Def Leppard / Poison Rock of Ages Review

On Wednesday, July 11th, I took the little guy to his first rock concert with a few friends.  It was Def Leppard and Poison with Lita Ford as an opening act.


Lita Ford did a very short set.  Maybe 5 songs?  She ended with Kiss Me Deadly and obviously Ozzy was not there for Close My Eyes Forever.  At one point, she tried to get the limited crowd to sing along with her.  Funny to hear an awkward silence in an arena full of people.  I think the people there at the time just were not paying attention.  No complaints here.  She sounded fine.




Next up was Poison.  Nice to see them with their original lineup.
They did most of their recognizable songs and played each one well.  I was slightly disappointed that they did not play Life Goes On and I Won't Forget You, but it seemed like their set was cut short since they were not the "headliner."  The also did not play Something To Believe In, although I would have preferred either of the previously mentioned songs over that one.


The crowd's best reaction came with Fallen Angel with Ride The Wind not being far behind.  Every Rose Has It's Thorn was done very well too.


Rikki Rockett and Bobby Dall are very low profile.  Bobby Dall is cool, though, and I've always liked him for some indescribable reason.  C.C. DeVille is back and despite all his past troubles, performed really well. As a guitarist, I thought the scales in his solo were ridiculous, but being an EVH fan, his finger tapping sounded too much like Eruption.

Then there is Bret Michaels.  This guy is pure class.  Right out of the gate he says how much he likes coming back to Jersey.  He never said, New York (hint hint, Joe Elliott!  Ah, it's just across the river and we'll give you a break since you're a Brit). Over the course of the show, he dedicates songs to men and women in our Armed Forces, workers from local unions, and things like that.  He always speaks with respect and sincerity.  If you've never watched the VH1 Behind The Music about Poison, or any of the reality shows Bret has been on, you're missing out.  For someone who's been through a lot, especially health issues, it's great to see a talented yet humble regular guy in the spotlight.  From my seat, I was able to see, what I'm guessing was, Bret's wife and kid just off stage for their whole set.  Good stuff.  He also mentioned that he'll be on the Celebrity Apprentice All Stars coming soon.  

Finally, Def Leppard came on.  This is the first concert I've ever been to where the band ended up playing EVERY song I hoped to hear.  The ones I didn't expect them to play were Let It Go and Bringing On The Heartbreak, both from High 'N Dry, but to my delight, they did.  Their set was the largest of the night and had the most effects.  Joe Elliott's voice is a little aged, but he still does a good job.  One thing I thought was done well, was for some of their "less knows" ballads like Two Steps Behind, When Love and Hate Collide, and Have You ever Needed Someone So Bad, Joe started alone sitting on a roadie box at the end of the catwalk with an acoustic guitar.  One by one, each band member slowly joined him and sat on the box with an acoustic.  Lastly, one armed Rick Allen came out and sat next to Joe with a maraca.  It was done very well.

Overall, I'd say the show was outstanding.  Getting to see Photograph played live was something I had never considered before.  It wasn't until before the concert yesterday, that I started reflecting on the impact that one song had on my youth.  Yes, I had the sleeveless Union Jack T-shirt at one time.  For the little guy's first concert, I think he enjoyed it very much.  He and his friend didn't touch their video game too much during the show.


If this show comes your way, I highly recommend it.