Houston, TX - Media Reviews
Saturday Night: Def Leppard, Poison & Lita Ford at The Woodlands By Christina Lynn
Lita Ford kicked off Saturday evening with her blazing cover of Elton John's "The Bitch Is Back." Considering the interview Rocks Off did with her this past week (above), this was a very appropriate song for her to open her set.
Ford sounds and looks as great as she did in the '80s, and played two songs from her new album, Living Like a Runaway: "Relentless" and the title track. I must say, she was right with what she said in our interview -- those songs do translate well live. At the end of her set, Ford received a standing ovation. If Saturday night is any indication of her future, she is back and ready to roll.
Poison started their set with "Look What the Cat Dragged In." Great front men ooze charisma, something that was not in short supply for lead singer Bret Michaels, who also took time to thank the men and women in the military and announced his upcoming appearance on Celebrity Apprentice: Allstars.
Needless to say, though, guitarist C.C. Deville nearly stole the show with his solo on Poison's version of Loggins & Messina's "Your Mama Don't Dance." Even that was nothing compared to what he did on "Nothin' But a Good Time," by which point the audience had reached fever-pitch proportions.
In fact, Saturday's crowd was very receptive to Poison by nearly singing along to every song they did. Their set was one big high-octane hit parade, which the audience and myself loved. During the lighter-friendly anthem, "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," Michaels said "26 years and I still got chills on my arm."
Surprisingly enough, though, Poison didn't perform that many ballads.
By the time Def Leppard took the stage, the crowd was ready to rock hard. They opened their set with "Undefeated" and continued into such stadium-friendly anthems as "Rocket, "High N' Dry" and "Let's Get Rocked."
During the acoustic portion, which was the one of the highlights of the evening, they did a rendition of the Rolling Stones' "You Can't Always Get What You Want" as well as "Now," "Where Does Love Go When It Dies." Lead singer Joe Elliott asked the audience if they wanted to "join the band" and said "let's give those people in Dallas something to top," referring to how loud everyone was cheering. (Dallas was the next stop on the tour.) Everyone, of course, wanted to join.
Guitarist Phil Collen proved that he, along with fellow guitarist Vivian Campbell, are among the great guitar legends with the instrumental "Switch 625," a deep track penned by late guitarist Steve Clark, whom Campbell replaced after Clark's 1991 death.
The other highlight of the evening came in the form of Def Leppard's video production crew. Throughout each song, they would show some interesting graphics on the screens behind the band.
For example, during "Rocket," they had a graphic of a rocket going into space with the iconic Def Leppard logo on it. For "Photograph," they showed old photographs of the band from the '80s. A camera attached to the guitar and the drummer's area that would show the audience onscreen closeups of Collen's fretboard or the drummer's area when they were engaged in a solo, which made their performances a lot more interesting.
During one of the more playful moments of the show, audience members kept handing Elliott cans of beer. He would take a sip off them and then hand it back to the person. He only took about two or three overall. The crowd loved it.
By Houston Press 2012.
Def Leppard concert is history lesson in hit music By Tommy Mann Jr.
"Professor" Joe Elliott and his bandmates in Def Leppard offered fans a history lesson in music on Saturday night.
Def Leppard brought the "Rock of Ages 2012" tour to The Woodlands on Saturday (Sept. 1, 2012) and delivered a spectacular 100-minute set of classic hits which helped define a generation.
The band opened the show with the song, "Undefeated," which is a new track featured on the "Mirrorball: Live and More" CD. That would be it for new material for the night, which suited the audience just fine, because this was a celebration and no ordinary for concert.
The group performed a total of 16 songs, eight of which came from the "Hysteria" album, which was released 25 years ago this past August. Fans weren't disappointed with the setlist one bit, as the band offered plenty of rockers, like "High ''N Dry" and "Foolin'" to keep the fists pumping and ballads such as "Love Bites" to rekindle those special memories.The band also offered fans a special treat with a medley of rarely heard gems performed acoustically, on a tour crate at the front of the stage such as "You Can't Always Get What You Want," "Where Does Love Go When It Dies," "Now," "When Love and Hate Collide," and "Two Steps Behind."
