Date: Friday, July 8, 2022
City: Chicago, IL
Venue: Wrigley Field
Openers: Classless Act, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Poison
Co-Headliners: Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard
Poison Setlist:
Look What The Cat Dragged In
Ride The Wind
Talk Dirty To Me
Your Mama Don’t Dance
Guitar Solo
Fallen Angel
Drum Solo
Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Nothin’ But A Good Time
Mötley Crüe Setlist:
Wild Side
Shout At The Devil
Too Fast For Love
Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
Saints Of Los Angeles
Live Wire
Looks That Kill
The Dirt (Est. 1981)
Covers Medley:
– Rock And Roll Part 2
– Smokin’ In The Boys Room
– White Punks On Dope
– Helter Skelter
– Anarchy In The U.K.
Home Sweet Home
Dr. Feelgood
Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)
Girls, Girls, Girls
Primal Scream
Kickstart My Heart
Def Leppard Setlist:
Take What You Want
Fire It Up
Animal
Foolin’
Armageddon It
Kick
Love Bites
Excitable
This Guitar
Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad
Two Steps Behind
Rocket
Bringin’ On The Heartbreak
Switch 625
Hysteria
Pour Some Sugar On Me
Rock Of Ages
Photograph
Notes:
- Third show of the 2022 Stadium Tour in support of Diamond Star Halos.
- When The Stadium Tour was announced in December 2019, this show was originally scheduled for August 28, 2020.
- Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was rescheduled for August 29, 2021.
- Due to the ongoing pandemic, it was rescheduled again for July 8, 2022.
- Same set as previous show with “Fire It Up” and “Animal” switching places again, making this set identical to the New York show.
- “This Guitar” and “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” were played acoustically with the full band at the end of the catwalk. Joe Elliott performed a truncated version of “Two Steps Behind” by himself.
- Second time seeing Mötley Crüe live, 13th time seeing Poison live.
- Classless Act and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts opened this show, but I did not see their sets.
- Attendance: 37,696 / 37,696 [100%].
- Show #1 at this venue.
Videos:
Review:
Two Def Leppard concerts in four days and three in the span of two weeks?! It’s starting to feel like old times around here.
When The Stadium Tour was first announced in December 2019, the band’s August 28, 2020 show at Wrigley Field in Chicago was the only one that was near me. I was quite disappointed at the time, as having only a single show in my area at a venue I had purposely avoided for years was not appealing. Especially when I didn’t want to see any other bands on the bill and expected a short, hits-centered setlist from Def Leppard.
Thankfully a second batch of dates was announced that month, which included Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City and Busch Stadium in St. Louis – two venues I’d been to before and would happily visit again. I ended up buying tickets to to those two shows while pushing Chicago aside, leaving it in the ‘maybe’ category depending on what Def Leppard’s setlist would look like. If it wasn’t anything special, I’d skip the Chicago show for only the second time since 2000.
Wrigley Field in Chicago is a mere 216 miles from my house… A seemingly simple three & a half hour drive. I’ve driven to places much farther away quite often, yet I had never actually gone to any event at Wrigley Field. I’ve always wanted to attend a Cardinals/Cubs game there, but just haven’t gotten around to it. The closest I came was heading up to a friend’s house in Chicago in September 2019 to watch the game at a bar outside the stadium before taking part in some post-game barhopping. That was the first time I had ever even seen the stadium, though I didn’t set foot inside.
I’ve considered going to concerts there a few times in the past. Foo Fighters have played there several times in recent years and Def Leppard had their debut performance at the legendary stadium on July 14, 2018. That tour featured the bore fest that is Journey as a coheadliner and a very basic 15 song setlist. I caught three other shows on that tour (Indianapolis, Kansas City, & St. Louis) so dealing with the headache of going to Wrigley, finding parking, and paying for a stadium ticket was not worth it. Which is why it was the first Chicago show I didn’t attend since 1999 (when missing the show was out of my control since I was merely 13 years old, had a broken ankle, and my mom was a little worried about Y2K. Look it up, kids.).
Driving in the city limits of Chicago is never fun and finding parking for a 100+ year old stadium completely surrounded by businesses and residences is a huge reason why I’ve yet to visit the stadium. The payoff has just never outweighed the costs (financially, logistically, or timely).
But then the pandemic happened… And then Def Leppard released a new album. Those two things swayed the odds in favor of me going to see them in Chicago, both for the chance to see the new songs live and to make up for lost time since the tour was postponed for two whole years on the back end of the band’s career.
That created a huge problem though. I had skipped buying tickets for this concert in 2019/2020 since I wasn’t sure if I would go based on what Lep was playing and the other band’s I didn’t care about eating up their set time. My approach to buying tickets for this concert would have been entirely different had I known it would be in support of a new album ahead of time. but instead this thing had been on sale for more than two and a half years. And it had sold quite well at that. All VIP tickets were gone and all that remained were some lower and upper bowl tickets.
Logistically, my wife stepped up and made going to this show as easy as possible. One of her uncles lives several blocks away from the stadium, so she arranged for us to park at his place and stay overnight. Having been to New York several times, walking numerous city blocks for 25 minutes is nothing, so now the headache of going to this venue was limited to surviving the drive within the city limits itself. That was its own adventure, but we won’t get into that.
One huge problem lingered though: I did not have tickets. Even when we loaded up the car and hit the road for Chicago on the morning of the show, I did not have tickets. My plan was similar to what I did for Aerosmith’s show at Chicago’s United Center on June 22, 2012: Hope for a last minute ticket drop to score good seats while on the way up there and then pick the tickets up at will call. Apparently I like to play the odds at legendary Chicago venues in years that end in two.
Things worked out quite well for that Aerosmith show in 2012, so I had to hope for similarly good luck for the Lep show this year. I had been checking the venue’s ticket page (and aftermarket sources like Ticketmaster & StubHub) multiple times per day each day for weeks in the hopes of something good becoming available. And while a few things did drop, none of it was worth the money they were charging. So I waited and hoped.
