Rock Meets Classic @ Grugahalle – Essen – 23.02.2013
Rock Meets Classicn – the glorious continuation of an adventure also in 2013! Big names – Paul Rodgers, Chris Thompson, Steve Augeri, Eric Bazilian and very special-guest Bonnie Tyler on the bill! Unfortunately Lady Tyler was sick and had to keep her hotel-bed warm and could not be active in the renowned Grugahalle in Essen on this snowy Saturday Night.
The Matt Sinner Band and the Bohemian Symphony Orchestra Prague teamed up again and started by ‘Child’s anthem’. What a thrilling start. That’s really how a band and orchestra should sound together, marvelous.
Chris Thompson was the ideal shouter and animator and it was his special gesture to start by ‘For You’. His voice is still striking. He loved to rock with Matt, Alex Beyrodt and Oliver Hartmann. The atmosphere was immediately brilliant. A crazy oldie and vital goodie and it was great to see him as ‘Davy’s On The Road Again’. Concerning his voice he did not leave any ‘Questions’, strong and classy. By this culmination the end of his first set was already achieved, as time passes by…
Next it was Steve Augeri making to remember his Journey times. He started by ‘Separate Ways (World Apart)’. We have not heard by musical releases very much from him since he left the group in 2006. Hey, in 2013 he looks top-fit, dances very agile on stage, no signs of any illness. He was much slimmer by figure than in earlier times and he wears now a small beard on his chin. But most important his voice and this was superbe and crystal-clear like the fans always loved it. Cheers of applause were to raise when Steve was performing the mega-hit ‘Wheels In The Sky’. The two axemen Oliver and Alex were playing gorgeous guitar solos, specially the hooky intro, the MSB were playing utmost heavy and the BSOP made the songs by their plays and orchestra sound, kind of spacy. The house was trembling by shakes’.
By the consecutive artist the repertoire got a bit more calm by the sound, not by blaze of the spectators and ensemble. It was Eric Bazilian from The Hooters to perform as successor. His folk-rock-songs and hits were off course by style completely different. His start by ‘All You Zombies’ and his play on his unique two-necked mandoline/guitar-instrument was utmost diversified. Jimmy Kresic proved what multi-instrumentalist he is by playing accordion. Eric was ever so simpatico on stage. Very natural and no star-behaviour and he loved to communicate with his fans, he was like just ‘One Of Us’. His dreamy version of it was amazing and it was spectacular, when he sung the main buzzwords in the second part even in German. For the fans there was no halt and they were arising from their seats as final thank-you.
Matt as band-leader was thanking the fans for being such a great audience so far and was to announce a break.
The Bohemian Symphony Orchestra Prague were opening the second show-part with ‘Brahms Hungarian Dance’and some fiddle-extravaganza.
It was again the big pleasure to see maestro Thompson commence as performer after the solo-rendition of the BSOP. It seemed like he wanted to earn flight-miles by his dancing all over the stage. He is definitely still to be called ‘The Voice’ of The Earthand. By ‘Mighty Quinn’ the audience loved to sing the refrains loudly and they merited him home by the treasure of their claps.
Next there should have been Bonnie Tyler as very special guest. Big chief Sinner explained how they missed her and wished her all the best for recovery. He stated that they would off course present some of her biggest songs presented by the three graces on back-ground-vocals. So it was specially Amanda Sommerville by her stunning brilliant version of ‘Total Eclipse Of The Heart’ to represent her. Amanda, engulfed in white spotlight, proved what extraordinary singer she is.
The headliner-star of the evening was introduced by Matt Sinner himself: The one and only Paul Rodgers! You could feel how proud he was to present him. And Paul really proved from the very first chords of ‘Can’t Get Enough’ why so many call him one of the top three rock-singers of the universe. His voice was so tremendous, once full of dynamic and hard-rockin’; the other moment full of harmony, empathy and warmness like by ‘Feel Like Makin’ Love’ and ‘Shooting Star’. The orchestral manoeuvres were an additional delight. You were feeling by his chant how legendary he still is and by his stage-poses what charisma and aura he possesses. Extraterrestrial! The Grugahalle was a real rock-palace when Paul intonated ‘All Right Now’. Not only the Matt Sinner Band were goin’ crazy along with the head-bangers, but also the boys and girls in the orchestra were heavy pettin’.
Paul called afterwards for a session playing ‘Wishing Well’ all vocaleros again on stage and specially Chris and him were jammin’ together. There was a last artists-, band- and orchestra-stand-out and this was the end and sign for the joyful fans to find their glorious way home on the Thunder Road.
Everybody being a witness of Rock Meets Classic 2013 called it a Sensation!
Our thanks to Manfred Hertlein, Wolfgang Thiel of www.tourneen.com and Sandra Eichner of www.rosenheim-rocks.de for their support and accredidation.
PS: Please excuse that there are no portrait-close-up-photos as we were not allowed to go close to the stage by the local promoters – GRRR…