Although the band strolled the stage with charisma and attitude, a bit more energy in the overall performance would have put this show over the top. As it was, it still turned out to be a very good concert from the band.
Poison served as main support and didn't disappoint fans in a brief, but hit-laden set of music. Most of the classics were here, including "Talk Dirty to Me" and "Fallen Angel," but the highlight of the band's set came during the song "Every Rose Has Its Thorn."
Following vocalist Bret Michaels lead, the majority of the audience produced cell phones and lighters and transformed the arena into living Christmas tree during the song. It proved to be a very memorable moment.
Rocker Lita Ford has returned from an all too long hiatus away from the world and has she been sorely missed. Her six-song, 30-minute set was all too brief, but had the majority of the early arrivals on their feet by the end thanks to classic hits such as "Close My Eyes Forever" and "Kiss Me Deadly." Ironically, it is Ford who performed the most new material of the night as she featured the songs "Relentless" and the new album's title track, "Living Like a Runaway."
By The Orange Leader 2012.
DEF LEPPARD, POISON, LITA FORD - Live in Houston, Texas By Larry Petro
My wife's birthday is in September, so when i asked her last year what she wanted for her birthday, she said that she wanted to go see Def Leppard, who was touring the States with Heart. Of course, being the good husband that I am (cough), I got a pair of tickets to the show and we sat about 11 rows back outside of the pit on the left. Fast forward now to 49 weeks later (yes, I counted) and Def Leppard once again played Houston, this time with Poison and Lita Ford in tow. When I tried to understand exactly why the band was out on the road again after such a short break, the only reason I could fathom was that maybe they were trying to capitalize on the Tom Cruise Rock of Ages movie and, of course, the current Def Leppard tour was aptly named the Rock of Ages Tour 2012. So, once again I asked my wife what she wanted. She is a big Poison fan and having never seen them live before the choice was pretty simple: She wanted to see Def Leppard again. So, three days before their September 1, 2012 show I managed to snag some 3rd row, center section tickets and the day before the concert was notified that I had been approved for a photo pass as well.
We got to the venue around 6:15 or so because even though the show was listed as being a 7 pm start, the Woodlands Pavilion had posted the set times on their Facebook page and Lita Ford was listed as a 6:55 start and I wanted to make sure we had anough time to get in, find our seats and get my wife situated before I had to leave and meet up to get escorted into the barricade to shoot photos. Lita Ford hit the stage right on time, opening her spirited but brief 6 song set with her cover of Elton John's "The Bitch is Back". I have to be honest and say that she looked much older than I expected to see. Granted, she is pushing her mid-50s and most certainly still does look fine for her age, but being that close up to her kinda shattered my expectations a bit. She played a decent set including 2 tracks off of her latest release, Living Like a Runaway, the title track and another called "Relentless", both of which sounded really good. Just as she seemed to be getting warmed up, it was time for her set to end.
Next up were summer perennials Poison. When I first got confirmation of my photo pass, my wife had jokingly asked if I was going to let her use the pass to take the Poison pics. When I went to check in at the press table and get my pass I was given the okay to let her take the photos, so her birthday present was about to get lots better. Now, she has never used my camera in a setting like this, and even though I managed to give her a quick crash course in its operation I did not have any expectations that she would actually take usable photographs, not because she doesn't have the ability mind you, but because it was her first time using my camera at a concert, it was her first time to be in the barricade and because she would probably be too starstruck to remember what I had taught her about its operation. None of that really mattered because the whole point was for her to be up there and experience it firsthand how close you are to the stage and performers. She was quite apprehensive about doing it but after some prodding she finally agreed and off she went. The lights went down and Poison predictably took the stage at 7:50 with "Look What the Cat Dragged In". Can anyone tell me if they've ever opened with anything else? The band was alotted 50 minutes for their set so as you might imagine they had to stick with a somewhat shortened version of what they play every year when they headline a summer shed tour. "Ride the Wind", "Fallen Angel" and "Unskinny Bop" were included, but "Something to Believe In" was not (THANK GOD!). One thing that just chaps my ass about their set though is the need to have both a guitar and a drum solo! Seriously guys, is it that much of an ego thing? When you only have less than an hour to play, do your fans a favor and play an extra song or 2 or 3 or 4 instead of boring us with this crap. IF you're headlining and can play an hour and a half to two hours, that's one thing, but certainly not when you're an opener. That mess aside, the band put on a great show, were very energetic and into the crowd, with lots of interaction throughout. When my wife arrived back at our seats after her first 3 song photo session, she probably could not have been more excited and sure enough, had that glazed, "I almost touched Bret Michaels", look about her. And much to my surprise, she managed to get some great shots in the process!