I checked for tickets throughout the morning of the show and continued to do so once we were in the car. We decided to grab some coffee and breakfast at Starbucks before getting on the highway and of course it was at that moment that the ticket drop began. Suddenly ‘best available’ wasn’t in section 124 of the lower bowl any more… It was in Field F, which is right next to Field E where the catwalk was located. The price difference between Field F and lower bowl section 124? A mere $5 per ticket.
I excitedly tried to add the Field F, Row 15, Seats 21-22 tickets to my cart to check out… Only to be bitten by poor signal in the Starbucks drive through. The transaction timed out and the seats were gone. I was quite frustrated, to say the least.
Once we finally got our food and got on the highway, I was able to resume my search for tickets, hoping something in Field F would pop up again. Thankfully after several tense minutes, I was successful. I snagged tickets in Field F, Row 17, Seats 9-10. Not quite as close as the last set, but oh well. I was just happy to get something that good, so close to the stage and catwalk, so late in the game. And it would allow me to not stress about it for the rest of the three hour drive.
One problem was solved, but a new problem emerged: will call was not an option and the receipt was very specific about a printed, paper ticket being REQUIRED. No will call, no mobile tickets. Which… Was not good, considering we were in the car on the drive up to Chicago. But my wife (and her uncle) came in clutch again. She called her uncle, who confirmed he could print the tickets for us since he was still in the office. I emailed the tickets to him and he’d have them ready for us upon arrival.
We arrived at his place mid-afternoon, got parked, and headed up to drop off our stuff. Since we had already seen this tour twice in recent weeks and Def Leppard was closing tonight’s show, we were in no rush to get to the stadium. Especially with it being so close. So instead, we went to dinner with her uncle and his boyfriend at an Italian restaurant called Calo Ristorante. Which was pretty good and we had a good time hanging out for awhile.
Then her uncle dropped us off right at the stadium, so it was as easy as we could have hoped.
I’ve been a baseball fan all my life, and as a fan of the St. Louis Cardinals, I’ve seen a bunch of games. I saw a bunch at Busch Stadium II through 2004 and have seen 60 games at Busch Stadium III between 2008-2021. Since the Cards and Cubs are rivals (and both in the National League Central division), they play each other a bunch of times every year. So I’ve been watching the Cardinals play at Wrigley Field on TV for decades. But it wasn’t until today that I would actually set foot in the legendary stadium.
It was quite crazy to walk in. As mentioned, I’d only seen it from the outside once before in 2019. To actually enter the place was pretty cool, though I had to focus on finding exactly where to go. It was also crazy that for my first visit, it wouldn’t be for a baseball game that I would view from the stands… It would be for a Def Leppard concert that I would view on the field itself. It definitely made for a unique experience.
I knew the stadium was small since it dates back to 1914, but seeing it in person (especially after having just visited the much larger Busch Stadium in St. Louis and much much larger Citi Field in New York) really put the smallness of Wrigley into perspective.
Walking down onto the field was even cooler though. Even though it was covered up, I still had to respect the ground I was walking on considering all of the baseball legends that have played on that very field. Due the size of the venue, the field sections weren’t quite as wide as the last two stadiums. I believe both Citi & Busch had sections that were 30 seats across, while the field sections in Wrigley appeared to be only 22 seats across… Which worked out well since it meant we were a little closer to the catwalk even though we were a section over.
It also worked out well that I hadn’t snagged those tickets for Row 15, Seats 21-22 as they were at the opposite end from where the catwalk was. While we were a couple rows farther back, being in seats 9-10 meant we were closer to the catwalk. I guess everything worked out quite well despite my initial frustration.
The Stadium Tour has been cursed with quite a bit of rain through the first nine shows, with the St. Louis show trading rain for intense heat. Chicago shifted back to rain that fell during the day and perhaps during Classless Act and/or Joan Jett’s setlists… But I had no idea if either were affected since we hadn’t yet arrived. Thankfully by the time we made it to our seats, the rain had cleared and would stay away for the rest of the night. Which was also much more pleasant temperature-wise, as it was hovering in the low 70’s. Quite a bit more enjoyable than the 100°+temps (and 110°+ heat index) we dealt with in St. Louis just a few days prior.
As usual before Poison, one of the roadies emerged to wave Bret Michaels’ cowboy hat around to get people excited. It’s such a weird thing to watch, especially when the roadie himself is wearing a nearly identical hat. And people cheer for it! It’s a fucking hat! Like I said before, everything about that band is a clown show.
Poison took the stage a little early tonight and I wondered if that meant they’d be pushing their set back ‘up’ to nine songs. Bret was sounding better than he did at the last show but I had no idea if any updates had been provided on his health since I don’t follow him or the band. The extra-extra vocalist was still on stage though, so he must not yet be at 100%. Unless that guy is just part of the band now.
The set continued as normal and doesn’t really warrant much explanation at this point. Not that it has at the prior shows either since every Poison show I’ve seen dating back to 2009 has been virtually identical right down to the banter and solos. Only slight revisions (for cheap applause) and the odd addition or subtraction of a very small pool of songs has happened in that time span.
Things did get awkward went Bret strayed from his normal, word-for-word script by trying to address the recent mass shooting in Highland Park… As it wasn’t exactly the kind of thing you bring up in a moment like this and he struggled to find the right balance between respectful and coherent. Ultimately he cut himself off, which was good but made the end of his spiel that much more cringeworthy.
The show got back on track after that, but the set remained the same as St. Louis: no “I Want Action,” no “Unskinny Bop.” Again, I don’t mind seeing less Poison… I just have to wonder if they’ve cut their set down solely for Bret’s health or for time management. Especially in a venue like this, which is surrounded by residential areas and may have an even more strict curfew than most places. Still, it’s sad to see them with a supposed one hour time slot that is not fully filled and features a mere seven songs.
