We were about to prove without a doubt……the
answer was/is YES. As I waited for one
of the best rock bands to come out of the 80’s to hit the stage, my mind was
racing. At the forefront of my thoughts was
the fact that I was on the verge of experiencing a concert that I had been
waiting to see for 25+ years. The
opportunity/timing never presented itself for me until now. So to say I was simply “excited” for this
night would be a colossal understatement.
The moment was here. Night Ranger hit the stage! While some of the members have changed over
the years, they sounded as solid as ever.
With Jack Blades running the stage, twirling with his guitar flying
around him, and belting out the lead vocals, you couldn’t prove by me that 25
years had passed. Brad Gillis blew us
away with his stellar guitar licks. He
mesmerized the fans with not only NR’s tunes, but also jammed on an Ozzy
Osbourne smash, Crazy Train. Gillis, who
played with Ozzy some 30 years ago, was teased by Blades that he wouldn’t
remember how to play any Ozzy songs after that many years. Gillis tore it up! Kelly Keagy still amazes with strong
vocals while pounding out the hits on the drums. He also left the drum set to come center stage
to sing lead on two of the band’s smash hits, “Goodbye” and “Sister
Christian.” 
While the charter members thrilled the fans, Joel Hoekstra
on guitar and Eric Levy on keyboards were equally as impressive. Joel, who possesses every bit the “rocker” look,
dressed all in black with long hair that whipped around as he played to the
crowd, had us in the palm of his hand.
Eric, who bears a striking resemblance to former keyboard player Alan
Fitzgerald, lit up the keyboard with a magnificent solo that awed the
concertgoers.
At one point I closed my eyes (no pun intended) and if I
hadn’t known better, I would have sworn I was 15 again hearing the original
recordings of these songs. From early
hits like “Don’t Tell Me You Love Me” and “Sing Me Away” to later smashes “When
You Close Your Eyes,” “Four In The Morning” and “Rumours In The Air,” this band
did not disappoint. I can promise you
this….….there will not be a long waiting period before I see this band again
live. I’ve already been checking out the
tour page on their website! You should
too!
Be sure to check out an acoustic compilation released in 2012 called “24 Strings and a Drummer” which revisits the hits!
Copyright
©2013 Alicia’s View On All Things Music All rights reserved
Copyright
©2013 Music Central All rights reserved