So Poison finishes up right about 8:40 and according to the set time schedule I had seen earlier, Def Leppard was supposed to start at 9:30. The wife wanted to get a shirt so we(she) decided to brave the merch lines, and why not, I figured that we had plenty of time. She may have only been 5 people back in line, but she was there every bit of 20-25 minutes! As luck would have it, right as she got to the counter to be served, Def Leppard took the stage, FIFTEEN minutes early! Needless to say, I missed the photo opportunity in the barricade for them. We got back to our seats as the band was finishing up the opener, "Undefeated". I have to give the band credit for changing up the set just a bit from the last time they were through. One of the additions was a couple of tracks from the Hign N Dry album, such as "Let It Go" and "Saturday Night (High N' Dry)". On show days that were Saturdays, the band inserted "Saturday Night" and "Let It Go" on all other nights. Also inserted was "Gods of War", from the band's Hysteria release. The band was in top form and, considering the heat and humidity on this warm Texas evening, they had the energy as well. They played an hour and 45 minute set, obviously showcasing the hits that made them famous, but for me, i'm an old school fan who thinks High N Dry is their best album. At one point vocalist Joe Elliot strapped on an acoustic and headed out the stage walkway, soon accompanied by his bandmates, where they all sat on an equipment case and played an acoustic medley of "You Can't Always Get What You Want", "Where Does Love Go When It Dies", "Now", "When Love And Hate Collide", "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad" and "Two Steps Behind", a break the band probably needed at that point in the show. Counting the medley of songs, the band performed 23 songs during their set, finishing off the night with one encore, "Rock of Ages". As much as I feel like these guys sold out early on in their careers to become mega famous, they have put on a fantastic show the past 2 years and they certainly have a lot to celebrate this year: 30 years since Pyromania, 30 years of Phil Collen being in the band, 20 years since Adrenalize and 20 years since Vivian Campbell's addition as guitarist. And if the band plans on being here next year at this time, they had just better plan on putting my wife on the VIP list because it's going to be hard to top her present after this year.
The one main concern I had about the show was what kind of attendence there would be, considering the fact that they were here recently and because the ticket prices were what I considered to be a little on the steep side, with all of the front reserved sections having a price tag of $125 before TT+L. To my surprise the place was quite packed, a testimony to the band's continual drawing power.
By KNAC 2012.
Def Leppard/Poison/Lita Ford - Woodlands Pavilion - Woodlands, TX - REVIEW By Dave Clements
Def Leppard band mates lead by front man Joe Elliott evidently couldn't wait to please the Woodlands Pavilion crowd as they started their set almost fifteen minutes early. That's not something you see very often but welcomed enthusiastically by the nearly ten thousand fans. My opinion is they didn't want to break the momentum created by openers Lita Ford and the Brett Michael's lead band Poison and, I'm happy to report…THEY DIDN'T.
These five guys rocked the house well into the night and didn't miss a beat from their fellow traveling mates who have been touring together this time around since early June with 'The Rock The Ages Tour 2012'. The run ends in California in Mid-September.
Lita Ford been rocking hard since she first hit the music scene in 1975 with the all girl band The Runaways (the group that also launched the career of one of my favorites, Joan Jett, who went on to front the Blackhearts). Ford is still looking mighty fine at 56 and if you want to see what she looked like at 46, 36, and 26 go Google her…it is worth the effort.
To kick the evening off musically Lita started with Elton John's song 'The Bitch Is Back'…worked for me and evidently much of the audience who started the three plus hour sing along. Ford rocked it nicely through her set and accomplished what she needed to do, get the evening going in the right direction.