At least those seven songs went down well though. Poison was a hit with the crowd and the time passed quickly.
After so many prior shows in 2009/2012/2017 and the St. Louis show a few days ago, it once again felt like this was the point where I would start to prepare myself for Def Leppard. But nope, this was another show that Lep would close, meaning Mötley Crüe would follow Poison.
I did have a mild curiosity about seeing them again since I’d heard rumblings about drummer Tommy Lee increasing the number of songs he’d played each night, including a full show here and there. I didn’t follow what he was doing at other shows closely and skipped their performance in St. Louis entirely so I wasn’t sure what to expect for tonight. Plus I wanted to see if there was any improvement with more shows under their belts, as the New York show was only the fifth of the comeback.
I spent the in-between time looking around the stadium. Brittany had made a trip to the bathroom during Poison. I rarely take bathroom breaks during concerts, not wanting to miss anything I paid for or deal with fighting through the masses just to deal with the disgusting facilities and then fight through the masses again. But I decided to make an exception tonight, as I wanted to wander around the field a bit more and see what was underneath the stadium wall since that’s where the bathroom access was for the field seats.
But mainly, I wanted an up close look at the famous Wrigley ivy (and the cheater basket above it).
After seeing that ivy on TV while watching games for decades, it was crazy to be standing right there next to it. Also crazy was exiting the bathroom (which was actually just a porta potty on the stadium exterior) and having to return to the field by walking through the visiting team bullpen area. Wrigley was built so long ago that they did not incorporate a proper bullpen, as pitchers just warmed on the sidelines of the field itself. At some point recently, the stadium was renovated and proper bullpen areas were built behind the walls in the outfield. So it was neat to wander through there.
Fighting through the crowd to get back to my seat was extra annoying. Which served as a reminder as to why I never leave my seat if I can help it. As did the bathroom porta potty itself. I’m colorblind, so the doors only having a red or green indicator for being occupied or not was useless to me since the two colors look nearly identical. I basically had to lightly pull on doors to find one that was unoccupied, which should have been a fool-proof plan. If it’s occupied, it’s locked and would therefore be red, right? Apparently not since one door I pulled on revealed a woman that was thankfully done doing her business (without having locked the door) but was still shocked to have the door opened on her.
I made it back to my seat just as Mötley Crüe’s intro began. One thing I forgot to mention when reviewing the New York show was the really, really annoying intro that Mötley Crüe is using. It’s some apocalypse-like nonsense that seems to make it sound like the survival of the human race is dependent on the return of Mötley Crüe or some shit. It was as loud and overblown as the band themselves.
I was already annoyed and the band had yet to even hit the stage. Well, I think so at least, as the smoke that was pumped onto the stage was so fucking thick no one could see a goddamn thing. Breathing wasn’t exactly easy either. I was already struggling to breathe since the bulky fella in front of me was suffering from a pretty severe case of B.O. I could only think of how much worse that would have been if he was in the sweltering heat of St. Louis.
Mötley Crüe emerged and once again opened with “Wild Side.” I actually felt like Poison’s sound quality had very slightly improved for this show, and hoped the same would apply for the Crüe… But nope. Still muddy, but now the drums and bass were even more overpowering than before. At times it drowned out poor Mick’s guitar work and it frequently drowned out Vince’s so-called vocals.
So perhaps it was being done on purpose.
The set continued with “Shout At The Devil” and “Too Fast For Love.” It was quickly apparent to me that I was sitting in a very Mötley Crüe-fan-heavy section. It felt like I was at a baseball game sitting with the opposite team’s fans… Which I guess was fitting considering I was in the stadium of my favorite baseball team’s rival.
Of course there will be a wide cross section of fans that like both the Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard. But the nature of a show like this means there will also be fans that are there for one band, not necessarily both. Such as myself with Def Leppard. And that means not every fan will be happy to see some of the bands, which will change the overall environment for when bands other than who people came to see is on stage. I mean, I know my excitement level and engagement are severely different when Poison or Mötley Crüe are on stage… And the same can be said for other fans and Def Leppard.
It was an immediate concern though, as I worried about how it would play out over the rest of the evening. Also a concern was Mr. B.O. in front of me, as he was basically filming the entire goddamn concert on his phone… Which meant having his bigass arm raised at all times, exposing his funkyass pits. Every once in awhile, the wind would blow back toward me and I would literally lose my breath for a second. It also didn’t help that when I first sat down, he was wearing a t-shirt but at some point changed into a tank top.
It was going to be a long night.
Back to the subject at hand though: Mötley Crüe. Their sound quality was shit, but performance-wise? They actually sounded better than they did in New York. It also helped that Tommy Lee stayed on beyond the first three songs, which gave the songs a jolt of energy they badly needed.
That’s not to say they sounded great, necessarily. Vince was still barely present, both vocally and mentally, and watching him “play” guitar was as sad as it was entertaining (for the wrong reasons). On songs like “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)” and… Something else that I can’t remember, it’s completely pointless for them to even give him a guitar. It looks like he strums it every once in awhile, but barely. Whatever he is supposedly doing certainly isn’t audible, so why even bother?
His guitars are as useless as the teleprompters in that regard.
Mötley’s set remained unchanged from New York and probably every other show this tour. Which I’m not criticizing other than wasting time on the covers medley.
Obviously I have my gripes with Mötley Crüe since they aren’t the band I’m there to see, but I try to be fair and that’s why I said they sounded better tonight than in New York… By their own standards. Tommy Lee played the full set, which was a huge benefit. Nikki seemed to have more fun this time around. Mick still focused on his guitar and nothing else. And Vince… Well, still didn’t seem that invested in the show at all. He delivered his usual vocals (or lack thereof), left the stage whenever possible, and had little to no interaction with anyone around him.
