Acoustic 80s metal!!
I remember seeing White Lion open for Ozzy in the late 80s in Irvine. I wasn’t a fan going into the show, but I left as one. That was the “Big Game” tour. They really were an excellent band back in the day.
Mike Tramp can still sing really well. He had good arrangements for acoustic versions of the songs His best tunes were “When the Children Cry” and “Little Fighter”. Those two songs alone were worth the price of the ticket, parking and gas to get there.
He also hung out upstairs after his set and signed autographs and took pictures. Way cool!
Stryper sounded awesome. They told stories, jokes, talked for a while and played some good tunes.
Michael Sweet and Oz Fox are both underrated. Both of them really shred and make a good guitar combo.
And Oz really can carry a tune. Their harmonies always sound fantastic live and this was a good showcase for them to play some good songs. Early in the set, their best song was “Calling on You”.
Towards the end of the set, they had 15 year old Gabbie Rae come up and sing “Always There for You”. She’s a great young singer and she nailed it.
Here’s an obstructed picture of Jeff Scott Soto singing “Fat Bottomed Girls” taken up on the balcony towards the end of the set (the same reason there’s not a pic of Gabbie Rae). It sounded pretty awesome from up there.
They closed out with “Ready For Love” by Bad Company and “Soldiers Under Command”. It was kind of a bummer that they didn’t play “Free” or “To Hell With The Devil”. I figured those songs were mandatory at any type of Stryper show…
One of the advantages of sitting on the balcony is being able to zoom in and take a picture a good portion of the set list.
And gives you a good view of this:
Something is wrong with this picture. Look at that thumb:
Great show. I’d go see this one again, for sure.