No matter what Lita would have done the show was going to pick up the pace when Brett Michaels and Poison hit the stage. I had never seen these guys before but was I missing something! I believe their name is misleading…in my mind it has a negative connotation. The opposite is really the case!
Michaels came to smile, chat with the audience, celebrate our Men and Women in Uniform that defend our country and entertain ever single person in attendance. The guy is non stop and such a delight to observe and listen to…I get why Trump liked him on Celebrity Apprentice. They ripped thru their set list including doing a cover song that surprised me….Your Mama Don't Dance (and your daddy don't rock and roll). I have been a Loggins and Messina fan for many years and it was a pleasure to see these guys have so much fun with their song. They also were very impressive on Every Rose has its Thorn.
Well done guys! And did I mention that not only did they bring several service men and women to the front of the stage for the show, they also got them up on stage at the end of their set and took photos with them. I thought this was very cool, and something those American Soldiers won’t soon forget.
As an aside, Michaels stopped by where the photographers were standing, waiting to shoot Def Leppard after Poison's show, said a brief hello and a 'thanks for coming out'. We could wait a very long time for an artist to do that again!
Now back to Def Leppard. They contributed significantly to the late 70's and 80's rock scene. These Brits have a very distinctive sound though not so obvious now with lead singer Joe Elliott's vocals being a little less 'crisp'. Honestly, though, it didn't distract from their music this night. The guys played most of their hits including to my surprise and delight my favorite, Photograph. This song is from their Pyromania Album released in 1983 and documented by Rolling Stone's 2004 list of Greatest Albums Of All Time at number 384!
I hadn't seen Def Leppard before nor had my wife, and she couldn't take her eyes off of guitar player Phil Collen (not to be mistaken for Phil Collins…this difference made obvious by the always in view six pack! This guy never donned a shirt.) I, on the other hand, was busy being so impressed with drummer Rick Allen who pounded away all night long on his special drum kit with one arm, his right one at that. Allen lost his left arm in an auto accident on New Year's Eve 2004 when he failed to negotiate a curve in his Corvette. The boy fought back and learned how to play with one arm and incorporated both his feet to offset what he lost. Rick Allen, you are the man, no matter how distracted these women are by Mr. Collen.
Back to the music, this review wouldn't be complete without mentioning that Def Leppard ended the night with the same frenetic pace kicked off by Lita Ford hours before. They kicked rock and roll butt with Armageddon It , Photograph, Pour Some Sugar, and Rock Of Ages.
Oops, I almost failed to mention the musical highlight of the night for Cathi and me, and perhaps everyone in the Pavilion. One by one, starting with Elliott, then Collen, then band mates Rick Savage and Vivian Campbell, came out with their acoustic guitars strapped on and sat on an equipment trunk on the stage thrust singing a medley of some lesser known tunes from past records. Then, if that wasn't enough Allen came out with his percussion Shaker, and joined in with the 4 guitar players creating a lovely sound. So decidedly un-Def Leppard but immensely entertaining. Thanks Guys…it was beautiful. Wish I could have photographed it…a moment in R&R history.
Until next time hope you keep it between the navigational beacons.
By Houston Music Review 2012.
Rock of Ages Tour - Def Leppard, Lita Ford, Poison By Leslie Michele Derrough
When Poison breaks into "Nothin' But A Good Time" they could very well be singing the theme song for this summer traveling extravaganza with headliners Def Leppard and the back-in-black-leather Lita Ford. Dubbed the Rock Of Ages tour, these 80's icons have been kicking up their heels and definitely having a good time rolling across America playing in the heat and humidity of the sheds. "It's hot and sticky in here," expressed Bret Michaels happily. "Just the way I like it."
Hot was definitely the go-to word for the people tucked in tight just outside of Houston. Sweat was dropping as fans started rocking when Lita Ford brought her "Bitch Is Back" set to life after over a decade of motherhood out of the spotlight. Charging through a short set of popular hits - a bone-chilling "Close My Eyes Forever" slowed down to emphasize heartbreak and "Kiss Me Deadly" - and some new blood, including the title track from her latest recording Living Like A Runaway and "Relentless". Ford was in excellent shape, physically and vocally, and appeared to be having fun as she shredded on guitar while backed by a strong group of musicians: Mitch Perry on guitar, Marty O'Brien on bass and Scot Coogan on drums.