The Crüe went down quite well though. I’m not sure if it was just because of how many Mötley Crüe fans were in my immediate area or what, but they seemed to be much better received tonight than in New York. And again I have no idea how things went in St. Louis.
After the 80 minute set came to an early end (with the whole evening remaining ahead of schedule), they said their goodnights without acknowledging each other much at all. Take the stage, play the songs, leave the stage, keep to themselves. The job was done.
Now that I’ve seen Mötley Crüe twice, once with a full performance by Tommy Lee… I’m good. I don’t need to see them again, I don’t want to see them again… But I will see them at least once more, as Def Leppard will also be closing the show in Kansas City on July 19. If I make the trek to Indianapolis on August 16, Mötley Crüe closes so I’ll be making another early exit unless the person I go with (TBD) wants to hang around.
Finally it was almost time for Def Leppard. It was a perfect night weather-wise and I was really excited to see them close out a Friday night show at a venue like Wrigley. Plus I had high expectations for seeing Lep in Chicago due to my most recent experience seeing them in the area. Since I skipped the show at Wrigley in 2018, my most recent Chicago-area show was on June 24, 2017 at the amphitheater in the suburb of Tinley Park.
On paper, that show was nothing special. It was the third show I had seen in four days (with another to follow the very next night) and once again featured Tesla & Poison as the openers. The setlist was standard at that time and was exactly the same as the EIGHT shows that preceded it. But the show sold out, which means there were roughly 28,000 people in attendance, and something about it just made it perfect.
To quote myself from that review:
“…there was just something about this show in Tinley Park that made it one of my favorites that I’ve seen, which is really saying something 53 shows in. It was just an all around perfect evening, thanks to the weather, the excellent massive capacity crowd, and the band feeling loose as the tour was nearing its end.
Everyone in the band was at the top of his game from the opening of “Let’s Go.” Right from the start, it felt like a special show, especially with the roar of the massive crowd behind me.”
Basic as it may have been, it was a favorite of mine and many of the same factors were present for this show at Wrigley. The weather was great, it was likely a sellout with an even larger crowd, and while we were closer to the beginning of the tour than the end, the band had been in fine form at the first two shows I had seen. So my hopes were high.
Since everything was running ahead of schedule, the lights went down for Def Leppard at 9:20 PM. My excitement built as the intro played and the band once again blasted on stage with “Take What You Want.”
As with the prior two shows, that song went down quite well with the crowd and after the St. Louis show, I was expecting “Animal” to follow since it had been bumped up. Instead, the lights turned the stage red and the intro to “Fire It Up” began to play. I thought the song had worked better in the third spot but here the band was, shifting it back up to the second slot. I enjoyed the hell out of it since I love hearing anything new live.
The crowd though… I will admit there was a bit of a lull with the song. It got a good response in New York and a great response in St. Louis, but Chicago… Not so much. Once again, that could have just been limited to my area since it was heavy on Mötley Crüe fans. But it added to the ‘off-ness’ that I had been feeling for most of the night.
“Animal” followed in the third slot and other than Vivian briefly disappearing during the song due to a technical issue of some sort, the show went on per usual.
The hits all went down fine and even “Kick” got a better response than “Fire It Up.” But I couldn’t help but feel that the whole night was out of sync. With this being my 66th Def Leppard concert, I can see/hear when things are just a tiny bit ‘off’ and I had several times that I noticed that with Lep. Most (or even all) of the crowd would never notice such things (and Lep’s ‘slightly off’ is still extremely better than any other band at their peak), but I did. Add in the lackluster crowd and it made for somewhat of a difficult evening. It just never ‘clicked’ for me and I was struggling to stay engaged.
Things only got worse during the acoustic segment. There has been some debate about this part of the show but it hadn’t been an issue at my first two concerts. In fact I thought it went down quite well in both New York and St. Louis and I had been enjoying the hell out of it. Before I knew what the setlist was, I had hoped there wouldn’t be any acoustic songs in the set, instead hoping for a top to bottom rock show. The band proved me wrong by freshening up the acoustic break with “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” and “This Guitar,” the former being a nice change from the standard “Two Steps Behind” and the latter being a much improved, full band acoustic rendition of a song that I only mildly enjoy on record.
The shitty Crüe fans around me, however, made the acoustic part of the evening rough. During “This Guitar,” one guy several rows behind me shouted “play something we know!” which was annoying to me. That kind of thing begs the question “ok, what do you want to hear that won’t already be in the setlist?” Aside from “Let’s Get Rocked,” most casual fans likely won’t be able to name a song that isn’t part of the set anyway. You paid for a ticket to see Def Leppard, that’s what you’re seeing. It’s on you if you don’t know the song, especially in the age of streaming where everything is available on demand at any given time. Obviously most fans are there for the classics, but the classics are already in the set… The rest is a bonus. If you know it, great. If not, wait till the next song and you’ll be just fine.
Things picked up a bit with “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad,” though a person in front of me commented that ‘the original version is better.’ I’m with you there pal and I’d love to see the electric version again since I haven’t since 1996. But I’ll take what I can get, especially as a change from just hearing “Two Steps Behind” over and over again.
Speaking of which, the singalong part of that song didn’t go down all that well either. It hasn’t been particularly loud at any of the three shows, but Chicago was the worst. I’ve been ready for that song to take a break for awhile so I haven’t minded getting a condensed version of it this year in favor of a couple of difference acoustic tracks taking the bulk of the time. I now find myself reverting back to thinking that perhaps no acoustic section is necessary, as the songs can be replaced by a heavier classic tune and an upbeat rocker from Diamond Star Halos such as “Gimme A Kiss That Rocks,” “SOS Emergency,” or “Unbreakable.” But if “This Guitar” is going to be a single at some point, I guess we’re stuck with the acoustic break for now.
By the time the acoustic set had ended, my mood had worsened. The band was fine, but the crowd was now becoming more and more responsible for me mentally checking out. I was not happy.
