My concert summer continued Tuesday.
I went to Cincinnati again to see Whitesnake and the opener Whitford/St. Holmes.
I’ll get to what happened before the show at the end, but first, I’ll tell you about the show.
Whitford/St. Holmes (Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford and Ted Nugent band singer/guitarist Derek St. Holmes) started the show with a 30 minute rocking set of songs from their new album Reunion (they put out another album in the early 80s), and also played a medley of a couple Aerosmith/Ted Nugent songs.
It was great to see Brad Whitford out front as guitarist, playing great as always, and even talking to the crowd.
In Aerosmith, Brad’s forever in the shadow of Joe Perry. But in my opinion, as great as Joe is, Brad is just as good or better of a guitarist.
And he really shines in this band.
I have seen him 3 times with Aerosmith, and trust me, he shines there, too.
But even more so in this band.
And Derek is still a really good singer, too.
Very soulful.
And he is also a really good guitarist in his own right.
This was my first time seeing Derek.
I’m glad I finally did.
Their band includes drummer Brent Fitz, who has played with Billy Idol, and has been part of Slash’s band in recent years.
Their band also includes bassist Chopper Anderson and keyboardist Buck Johnson, who sang a medley of the Aerosmith classic Last Child, which Brad wrote.
And Johnson really did a great Steven Tyler impersonation, vocally.
It just so happens he plays for Aerosmith too.
Really cool set, but I just wish they would have had more time to play.
Check out their new album Reunion, which as a bonus, comes with their self titled debut album from the 80s, also.
More about Whitford/St. Holmes later on this review.
Stick around for it.
Now, to the headliner, Whitesnake!!
This was my 3rd time seeing them.
This has always been lead singer David Coverdale’s group, and has had many great players with him throughout the years.
His band includes guitarists Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra, bassist Michael Devin, the drumming machine Tommy Aldridge, and keyboardist Michele Luppi.
The band did a very tight, loud, and rocking set of the band’s greatest hits.
David Coverdale’s voice is still really strong and I could tell he was having a great time, interacting with the crowd and with the band.
I love seeing bands not “phone it in”, and I swear neither of these bands did.
Both had fun and gave the crowd everything they had.
David Coverdale is a great frontman, very witty and funny, and again, such an amazing voice.
When he was 20 or 21 years old (he’s 65 now), the legendary rock band Deep Purple, who along with David were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame this year, hired him from nowhere and helped him launch his career.
If you get a chance, check out the Deep Purple albums that David sings on: Burn, Stormbringer, and Come Taste The Band.
In fact, Whitesnake put out a great album last year of some of David’s era of Deep Purple songs, called The Purple Album.
Check it out, too.
In fact, check out all of David’s catalogue. He’s made a lot of great music.
I would go see Whitesnake again anytime.
They’re always fun.
Check out this tour if you get a chance.
Oh and before I forget: I want to tell you about something cool that happened to me before the show.
When I was about 10 minutes from the venue, I received a call from Whitford/St. Holmes’ tour manager about meeting them.
You see, a few weeks before the show, and several months after I bought my ticket, I also bought a VIP package, in which I would be able to meet Whitford/St. Holmes before the show.
Well again, their tour manager called me, and told me where to go, in which he would come and get me and take me to meet them.
Well, I showed up at the gate where all the band buses and trucks were located, I called him back saying I was there, and he came out saying they were having dinner, but that when they were ready to meet me, he would come and get me.
Well, shortly before I met them, I spotted Brad Whitford coming out of a tour bus, just walking around a little, and smoking a cigarette with the crew.
He was looking in my direction, but I figured I’d be respectful and leave him alone until I met him.
Well, a few minutes later, the tour manager comes and gets me and takes me to Brad and Derek’s tour bus, and lets me in to meet them.
Both Brad and Derek immediately greeted me and were very kind.
Brad asked me my name, and I told him my name.
And he said “great to meet you Lucas”, and shook my hand.
Derek did the same. Both signed their CDs for me that came with the VIP package, as well as a CD bonus track, and an 8×10 pic.
I also got guitar picks in the package, and Derek also handed me one of his personal Ted Nugent guitar picks from 2013.
He jokingly told me to put it in my pocket real quick before someone else grabbed it.
Derek asked me where I was from, and I told him Ashland, Kentucky, and he said “I know where that is.”
And, I got 5 pics with them!!!
I thanked them for seeing me and I wished them a great show.
And they both thanked me and seemed very appreciative, which was great to see.
So, if anyone wants to say that they’re jerks, think again.
They’re both two genuinely good guys who love what they do and are great at it.
In fact, I want to do more VIP visits sometime. Stay tuned!
I’ll post pics and setlists from both bands below.
My concert tour continues next Tuesday and Wednesday.
Stay tuned for more reviews.
P.S. One more thing: for those of you who have seen the movie This Is Spinal Tap, you will appreciate this.
After I met Brad and Derek, and went into the venue, I was going to my seat and saw aside from some venue security, there was no one in the seats.
Or on the venue’s lawn. I was wondering what was going on for a second, because there were plenty of people there.
But then I remembered that there was another part of the venue where the concert was happening.
So yes, I had a Spinal Tap moment. Hahahaha!!! It was great.
Ok, here come the setlists and pics:
