
Originally Posted by
Goldtop
Happy Friday Everybody!
Okay, this may be considered a confession of some kind. Not in my eyes, but whatever. I LIKE LOVERBOY! There, I said it. However that paints me, gimme the brush! Their first two or three albums were and still are fantastic IMO.
I saw them on their (I think) first big tour opening for AC/DC on the "Back In Black" tour. Picture this: Bon Scott had died after AC/DC had made their best album ever (in my opinion, and the opinions of many others). The band had this new singer nobody had ever heard of, some guy who wore a goofy cap all the time, and who sounded like he gargled with Drano. A voice MUCH different than Bon's. But they were coming to town, so of course everybody was going.
If the changes to AC/DC weren't enough, the band who was opening for them was some unknown bunch from Canada named 'Loverboy'. Well, isn't that cute. How sweet. 'Loverboy'. "Oh, yoo hoo, come here Loverboy, you cutie you! Yoooo Hooooo." That was the attitude of most of us in the crowd that night. The song "Turn Me Loose" had been getting some airplay on the radio, but still... Loverboy? C'mon; how good could they be?
The big night finally gets here. How many times had I taken my ticket out of my wallet and looked at it? A million? Showtime. Lights go down, crowd goes up, strange aroma is all around (?), and this bassline starts thumping. Stage is still dark. After about a minute, the synth joins in. Stage is still dark. This goes for about another minute. Then, f-i-n-a-l-l-y, the guitar rages in, and the stage is still dark!!! The sound mix is perfect. Loud, clear, powerful. I mean L-O-U-D! And clear! And POWERFUL! I thought my heart would explode out of my chest. It was one of the finest moments in my life. I was young, I was alive, I had a few bucks in my pocket, and I was ready to take on the world! This music affected me so much that I was almost scared by it. It was incredible. And they hadn't even officially started yet!
By now, most of us in the crowd are excited to say the least. I was through the roof myself. I was ready to vote these guys President. After what had to be a full four or five minute opening and building, building, building the tension and expectation IN TOTAL DARKNESS - BOOM! Drums and the rest of the band take off. The lights go up, and we see Loverboy for the first time. Lots or reds and yellows and blacks, Nikes all around, and tons of puffy hair. And they're in high gear. All serious, all business, all Rock and Roll! They were just unbelievable.
From that night until today, I've been a fan of Loverboy. And their guitar player Paul Dean. As usual, he had what I thought was a great tone. (We all like who we like and think they're great for one reason or another, you know?) His sound was powerful, a little brittle, a little nasal, but still warm. Not piercing and painful. I could only like Paul Dean more if he was from Texas! In fact, parts of his playing remind me of David Grissom, and vice versa. Just that certain element to their tone that I love.
Loverboy changed my life forever that night. AC/DC was good, but to me, the stars that night were Loverboy. That may sound insane to some, but all I can say is that you must not have been there.
One more thing; I carried a bottle of Southern Comfort into the show that night in my boot. (I was in my Southern Comfort phase then.) I still have it. A nice little memento from thirty-something years ago...
Goldtop Lloyd