“Rocket” picked up the pace and the string of hits during the second half of the show always goes down well. Tonight was no exception, but it was nowhere near the level of New York and especially St. Louis.
The lackluster crowd also pushed me firmly into not liking the new outro to “Hysteria.” I’ve been on the fence about it over the first couple of shows. Seeing an old standard changed up in any way was nice early on, but after a few shows, I don’t think it really works. Perhaps the Chicago crowd’s lack of enthusiasm made it seem worse than it has been, but the singalong bit at the end hasn’t fared well in my opinion. I wouldn’t mind if the band went back to the normal ending for the song.
Unfortunately, the shitty crowd and lack of response to the end of “Hysteria” was the nail in the coffin for me. By that point, I had almost fully checked out. I was still watching the band and enjoying it, but I wasn’t singing any more. I wasn’t smiling. I was just annoyed with the crowd. What had started as a successful day with high expectations had somehow morphed into one of the least enjoyable concerts I’ve seen in recent memory. And 99% of that was due to the cröwd.
It was tonight that I reverted back to not being a fan of The Stadium Tour. Amazing how fast that happened, eh? The first show was great for so many reasons. Seeing the band for the first time in nearly three years! New songs! A fresh set! New York City! The second show was somehow even better. Ridiculously good seats! New songs & a couple deep cuts again! An amazing crowd at my favorite, home-away-from-home stadium! The third show? A venue I respected, but always avoided, and felt nothing like home. A crowd that somehow felt more hostile than the one where I literally saw a guy get his ass beat. Def Leppard was still the best sounding band on the bill by far… But the crowd sucked most of the energy out of the stadium.
Between the mishmash of fans not really there to see every band and the general length of the concert thanks to having FIVE bands plus change over time… And these massive venues that aren’t all that convenient to deal with and aren’t really conducive to good sound (especially for the bands that aren’t Lep)… It’s just too much. When you have people pre-gaming in the parking lot before the show that starts at 4:00 in the afternoon and then drinking all night, by the time the final band takes the stage at 9:20 or 9:30, many fans are tired and possibly even fucking roasted. That very well could have been a factor with tonight’s crowd, or maybe it was just the abundance of Crüe fans in my immediate area. Probably both.
As my wife and I left Wrigley Field and started the 25 minute walk to her uncle’s place, she mentioned that she noticed when I checked out of tonight’s show. I went on to explain why, and she understood. She’s been with me for nearly every show I’ve seen since 2011, so she knows my normal behavior at a Lep show. It was sad to face the reality of this tour tonight, and it’s no fault of the band’s. But it’s the risk you run mixing two (or more) fan bases that have some overlap, but also some considerable differences.
Chicago 2017 will always be one of my favorite shows. Chicago 2022? Not even close.
Media Reviews:
Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe at Wrigley Field: The songs and guitar hooks were all here, but some of these guys have aged better than others
The hair was shorter but the arena-size hooks that helped make Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe mainstream staples decades ago were on prominent display Friday night at a packed Wrigley Field.
Though a majority of their long-maned peers have long been reduced to playing county fairs and tiny clubs, both bands managed to outlast time and transcend criticism en route to co-headlining one of the year’s biggest tours. That each group arrived with a wheelbarrow of recognizable songs and pop-culture credibility didn’t hurt. Nor did the crowd’s willingness to indulge in nostalgia — or wait in long lines to snag the sorts of T-shirts that doubled as a uniform at high schools around the country during Ronald Reagan’s second term.
Dovetailing with current fashion, as well as interest in retro shows like Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” the appetite for MTV-heyday rock is robust. Originally scheduled for summer 2020 and postponed by the pandemic, the 36-date Stadium Tour — which also includes Poison and Joan Jett — has already sold more than 1.1 million tickets. The timing delay actually worked in favor of Def Leppard. The British veterans, the most studio-active band on the bill, in May released their first new album (“Diamond Star Halos”) in nearly seven years. To its credit, Def Leppard devoted nearly a quarter of its 90-minute set to recent material.
Career opportunists, Mötley Crüe last released a new record 14 years ago. But the Los Angeles rockers agreed to reunite and return to the road after their “The Dirt” autobiography — originally published in 2001 — was turned into a 2019 Netflix film. Doing so compelled the quartet to break its so-called “Cessation of Touring Agreement” it signed in advance of its alleged retirement and final show in 2015. As it turns out, ‘80s music has more staying power than a legal contract.
In retrospect, perhaps Mötley Crüe should have reconsidered. Understandably, the four original members who took the stage in the wake of an exaggerated intro punctuated by throat-choking clouds of sulfurous smoke no longer resemble their youthful bad-boy selves. But time has also taken a harsh toll on the band’s abilities. Ironically, the oldest member, guitarist Mick Mars, seems to have changed the least. Thin, pale, and quiet, he still resembles a vampire that just awoke in a coffin. Primarily sticking to the shadows, Mars executed his parts with a competency that frequently served as the glue that held tunes together.
If anything, his instrumentalist cohorts, drummer Tommy Lee and bassist Nikki Sixx, overplayed. The duo repeatedly generated a muddy, bass-dominant rumble that devoured the contours of songs and saturated the mix with an indistinct sameness. They slowed down several well-known songs, including a deflated “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)” and dulled “Looks That Kill.” And they suffocated the sass, sleaze and sway out of music that once threatened to give bystanders a transmissible disease if they got too close. Mötley Crüe’s bash-and-crash approach also functioned as a camouflage for Vince Neil’s screeching vocals, which have seen much better days.
Watching Neil trudge around was almost as uncomfortable as listening to him try to sing. During verses, he often failed to project over the din of his mates. Or he simply gave up, choosing to hold the microphone stand away from his mouth and toward the audience. Unable or unwilling to break from a tedious walking gait, he lacked enthusiasm in the same ways Mötley Crüe hurt for chemistry. For Neil, the 80-minute set amounted to a chore, a task to get through rather than a chance to entertain. His out-of-tune vocals on favorites such as “Home Sweet Home” and tendency to duck backstage for breaks couldn’t help but raise questions.
