To be perfectly honest, as dyed-in-the-wool Thunder fans, we were really only there for the support and they didn't disappoint. Roaring on-stage to the strains of AC/DC's Thunderstruck, there was no messing about as they launched into a condensed greatest hits lists; Dirty Love, River of Pain, Higher Ground, Low Life in High Places, Backstreet Symphony, The Devil Made Me Do It, Love Walked In, I Love You More Than Rock 'N' Roll. The audience were on their feet for most of the time and singing along. The applause was immense. Danny's voice was on top form as were the performances from every single member of the band. The set was all too short though and left everyone wanting more.
There then followed a very strange exodus which we later figured out was a large number of fans who were just there for Thunder and weren't bothered about watching the other two acts. That would have made for a very expensive night out!
The stage crew were very efficient at removing Thunder's gear and setting up for the next act and it wasn't long before the arena filled with The Who's My Generation and Whitesnake came on to the stage. Now, I thought that I quite liked Whitesnake after all they've released some jolly good tracks. Sadly, the sound quality rendered it difficult to make out most of their songs until the chorus kicked in. Coverdale's constant posturing with the microphone stand balanced on his crotch was more than a little disturbing. Operation Yewtree take note! We started off with Give Me All Your Love, Ready an' Willing, Can You Hear the Wind Blow, Don't Break My Heart Again and Gambler which Coverdale dedicated to deceased members of the band; Mel Galley, Cozy Powell et al. Love Will Set You Free and Is This Love were followed by a guitar duel between Doug Aldrich and Reb Beach. This was a complete waste of time. To me a guitar solo has to carry some tune, these guys just ran up and down their scales. Technically very deft but rubbish to listen to.
Tommy Aldridge had his solo opportunity during Steal Your Heart Away and his skills certainly came to the fore as he hurled his sticks away and continued bashing away on drums and cymbals with his bare hands. One of the best tracks of the evening, a rare diamond among the wall of noise, was Forevermore which left me seriously considering the purchase of the album. Quite beautiful. Then it was back to the muddy, crunch-heavy songs; Best Years, Bad Boys / Children of the Night, Fool for Your Loving, Here I Go Again, Still of the Night. Thankfully, that was it. A a very poor performance in terms of the quality of the sound, and a testament to the fact that Coverdale simply can't hold a note anymore, all he can do is high-pitched screams.
I'm not sure what I expected from Journey. I have their Greatest Hits and it all sounds a bit bland and same-ish to me. Maybe I should listen more carefully. Lead singer Arnel Pineda certainly has enough energy to light a small town and a fantastic voice to boot. The band started off with Separate Ways (Worlds Apart), Any Way You Want It, Ask the Lonely, Only the Young, and Stone in Love before drummer Deen Castronovo took over vocal duties on Keep on Runnin'. It was difficult not to get carried along foot-stamping and clapping to Edge of the Blade, Lights, Open Arms, One More, Escape, Dead or Alive, Wheel in the Sky, Be Good to Yourself, Faithfully. Finally, and obviously, they peaked with Don't Stop Believin' before showering the audience in paper bits and stringy stuff. An excellent performance and a complete and pleasant surprise to me at how good they were.
Overall, I think I prefer the intimacy of a smaller venue. Nottingham still felt too big, even though I could see all the performers. The sound quality was also too variable; Thunder was excellent, Journey OK, but Whitesnake was muddy and indistinct.
