(Orillia, ON) – Whitesnake returned to Casino Rama to support their Greatest Hits Tour recently. The venue was to capacity and they had the fans on their feet in no time. As soon as the lights dimmed, the fans rushed the stage. The song My Generation by The Who played as the band prepared to make their debut on stage. Guitarists Joel Hoekstra (Night Ranger, Trans-Siberian Orchestra) and Reb Beach (Winger, Dokken, Night Ranger) flanked each side of the stage, along with Bassist Michael Devin (Deep Purple, Coverdale Page) was sharing center stage alongside long time Drummer Tommy Aldridge (Ozzy Osbourne, Motorhead). Michele Luppi, former frontman for Mr. Big took on the role of keyboardist since last years Purple Tour. David Coverdale made his way out and the fans screamed in anticipation.
The set was packed with obviously their greatest hits. Songs such as Here I Go Again, Crying In the Rain, Slide It In and for the encore the ever popular Still Of The Night.
They also took time throughout the show to individually showcase each of their talents, starting with the band leader Reb Beach who played an uptempo solo, filled with finger taps , whammy pulls and made his 6 string scream. A little while later followed by the completely different style of Joel Hoekstra, who interchanged between a Taylor acoustic and a sparkly purple custom Les Paul. His solo started off slow and melodic, switching to a classic verse on the acoustic then back to the Les Paul, where he showed his ability for speed. Through the show he commanded the top honors for stage presence. After a few songs it was the rhythm sections turn to show the back beat side of things, starting with Michael Devin, who banged out this really cool bass solo. It wasn’t your typical bass slapping solo, he had over laid repeating tracks mixed with this eclectic Indian style sound. He impressed me with his performance. Not long after, within the song Crying in the Rain, Tommy Aldridge infused this powerfully skilled solo. He took a segment of his feature and did a stickless solo, simply beating the drums with just his hands. Considered one of the finest drummers in the world, he put on a show like no other. Not only during his solo but throughout the entire show. Growing up playing the drums, this segment was a huge treat to witness live.
Doing my research for this show I had seen a live show from a few weeks prior. I was highly disappointed with Davids vocals. But later read that he had been sick during that specific show. I was a touch bit apprehensive about how he held up vocally after all these years, but that was easily diminished within moments of hearing him sing. He still has strong pipes and interacts naturally with the crowd, making jokes and interacting with fans.
June 18th, 2016 marks a day that I will not forget for a long time. My inner 15 year old fan girl emerged. I had never up until that point seen Whitesnake perform live. Growing up in Moncton N.B, we got passed up by a lot of popular bands. During the late 80’s Whitesnake encompassed my audio sensory’s and I had even eventually worn out my copy of their self titled album (1987). Seeing this show for me was a huge thrill, and to be able to photograph it was extra special. But it didn’t just end there. A good friend, teacher and mentor of mine, award winning photographer Igor Vidyashev asked me to assist him in a photo session with Joel Hoekstra prior to the show. My head nearly exploded at the thought. Although my composure was maintained throughout, Igor got a good laugh at me as we were walking to the car and I let out a scream, Yup the fan girl escaped once again.
I could rate this show, however I think it’s pretty obvious that It was for me a 15/10. A special shout out goes to Jenna Hunter, Whitesnakes management, Igor Vidyashev, Joel Hoekstra and MusicLifeMagazine for making this possible.
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All images are ©2016 Sue Sadzak. Under No circumstances are images to be copied or used without prior consent.
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