Indeed, the few bursts of energy came not from Neil or the now-tame Sixx but three female backing vocalists/dancers that did the heavy lifting on many choruses. Dubbed “The Nasty Habits,” the trio — like most of Mötley Crüe’s hedonistic fare — defied any notions of the #MeToo era. As they slithered around in revealing outfits and struck provocative poses, they provided an enormous boost to the band. Their presence further underscored how other glitzy trappings — hydraulic towers, pyrotechnics, lasers, fog and an ill-advised rendition of “The Dirt (Est. 1981)” that ultimately stood as a crass advertisement for the band’s Netflix movie — aimed to distract.
Along with Mars’ greasy riffs, the trio largely carried “Dr. Feelgood” and “Girls, Girls, Girls.” But nothing masked the fact that the band demanded fans fill in too many blanks with memories.
Def Leppard opted for a different strategy. Afforded a huge stage, the quintet — whose ranks count three original members plus two guitarists, Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell, who have been in the band for decades — kept it simple. Save for a backdrop wall of tall screens, extended drum-riser platform and fancy lighting, Def Leppard skipped the frills and focused on music. Though aware its largest successes belong to the past, it sounded and acted like a band that still enjoys playing together. What it lacked in showiness and toughness it made up for with balance, control, sharpness and fun.
Not surprisingly, the group leaned heavily on material from its blockbuster “Hysteria” LP, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this year. Rather than go through the motions, singer Joe Elliott and company addressed the songs like anthems deserve to be treated — with chords that rang out for miles, rousing lead vocals, driving harmonies, tight rhythms and clean, vibrant sonics.
Owing as much to pop as any genre, and not shy about flaunting its way with catchy melodies, sparkling tones and slick beats, Def Leppard navigated the sensual curves of “Animal” with the same prowess it handled the cinematic drama on “Love Bites.” The group paid homage to artistic influences and simulated launch-countdown sequences on “Rocket” before cooling down to channel a mix of anticipation, anxiety and lust on “Hysteria.” Propelled by a meaty riff and insistent groove, “Armageddon It” used question-and-answer exchanges to extend an invitation to dance.
Albeit minor, Def Leppard’s sole misstep owed to mid-concert pacing. Gathered nearer to the crowd at center stage for a semi-unplugged mini-set anchored by the sappy “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad,” the band stunted its momentum and gave people excuses to run to restrooms. A handful of new tunes — the singalong “Kick,” bleacher-stomping “Fire It Up,” glam-fueled “Take What You Want” — fared better and fit with the group’s glossy pop-rock mold. Tellingly, the “Diamond Star Halos” selections were the only post-1993 songs Def Leppard played.
Thankfully, the group acknowledged its New Wave of British Heavy Metal roots with an inspired version of the 1981 power ballad “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak” and segue into the instrumental “Switch 625,” culminated by a short solo by drummer Rick Allen. The one-armed percussionist also found himself at the center of the action during the booming “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” Receiving its proper due in a setting in which it helped make possible for live music to thrive — a stadium — the double entendre-laden staple felt as massive as it originally did in 1987. And that’s no f-f-foolin.’
By Bob Gendron @ Chicago Tribune, 2022
The Stadium Tour: Def Leppard- Motley Crue- Poison- More
Rob Grabowski and Tom Antonson caught Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Poison and more In The Act during the Chicago stop of The Stadium Tour at Wrigley Field on Friday, July 8, 2022. Check out Tom’s review and Rob’s great photos!
While it’s unusual to see the legendary green bleachers in the outfield of Wrigley Field empty, they were when the long-awaited Stadium Tour made its stop in Chicago.
However, the bleachers, which were behind the stage, were the only seats empty as over 41,000 eager fans packed the field and the stands. Fans had been waiting for the Def Leppard and Motley Crue tour for a staggering 2 1/2 years, but it was well worth the wait.
The audience was treated not only to Def Leppard and Motley Crue, but to special guests Poison, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, and newcomers Classless Act.
Starting off the show was Classless Act and while they were not originally on the tour 2 1/2 years ago, they were added after members of Motley Crue discovered them in 2021. They did an amazing job warming up the eager concert goers that were finding their seats. With vocals that sound like a wild-child of Robert Plant and Axl Rose and a duel guitar setup that would make most 80’s bands jealous, Classless Act delivered quite the show in their 5 song set.
Up next was the legendary Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Joan has been a staple in the music industry since her work with The Runaways in the mid to late 1970’s. She has aged like a fine wine and her vocals have stood the test of time, unlike most artists from that time period. Joan also earned her stripes by fronting the uber-successful Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.
Keyboard player and original member Kenny Laguna helped culture the crowd by sharing the band’s origins. Since they are a female-fronted band, they struggled to get a record deal and had to sell records out of the back of their car. However, their hard work paid off and they became one of the most legendary bands of all time.
As if rock anthems such as “I Hate Myself for Loving You” and “I Love Rock n Roll” weren’t enough, Joan played Runaways songs such as “Cherry Bomb” and even material off her new album, which was just released a few months ago. Joan and company truly put on a show, however that was just the beginning.
Next onstage was the 80’s glam powerhouse, Poison, which was practically a miracle since frontman Bret Michaels was hospitalized not even a week prior. Despite that setback, in true Bret Michaels fashion, he gave the crowd 1000% and got everyone on their feet.
While their set was trimmed of a few key songs such as “Unskinny Bop” and “Something to Believe in”, everyone in Poison truly brought their A-game. Their 9 song setlist packed a punch of 80’s rock anthems such as “Fallen Angel”, “Talk Dirty to Me”, “Ride the Wind”, “Every Rose has its Thorn”, and more.
