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State Farm Stadium Hosts The Stadium Tour featuring Def Leppard, Mötley Crüe, Poison, and Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022
Motley Crue was a mess at State Farm Stadium. But this band proved '80s metal still rocks.
Nikki Sixx and his bandmates had just dusted off "The Dirt (Est. 1981)" when the Motley Crue bassist took a moment to bask in the glory of the vindication he was feeling, seeing yet another stadium filled to the rafters for the summer's hottest rock 'n' roll tour.
"I can't believe this (expletive)," he told the crowd at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Thursday, Aug. 25. "Someone said rock is dead? We've been selling out stadiums across America."
Def Leppard's Joe Elliot - Photo by Pete Malamas - NOISE
It's a theme Bret Michaels touched on earlier this week when he told the Republic rock fans "never got the Post-it note that said, 'You're not supposed to like this,'" by way of explaining why the success of the Stadium Tour was a bit of a foregone conclusion.
The tour has been drawing an average of 36,000-some people a night, grossing just under $5 million a show for a bill that's topped by the Crue and Def Leppard with Poison, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts and a young group known as Classless Act.
The last time any of these artists went Top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 was in 1994, when "Miss You In a Heartbeat" by Def Leppard peaked at No. 39.
But the audience that fell in love with what these groups were doing in the '80s has remained intensely loyal.
And coming out of a global pandemic that made it impossible for music fans to gather for much of the past two years, the "Nothin' But a Good Time" vibe of '80s metal may have more appeal than ever.
Def Leppard Opened with a Surprising Song Choice
Motley Crue and Def Leppard have been taking turns topping the bill. At State Farm Stadium on Thursday, Aug. 25, Def Leppard did the honors, and they did the honors well.
They boldly opened their headlining set — on what by any reasonable metric would be viewed as a nostalgia tour — with the first of three selections from "Diamond Star Halos," an album they released in May 2022.
They were the only songs in Thursday's set from records they've released this century.
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Photos by Pete Malamas - NOISE
More Than 50,000 Revel in
Billy Joel's Big Ballpark Show
Chase Field on Saturday, March 9, 2023
Billy Joel blew the roof off Chase Field on Saturday, March 9, at his first stadium show in Arizona. But to be fair, the roof was already off.
This was also the Entertainer’s first show in Phoenix since 2014, so the place was packed with more than 50,000 fans. There had been an excitement around town all day; radio stations played Billy Joel songs back-to-back, and even the electronic ADOT signs read, “Use a seat belt, we love you just the way you are.”
The stage was set up in what’s usually left field. A piano sat shiny in plain sight, letting veteran showgoers know it would not be rising from the depths like the usual routine over at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The show was slated for 8 p.m., but signs of the concert even beginning didn’t start till 8:30 p.m.
Photos by Pete Malamas - NOISE
That’s when Joel and his band took the stage, almost out of nowhere, and started big with, well, "Big Shot." People who were seated roared, but many were still stuck in line for a beer. You wouldn’t think, but "Big Shot" was an amazing opener: Hard on the chorus, easy to sing along to, and the “white hot spotlight” resulted in some actual white-hot spotlights on the crowd. Blinding, but also thrilling.
That production was immediately followed by “Miami 2017 (Seen the Lights Go Out on Broadway),” the concluding track on 1976’s Turnstiles. It was an interesting choice; over five minutes, kind of a deep pull, and backed by images of a post-apocalyptic New York City on stage. Whether it was a statement on the times, it was definitely a statement on the kind of show we were about to get — one for beyond-the-radio-hits fans.
“I had more songs than I had hits,” he said a number of times, and even gave the crowd the chance to pick the next track. Chase Field chose “The Longest Time” as the third song, taking it up to Innocent Man. But always with that New Yorker wit, Joel concluded the single with, “And then we got divorced, so what the hell do I know?”
Joel of course mentioned the time he opened for Linda Ronstadt at Celebrity Theatre, which he always does, not that we're complaining. Joel recounted how, as we know, the stage rotates at Celebrity, and how he kept seeing the same 1970s faces. “There’s that guy with the mustache again.” At Chase, his piano slowly rotated as well, which he said would be just about the extent of the special effects.
