January 30, 2025 • 7:30 PM • Rudder Auditorium
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COLLEGE STATION, TX: OPAS continues the “Legends & Icons” 2024-25 season with Michael Cavanaugh performing the music of James Taylor, Paul Simon and Neil Diamond on Thursday, January 30, 2025 at 7:30 PM in the Rudder Auditorium at Texas A&M University. Ticket prices range from $26-$83 and can be purchased at the MSC Box Office (979-845-1234) and online at www.OPAStickets.org. Special ticket prices are available for Texas A&M students.
No artist celebrates legends like Grammy® and Tony Award® nominee Michael Cavanaugh. He opened the first OPAS season post-Covid with an unforgettable concert featuring the biggest hits of Elton John and Billy Joel. Michael and his incredible band return to the Brazos Valley with an all-new show to get 2025 off to a rockin’ start. This time, Michael will pay tribute to some of the most iconic singer-songwriters of our time – James Taylor, Paul Simon and Neil Diamond. This concert will showcase why Cavanaugh is consistently ranked among the top live shows in the United States by PollStar and has a knack for bringing his unparalleled talent to reinterpreting and presenting timeless music. Hand-picked by Billy Joel himself, Cavanaugh got his start as the lead role in the Broadway musical Movin’ Out, and acclaimed for his highly energized piano and vocals. Billboard has called Cavanaugh “The New Voice of the American Rock ’n Roll Songbook,” for his thrilling tributes.
OPAS Executive Director Anne Black states, “We have a very busy spring in store. Kicking the new year off with Michael and his band is the perfect way to get things started! In his previous appearance in Rudder, Michael wowed our patrons with his talent and charm – showing he has a special place in his heart for Aggieland. We can’t wait to welcome him back on January 30 with his all-new show paying tribute to these American icons.”
This one-night-only concert, a part of the OPAS Singular Sensations series, will feature selections from Paul Simon’s solo career as well as songs from Simon and Garfunkel. It also includes hits from Neil Diamond and James Taylor. Fans can expect to hear favorites like “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “You Can Call Me Al,” “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover,” “Sweet Caroline,” “How Sweet It Is,” and more.
Michael Cavanaugh began playing at age seven, when his parents bought their first piano. Encouraged by family and friends, and inspired by his hero Billy Joel, Michael formed his first band at age 10 and began playing local functions, fine-tuning the craft that would become his chosen career. His first full-time gig as a musician was an extended engagement in Orlando, Florida, at a piano bar called Blazing Pianos. In January of 1999, Michael received an offer that would unknowingly change his life: an opportunity to play Las Vegas at the famed New York, New York Hotel and Casino. It was there that Billy Joel spotted Michael and joined him on stage one fateful night of February 2001. It only took two songs before Billy was convinced that he had found his new Piano Man: Michael Cavanaugh. Michael closed up shop at New York, New York and moved to New York City to work alongside Billy Joel and Twyla Tharp to shape the Broadway Musical that would be called Movin’ Out.
With the close of Movin’ Out at the end of 2005, Michael began touring in his own right, creating a show that reinterprets the modern pop/rock songbook. Michael soon became one of the hottest artists in the private events market, and he continues to perform worldwide for company and charity events as well as sporting events including many PGA tour events, the SuperBowl, and the Indy 500. He was recognized by Reuters as Entertainer of the Year for the private events market.
The Way I Hear It, his second commercial album, was released in April 2017, and it debuted at #17 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.