Guitarist CC Deville even went into a captivating version of Van Halen’s “Eruption” during his guitar solo. All 4 band members (Bret Michaels, CC Deville, Bobby Dall & Rikki Rockett) all truly gave their all, and the crowd loved it. Their onstage antics had the crowd on their feet, talking dirty and having “Nothing but a Good Time”.
Up next, Motley Crue took over the stage, quite literally. With enough props and pyrotechnics to fuel a 4th of July celebration, Motley took the show to a whole new level taking the stage with practically enough smoke to shut down O’Hare airport for a few minutes.
Once the smoke rose, it revealed both famous and infamous gang of 80s rockers consisting of Vince Neil, Tommy Lee, Nikki Sixx & Mick Mars. It was almost a dream and having the Crue tour after their 2015 “Cessation of Touring Agreement”, and in this case, it was a dream come true for many.
Fueled by their successful Netflix biopic “The Dirt” they blew up that agreement and took to touring again. Motley’s 90-minute set was filled with surprises such as a performance of their new song “The Dirt” with Machine Gun Kelly on tracked vocals and a medley of hit songs such as “Helter Skelter” & “Smokin in the Boys Room”.
Their set also included a plethora of hits such as “Girls Girls Girls”, “Dr Feelgood”, “Wild Side”, “Kickstart My Heart”, and more. A crowd favorite “Home Sweet Home” consisted of Tommy Lee on both the piano and drum set…as well as 41,000 fans swaying their cellphone lights and singing along.
Frontman Vince Neil really got his act together and sounded the best he has in years, so credit where credit is due. While the bombastic bass playing of Nikki Sixx and monstrous drumming of Tommy Lee did seem to overpower the music at times, the Crue still sounded solid. Legendary guitarist Mick Mars dazzled the crowd with his unique guitar tricks and legendary riffs that have stood the test of time.
Closing out, and in my opinion stealing the show, was Def Leppard. The legendary British rockers have been a staple in the music industry for over 45 years and truly lived up to their reputation.
While most bands chose to hunker down during the 2 1/2 year break during Covid, Def Leppard decided to make their twelfth “studio” album Diamond Star Halos…but they did it all remote and from all over the world. The album was received so well that they decided to dedicate almost a quarter of their set to it, and it really paid off.
Opening the show was their hit single “Take What You Want” featuring Joe Elliott’s powerhouse vocals, Rick Allen’s booming drums, Rick Savage’s melodic bass lines and dueling guitar goodness from Vivian Campbell and Phil Collen. Their 80 minute set also included “Excitable”, a deep cut off their 1987 diamond certified album, Hysteria.
Material from Hysteria made up a solid chunk of the setlist with hits such as “Rocket”, “Love Bites” & the uber-popular “Pour Some Sugar On Me”.
“Hysteria” was also accompanied by a melodic outro and hundreds of pictures and memories from the bands 45+ year career displayed across the gigantic video wall, which was an amazing touch.
The band also broke into a semi-acoustic set for songs such as “This Guitar” off Diamond Star Halos, “Have you Ever Needed Someone so Bad” off 1992’s Adrenalize and a singalong of “Two Steps Behind”.
They also went back to their 1981 album, High n Dry playing “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak” and “Switch 625”, which featured Campbell and Collen’s magnificent guitar work. This medley also featured a drum solo by one-armed drummer Rick Allen, who is affectionately known as “The Thundergod”.
Even through things such as alcoholism, cancer, the loss of drummer Rick Allen’s left arm in 1984, and the passing of guitarist Steve Clark in 1991, Def Leppard has stood the test of time and lives on to be one of the biggest and best bands of all time. They were truly on their game all night and went note for note with some of their biggest hits.
This was truly an action-packed night as the concert went from 3:45pm – 10:50pm. Audience members truly got quite a bang for their buck with some of the biggest bands of the 1980’s all the way to today. While all of them sounded amazing, the crowd did get a little restless at times and some even got a little too “Excitable” as some people couldn’t even stand by the time Def Leppard took the stage. Regardless, countless memories were made and the thousands in attendance witnessed a show to remember. This goes down in my book as one of my favorite concerts I have attended and seeing bands like this still on the road selling out the world’s biggest stadiums further proves that Rock-N-Roll is still alive and kicking!
By Tom Antonson @ AntiMusic.com, 2022
Def Leppard, Mötley Crüe, Poison And Joan Jett A Home Run At Wrigley Field
“Chicago! We’ve been waiting for this for two years!” exclaimed Poison frontman Bret Michaels, summing up the sentiment amongst a sold out crowd of over 40,000 fans at a jam packed Wrigley Field.
One of the summer’s most anticipated outings, “The Stadium Tour,” featuring Classless Act, Joan Jett, Poison, Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe, continues through the summer and into fall, scheduled to wrap up September 9 in Las Vegas.
Poison nearly stole the show in the late afternoon hours, hitting the stage just before 6 PM in Chicago, packing decades worth of party anthems into about 45 minutes at Wrigley Field.
“I cannot stop smiling!” mused Michaels on stage. “This right here… For two years, I’ve been waiting for this party,” he reiterated, setting up “Talk Dirty To Me.” Guitarist C.C. DeVille made his way down the runway, to about shallow center field, slaying a solo as Michaels danced along nearby.
Michaels seemed at home on harmonica in the home of the blues as Poison put its spin upon the 1972 Loggins and Messina hit “Your Mama Don’t Dance.” Later, the singer sent “Every Rose Has its Thorn” out to victims of a July 4 mass shooting in Highland Park, a suburb about 25 miles north of Wrigley Field.
Nobody Friday seemed as excited to be on stage as Michaels, a wide grin across his face throughout Poison’s relentlessly entertaining and energetic set. “Sweet home Chicago!” he exclaimed as Poison made its way toward close. “Home of one of the greatest baseball teams in the world!”
