LIVE: JOHN WAITE – May 26, 2018

Venue: Lexington Village Theater

City: Lexington, MI

Date: May 26, 2018

Review and Photographs by: Todd “Toddstar” Jolicoeur (www.toddstarphotography.com)

Not many artists can claim hits with various bands, supergroups, and as a solo artist, but John Waite can.  A storied career with The Baby’s, a #1 single with Bad English, as well as a smash #1 solo hit with “Missing You”, John has done it all… and still is.  When it was announced he would be touring and stopping at the Lexington Village Theater in Michigan’s thumb area, I knew I had to witness this killer performance.  The show sold out quickly and I couldn’t wait to hear some of my favorite songs live.  After a short chat with John before the show, he retreated to prep for his set while opener vocalist Leslie DiNicola warmed the crowd up with her lush tones and great voice.  After her short time on stage and a quick intermission, the lights went down a bit and John and his band took their spots on stage and away we went.  Kicking the show off with “Midnight Rendezvous” we all knew we were in for a great night full of killer rock and roll, as well as all the hits we wanted to hear.  The band ripped through the song with precision as the crowd ramped up their energy level through the song.  Next up was a killer rendition of “Change” that saw the crowd singing lyrics after lyric in tandem with Waite.  His voice was in top form and his performance reflected not only his excitement and enjoyment of the tunes, but his love for the fans that came out tonight.  A personal favorite, Bad English’s “Best of What I Got”, was next and I could hardly contain my enthusiasm as he and the guys behind him – Tim Hogan (bass), Rhondo (drums) and Mark Ricciardi (guitar) – put their own stamp on the track without diverting from the original’s power and vibe.  Number One “When I See You Smile” followed giving us cool back-to-back Bad English tracks and helped set the stage for the rest of the evening, including The Baby’s “Every Time I Think of You” which was followed by John’s solo hit “In Dreams” from the True Romance soundtrack.  Other songs from Waite’s catalog as well as a couple covers peppered the setlist, but the one-two-three punch of “Missing You”, “Tears”, and “Back on My Feet Again” closed out the John Waite portion of the night perfectly before the encore of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” wrapped the show.

[Show as slideshow]

Complete set of JOHN WAITE show photos HERE

JOHN WAITE LINKS:

OFFICIAL SITE

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries