’t like to have fun. Some people think that reggae-fied versions of Pink Floyd, Radiohead and the Beatles are merely cause for scoffing. Not me, my friends—as evident from my praise-filled preview of last night’s Easy Star All-Stars show. I dig this stuff, even if it’s pretty damn cheesy sometimes.

And so do plenty of other people, it seems: I overheard someone saying that the show was the most crowded show they’d seen at the Stuy Town Oval (despite a rainstorm before that delivered somewhat of a festival mud experience). The crowd was full of parents and children, hipsters (what?!?) and unshaven dudes in Phish T-shirts from the latest tour. Hey, they’re on a break until the second leg starts in late July; what else are these people supposed to do?

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The Easy Stars rifled through Floyd, Radiohead and the Beatles, going  heavy on the Fab Four—no surprise, as the group’s latest is Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band. It was a little off-putting, not hearing the albums covered track by track—the three-band mix felt odd. That said,  the horns on each song really shined, and “Let Down” from Radiodread (the band’s take on OK Computer) topped the night for me. They completely transform a downer song from Thom Yorke & Co. into an upbeat jam.

What was particularly striking last night was the setup itself. Stuy Town doesn’t really need to do its summer concert series, and they pull it off nicely. It’s free, the crowd is diverse, and they let people do their thing. Drinks with paper bags were ubiquitous but the police were not. And wouldn’t you know it? People were smoking pot, too.

If you haven’t been to a Stuy Town show yet, check out the strong remaining lineup:

July 1 – Jay Reatard

July 8 – Forró in the Dark

July 15 - Kaki King