GELSENKIRCHEN AMPHITHEATRE 08/27/2002

Review by azimuth361@yahoo.com

Dear Fellow Murrayheads,
I just returned from northern Germany where I had the great fortune to see Dio and Deep Purple at the Gelsenkirchen Amphitheater. What follows is a personal review of Dio and Deep Purple on stage.
The Gelsenkirchen Amphitheater seats about 5000. The back of the stage is right on a canal where barges occasionally float past. (One of the German newspapers cautioned against people jumping into the canal during Holy Diver.) It was a warm summer evening, but overcast. A concert in Germany is unlike anything I've seen in the States. Outside of the arena was a German-style fest set up with food, drinks, souvenirs and lots folks having a great time. Sadly, the camera was left at home because I expected the cavity search that is typical of U.S. concerts. But at Gelsenkirchen there were folks on the arena floor with cameras – still AND video – backpacks, coolers and all sorts of stuff. Next year, I'm getting pictures.
I went to the edge of the arena to peer over the wall in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the band before the show. Doug Aldrige made his way to the stage first, followed by Ronnie. Dio was to take the stage at 7:30 but they were about five minutes late. They were five minutes late because Ronnie insisted in signing autographs for folks leaning over the wall. In spite of the stage manager telling Ronnie that he needed go on stage, Ronnie signed as many pieces of paper offered to him as he could before the stage manager bodily pulled Ronnie away from the autograph hounds. Ronnie is a performer who is truly dedicated to his fans.
My spot on the floor was right in front of Jimmy right against the barricade. Dio opened with Killing the Dragon. Ronnie's voice has, like fine wine and cheese, gotten nothing if not better over the years. During my youth in the early 80`s I've seen several acts live; Ozzy, Deep Purple, Crue, AC DC among others. I continue to see these acts as often as possible, usually disappointingly. Ozzy, Ian, Vince, Brian just can't hit the notes they once could. Ronnie sounds a great as he ever did. It's hard to believe that the first time I saw him was with the original line up at Red Rocks in Colorado for the Last in Line Tour. It's as though time has stood still for Ronnie James Dio. He doesn't shuffle back and forth across the stage like some old fogey. His voice hasn't deteriorated to monotone. Ronnie James Dio is the singer that time forgot. The play list was WAY too short because Dio was an opening act for Deep Purple, so they only had an hour to fill. Only three Dio albums were represented: "Stand Up and Shout", the title track and "Rainbow in the Dark" from Holy Diver; "Egypt" from The Last in Line; and the title track, "Push" and "Rock and Roll" from KTD. They also played "Heaven and Hell", "Children of the Sea", "Man on the Silver Mountain" and "Long Live Rock and Roll" representing the pre-Dio days. Simon Wright and Doug Aldrige both had extended solos. They did a fine job but could take a lesson from Tommy Lee and Vivian Campbell: Make your solos interesting to non- musicians. Really, only drummers dig drum solos, although Simon had a great classical ending to his. The band played flawlessly, except for Simon dropping his sticks twice during his solo. I really dig that Doug played Viv's solos on Holy Diver and Stand Up and Shout; with a bit of his own flair, of course. The solos are as much a part of a song as the lyrics. After all, Simon plays Vinnie's fills. It's a nice homage when a guitarist plays a song as it was originally written.
In conclusion, Dio sounds as great as ever, he's got a great band and puts on a great show. When he interacts with his fans he smiles ear to ear and returns their adoration. When he's performing he's clearly having a great time. When I first saw him in 1985 he was bounding around stage singing his heart out. When I last saw him on Tuesday it seemed like he hadn't slowed down a bit. He sounded as great as ever. I don't know what they're putting in his water, but I want some. God bless you Ronnie! Keep rocking.
I'll not spend so much time on Deep Purple, this being a Dio forum and all. The last time I saw Purple was for the Perfect Strangers tour back in... eighty-something. They looked bored and seemed to be just punching the clock back then. Richie Blackmore actually looked at his watch several times during the show. Now, they're more into their performance and were well worth the price of admission. The only original members left are Ian Gillan, Ian Paice and Roger Glover. Steve Morse was playing guitar and Don Airey did keyboard duties. A few of the songs were unfamiliar, but they ran through the classics; Hush, Woman from Tokyo, When a Blind Man Cries. The coolest part of the show was, in the middle of Space Trucking, it suddenly began to pour rain. There was thunder, lightning, the works. We all got drenched. The downpour lasted through a keyboard solo and Perfect Strangers Then it rained lightly through the rest of the show. The lightning over our heads was a little worrisome, but added to the stage lights and made for an even better show.
It would be inevitable to compare Ronnie and Ian. They may be the best rock vocalists around and come from similar genres and eras. Ronnie sounds as great as ever, but Ian has definitely lost some edge. At times he'd put the mike up to his mouth, make like he was singing, but no sound was coming out. Ian still covers more range today as a rock and roll veteran than most other singers will never see. Don't look for the high notes, though. They're just not there.
Hope you all get a chance to see a show. Maybe I'll see you there on the floor.