Three for the price of one, that's what 80's music fans got last night at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, RI.
The first surprise of the night was that the concert actually started on time. I'm not sure that I've ever been to a concert that started right on the minute it was scheduled for. The other thing I loved was that the set changes were very quick. I have been to many concerts that had 3 or 4 big acts and it took forever to change their set so this was great, it was a fast and smoth transition between bands.
Loverboy kicked off the night opening with Queen of Broken Hearts. They put on a great show singing all their hits from the 80's and ending with Working for the Weekend. I wasn't sure what to expect from lead singer Mike Reno as it's been a long time since he could fit into those tight red leather pants, I had seen him on tv a few years ago and he did not leave the best impression, I was afraid his vocals wouldn't be the same live. Make no mistake he can still sing like he did back in the day, a few pounds heavier, (but aren't we all). They put on a great show.
Pat Benatar and husband of 30 years, Neil Giraldo, came out next and they rocked the house. Her vocals were so strong. She is completely amazing. You could tell that they absolutely love what they do and they make a great team. Though Neil hasn't aged quite as gracefully as Pat he has not lost a thing when it comes to playing guitar, he is as amazing as ever. Pat performed a fun mashup during the encore of Hearbreaker and Ring of Fire. The only disappointment for me was that one of my personal favorites, Shadows of the Night, was left off the set list. If you have never seen Pat Benatar perform I say next time she comes to your town, GO!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66aqcOsnP2E
Finally the Headliner, JOURNEY...let's just say this and get it out of the way...there is only one Steve Perry. Now, I know it's probably not right to compare newcomer Arnel Pineda to Steve, afterall those are some pretty big shoes to fill. That being said, Arnel was inconsistent at best. There were some songs where he was right on the money, some that he oversang, tried too hard and some that he just plain forgot the words or perhaps missed his cue. Maybe it was an off night for him but inconsistent is the best way to put it. I will give him this, he has a lot of energy, I don't think you would see Steve Perry today running and jumping all over the stage the way Arnel did.
Neil Schon, the driving force behind Journey, showcased his brilliant guitar playing and made you remember that he is definately one of the guitar greats of his time.
Johnathan Cain also had a chance to showcase his amazing talent from keyboards to guitar and singing.
Also impressive was drummer, Dean Castronovo. He can play a mean drum and was impressive when he sang Wheel in the Sky.
As much as I love each one of these bands and I have some major fan loyalty to them all, if this was American Idol or the XFactor and I had to pick a winner, my vote would go to Pat Benatar.
If this show comes to your area, go, spend the money and buy the tickets you won't be disappointed. It really is a good value for your money to see these three bands together.
That's just my opinion!
totally agree. Pat was the star. Mixed her music with some personal conversation between her, Neil & the audience which made it seem fun & personal. Loverboy got in all their hits and were just general cool guys in a band. Every note was pitch perfect. I liked Journey but had a few too many extended guitar and piano solos for my taste. Also, there was not one second between songs, it was like a continuous flow of music with no breathing room. Pineda was good but almost TOO energetic, jumping all over the place he made me think he was filming a Zumba video. Kinda made the rest of the band seem slow & - dare i say it- old. Wish they would have done Oh Sherry, but overall a great 3 for 1 show!!
ReplyDeleteChristine, I agree with your added comments. Pineda was like a jack rabbit. LOL. Ross Vallory did not age well, he looked like he just walked out of the crypt. If they did Oh Sherry, I think Steve Perry would have sued them as that was his solo song, but I got my fix of Oh Sherry on youtube before the show.
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