It was great to see the mistress of metal back on a stage. "It feels great to be back," Ford told me just prior to starting the tour. "It's in my blood and I missed it. But I just wanted to be a mom for a while." After living on an island, being a wife and a mother, when Ford decided to come back to her first love, "It was like when I left thirteen years ago, I left an empty pair of shoes sitting there that nobody could wear. And when I came back fifteen years later, those shoes were still sitting there unfilled. Nobody had filled those shoes yet. They were still waiting for me."
Poison hustled into the blinding lights next, kicking their heels up and channeling their younger selves with a vitality that was so infectious they had every single attendee dancing by their seats and singing like frisky cats at a fish fry. You have to admit, there is not a band out there on the circuit today that epitomizes fun better than these guys. From "Look What The Cat Dragged In" to "Your Mama Don't Dance" to "Unskinny Bop" to "Talk Dirty To Me" to "Fallen Angel" and finally exiting with a balloon-popping "Nothin' But A Good Time", they never let up. Even during the endearing "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" the energy was as bright as the full moon shining above the Pavilion.
It's good to see that Michaels continues to rally around the troops overseas, always giving them his 100% support. In fact, our military is very special to the whole band, going back to their early days, as drummer Rikki Rockett told me in an exclusive interview (which follows this article) prior to the band's set. Filming this portion of their set to be whizzed via satellite overseas, Michaels asked everyone to light up the night with whatever they had: cell phones, lighters, cameras. "Whatever you got, light it up."
Poison's set was not just all about Michaels. CC DeVille was a guitar screaming maniac, playing spasmodic solos on "Fallen Angel" and "Dirty" while bass player Bobby Dall held things together as Rockett kept the rhythm tight and brought out some funk during his drum solo. Having personally seen Poison several times over the past few years, this was definitely their most energetic performance to date of songs they have sung a thousand times.
While Ford and Poison made the big stage seem more intimate, Def Leppard opened it up and made it larger than life. Despite some overly-echo effects, which tended to throw off the rhythm of the song at times, it was nonstop hit after hit after hit. The band, in top-notch form and celebrating over thirty years of rocking the masses, brought it big and brought it loud. Celebrating the 25th anniversary of their monster hit Hysteria and the 20th anniversary of Adrenalize, the band is not showing much wear and tear. Despite some terrible tragedies that could have squashed their inner spirit, Def Leppard instead locked arms and defiantly moved forward into an uncertain future, doing what they knew best.
Not long ago Tom Cruise took a turn at the mic in a film that brought 80's music lovers into movie theaters, henceforth kicking off this Rock Of Ages companion tour. Huge moments came in the form of "Foolin", "Animal", "Women", an electrified "Bringin' On The Heartbreak", "Armageddon It" and "Pour Some Sugar On Me".
Continuing with their usual regime of an acoustic segment mid-set, singer Joe Elliott, guitar players Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell, bass player Rick Savage, and drummer Rick Allen walked out individually to sit on an equipment trunk, each bearing acoustic guitars; except for Allen, receiving the biggest pop of the night, who tapped a tambourine. Campbell, seated next to Elliott actually got up to allow the applauded Allen to sit up front and soak up the adulation he so-well deserved. It was a triumphant segment with bits of the Stones "You Can't Always Get What You Want", plus "Two Steps Behind", "Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad", "Now" and "When Love & Hate Collide".
A gem amidst the whole Def Leppard machine is Campbell, often overlooked for the more flamboyant Collen, and his predecessor the late Steve Clark. With some Irish slow burn solos sprinkled throughout, he certainly shined on songs such as "Love Bites", "Heartbreak" and "Women". Although still considered the "new guy", he is celebrating twenty years with the band in 2012.
It was a night of big stars, big songs and big moments that were treasured by the fans congregated in this cozy amphitheater outside of Houston. And for one fan in particular, she was heading out to the next two shows because sometimes, once is not enough.
By Glide Magazine 2012.
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