DeVille and drummer Rikki Rockett, clad in a Chicago Cubs jersey, kicked in the familiar opening of “Nothin’ but a Good Time” as Poison headed for the finish line in the Windy City, a song that perhaps best sums up “The Stadium Tour.”
“How ya doin’, Chicago?” asked Joan Jett rhetorically on stage at Wrigley. “We are The Blackhearts!”
Jett’s 45 minute set was, in its no frills approach to rock and roll, a throwback to a bygone era, one full of fist pumps and defined by angsty anthems.
Jett, backed by a powerhouse four piece band, tore through each facet of her career with reckless abandon, hitting on everything from the unabashed punk of her vastly influential first group The Runaways to the acoustic splendor of her latest studio album Changeup.
“I just wanna mention this real quickly before the next song ‘Light of Day,’” she said, referencing her film debut alongside Michael J. Fox in the 1987 drama. In the movie, Jett teams with Fox to deliver the Bruce Springsteen-penned “Light of Day” as fictitious rock group The Barbusters, part of a project shot throughout the Chicagoland area. “I’ve got rock and roll music on my radio!” sang Jett during the performance, spinning to her right as she played.
While the crowd, fists in the air, helped Jett deliver the trademark “oh yeah!” backing to “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah),” the biggest sing-along of the afternoon was saved for “Crimson and Clover,” a top 10 hit for The Blackhearts in 1982, 13 years after it first topped the charts courtesy of Tommy James and The Shondells.
Jett sent the crowd into a frenzy, closing in raucous fashion with the combination of “I Hate Myself For Loving You” and “Bad Reputation.”
The smell of sulfur spread across Wrigley Field as smoke rolled throughout the stadium, fake sirens blaring, the sun just beginning to set, as 80s stalwarts Mötley Crüe waited in the wings.
“How ya doin’ tonight, Chicago?” asked frontman Vince Neil. “It’s been many years since we seen ya,” he continued, noting the group’s first performance in the Chicagoland area since 2015. “Right now we’re gonna do a song off the first album. Who likes the first album?” he said, setting up “Too Fast for Love” from the 1981 record of the same name a once unthinkable 40 years later.
“Wild Side” and “Shout at the Devil” opened a fun set, the bass and drums of rhythm section Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee largely drowning out Neil in the early goings.
“How about a drink?” said Neil. “I need a guitar,” he continued, setting up a slightly slowed down take on “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away).”
Tuned down to accommodate the singer, Mötley Crüe nevertheless ably delivered the hits over just about an hour and a half, setting the stage for a closing performance by Def Leppard.
“Is it alright if I play some keyboard for ya?” asked affable and entertaining drummer Tommy Lee. Lee, continuing his recovery from broken ribs, made his way down the runway from his drum kit, taking center stage for one of the biggest power ballads of all time in “Home Sweet Home.”
“Are you guys feelin’ good?” asked Neil of the crowd, the Crüe about to break out of the ballad with a vengeance in the form of “Dr. Feelgood.” “Mick Mars!” he shouted, pointing to his left.
Mars, 71, was the unquestionable star of Mötley Crüe’s set. With church imagery ironically flanking the group on screen, the guitarist slayed every solo in his path while Neil allowed the audience to do the heavy vocal lifting on “Same Ol’ Situation.”
“Look at this place…” mused Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott, taking stock of the unique, ivy-covered Wrigley Field expanse. “Look at this place!”
Def Leppard was a “Stadium Tour” highlight in Chicago. Aside from Jett, Def Leppard was one of the few acts willing to take a chance on stage, opening with “Take What You Want” and “Fire It Up,” a pair of cuts from their brand new album Diamond Star Halos, one which cracked the top 10 of the Billboard 200 album chart, placing the group alongside pop acts following its release in May.
In their closing performance – Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe are alternating closing sets each night of “The Stadium Tour” – Def Leppard wasted no time getting to the hits, putting forth “Animal” and “Foolin’” early, seemingly eternally shirtless guitarist Phil Collen opting for a vest in Chicago as he shouted out the iconic backing vocal parts.
On a day largely defined by loud guitars, one of the biggest surprises was the resounding success of a Def Leppard acoustic set, one which saw Elliott pick up guitar on the appropriately titled “This Guitar,” a new Diamonds track which features bluegrass singer Alison Krauss. The performance took on a folk feel with each member kicking in on the group’s trademark backing harmonies.
A stripped down take on “Have You Ever Needed Someone So Bad” followed but the true standout was Elliott’s solo effort on “Two Steps Behind.” In a live era dominated by backing tracks and other artificial assists, the performance put the focus squarely on Elliott’s still sparkling lead vocal, a rare example of how to age gracefully in the hard rock genre.
For artists relegated largely to the state fair circuit by the dawn of the 2000s, “The Stadium Tour” once again proves that music is cyclical, each act on the bill arguably as relevant as they’ve ever been, selling out massive outdoor stadiums across the country.
Up-and-coming Los Angeles rock quintet Classless Act set the table on an overcast day, early in the afternoon about 3:45 PM local time in Chicago.
“Wrigley Field, we are Classless Act and we’ve got something to say!” declared singer Derek Day, playing to the fans in the massive venue during opening cut “This is for You.”
Classless Act’s is a fun story, a group making the jump to larger venues this year just months removed from their first tour as opening act for blues rockers Dorothy in small clubs. Working with famed producer Bob Rock, the band recorded parts of their debut album Welcome to the Show in Tommy Lee’s home studio, Neil guesting on the song “Classless Act,” a rollicking cut the group closed with at Wrigley Field.
“Would you look at the time?! We’ve got one more song for you guys,” said Day, setting up the performance.
“Classless Act” conjured up images of early, gritty Guns N’ Roses, Day taking to harmonica as guitarist Dane Pieper held his guitar aloft, strumming out the song’s rhythm part as rain began to fall, the beginning of a long afternoon of live music at Wrigley Field.
By Jim Ryan @ Forbes.com, 2022
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