The show went on to have some obvious hits, pretty good deep cuts, and well-placed (and received) covers.
The audience chose "Vienna" off The Stranger (losing to "Just the Way You Are"), Joel played "Movin' Out," and the crowd chose "Zanzibar" over "Big Man on Mulberry Street" (thankfully, as it gave trumpeter Carl Fischer a chance to nail us with two solos during the 52nd Street song). While Billy Joel is known as the Piano Man, the show as a whole gave people way more opportunities to boogie down versus sit and hum. The setlist, curated both by Joel and the audience, was a fun rundown of old ‘70s and ‘80s dance-and-clap-alongs, and people certainly took advantage.
Dave Matthews Band
Ak-Chin Pavilion, Phoenix, AZ, Sunday, Jan 13, 2023
Dave Matthews’ Band started its 23-song set at 7:20 p.m. with a highly anticipated acoustic run featuring longtime friend and banjo master Béla Fleck. After a rousing version of “Tripping Billies” (“Crash,” 1996) Matthews invited Fleck join him for final three songs of the set and then took a breather.
Fleck would rejoin him during the following electric set for the songs “Don’t Drink the Water,” (“Before These Crowded Streets,” 1998) “#41,” and “Lie in Our Graves,” (from “Crash”).
Left off the setlist was perhaps DMB’s biggest hit, “Ants Marching,” the second single off the band’s debut album in 1996. Ironic, since that is exactly what the sea of people flooding into the amphitheater looked like as they scampered to grab a piece of lawn seating to catch the remainder of the show.
DMB closed the show with a three song encore of “The Space Between,” (“Everyday,” 2001) “Pantala Naga Pampa,” (1998) and an all-out jam session on the song “Rapunzel.” (“Before These Crowded Streets,” 1998).
Photos by Pete Malamas - NOISE
Grace Potter
Celebrity Theatre, Phoenix, AZ, Saturday, January 8, 2023
Amazing Grace Potter took the Celebrity Theate stage Saturday night to the sound of a clock ticking and chiming — an audio nod to her recently released record, “Midnight.” Potter wore a silver leather miniskirt, a silver sequined wrap over a cropped bustier and short, black boots accentuating her long, tan legs. She looked like a supermodel accessorizing with a Gibson Flying V guitar.
From “Midnight,” she performed “Empty Heart” with a country-western wail, as well as the appropriately vibrant “Alive Tonight.” At one point, Potter dropped to her knees for a psychedelic riff on Led Zeppelin’s echoing shrieks. Potter’s band included two drum kits, and toward the end of the show, all the players beat drums, pounding out a primal frenzy.
For her lively and lengthy encore, Potter and her band covered “Gimme Shelter,” and their rendition worked hard to leave the Rolling Stones in the dust. After the rowdy “Paris,” Potter wound down with a rocking lullaby version of Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released.”
Photos by Pete Malamas - NOISE
RUSH
US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ, Monday, May 27, 2017
For the 40th anniversary tour, which the band has hinted may be its last, Rush has dug more into the vaults for some rarely played gems, and for almost three hours on Monday night at the U.S. Airways Center, everything that makes Rush the brilliant band it is was showcased front and center.
There was the amazing drumming from Neil Peart, the jaw-dropping bass playing of Geddy Lee, and the precise riffs of Lifeson on guitar, all with nary a flubbed note or beat.
The band was mostly content to focus on the music. Lee only addressed the audience a handful of times throughout the show.Musical highlights were there aplenty, starting in the first set with the instrumental “The Main Monkey Business,” with Lee dazzling on the bass and Peart’s precise drumming propelling things along. During “Roll the Bones,” a handful of celebrities, including Jason Segal, Paul Rudd, Peter Dinklage, and Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine appeared in a trippy video behind the band doing the mid-song rap.
Though Lee will turn 62 in just a couple of weeks, his voice still held up for the most part, even if it sounds a little lower in the register. Lee also bounced around the stage frequently while playing, eliciting frequent smiles from Lifeson.
Though Lifeson, like Lee, turns 62 this year, and Peart will turn 63, judging by Saturday’s show, it certainly seemed as if the band could tour as much as it wants. If this tour is indeed farewell, it’s a brilliant note to go out on.
Photos by Pete Malamas - NOISE
