Really speaking I’m kicking myself that I didn’t see the Bradford “Firefest”, in truth I couldn’t face the idea of standing in a club (sober) for 12+ hours whoever was on the bill. Must be old age. I’m therefore fortunate to have had the opportunity to catch this low-key show in Wolverhampton the following night. The mere prospect of being in the same county as the legend that is Neal Schon was an awesome prospect. Schon’s work with AOR legends Journey over the last few decades has entertained me no end, from a song-writing point of view and from a guitar player’s stance. He is truly original, not a technical show off but a master of tone. Bit of a hero of mine if I’m honest. Four of us made the 150+ mile “journey” (sorry), fellow reviewer Willy Eckersyke and heavily pregnant partner and my gig/drinking/guitar partner in crime Mick O’Connor. All of us huge Journey, Jeff Scott Soto and Soul SirkUS fans, this was an ideal scenario. 

Support band “Landslide” made a fair stab at opening the evening with five or six, self penned tunes in a rocky/indie vein. It struck me that they are a young band and got the feeling they hadn’t played at that volume very often and looked terrified but power to them for giving it their best. In contrast when Soul SirkUs hit the stage, they oozed confidence, born from years of playing on the biggest stages in the world. Mick came up with the two quotes of the night, the first being “How is Jeff Scott Soto not a megastar?” and He’d hit the nail on the head. Soto is a frontman and a half, literally grasping the audience and dragging them along the wild carpet ride that is the “SirkUS” live. JSS is straight out of the Dave Lee Roth school of frontmen, with a voice to boot, good looking bastard as well, posturing and gyrating at the front of the stage, clearly enjoying the company he’s currently keeping. And what company, Marco Mendoza looked like he had a coat hanger in his mouth all night and I’m convinced nothing could have wiped the smile of his face. Virgil Donato played with class, a drummer of immense talent, but Neal Schon was just the coolest guy I’ve ever seen live. Dark shades and ear to ear grin he was effortless in his performance. Cool, cool, cool.  

Blitzing into “Higher Ground”, early PA problems spoilt the overall effect but they soon got sorted. After 3 or 4 tunes from the highly acclaimed “WorldPlay” debut some prat shouted “JOURNEY”, JSS grabbed the mic and countered “You got it man, LA to Wolverhampton, that’s some journey !”. A good laugh. A fair wedge of the “WorldPlay” CD featured in the show but when JSS left the stage mid set to showcase Schon, Mendoza and Donato for a ripping version of “Voodoo Chile”, they played the bollocks off it. Passion and talent in huge slabs. Mendoza’s latin/samba solo piece was incredible, Donato’s jazz rhythms highlighted his talent. When JSS returned to the stage and sat at a keyboard, we were treated to snippets of  “Bohemian Rhapsody”, Seal’s “Crazy” and an awesome, hybrid version of the “Open Arms” melody with “Purple Rain” sung over the top, Schon tore into the extended solo and made Prince look like an amateur. Mick turned to me with a dead-pan face and said “F**k me, Neal Schon’s playing Purple Rain !”. Classic. 

A memorable show of class and humour, with a band that love what they do. One of the best I’ve seen. Period.

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