Blue_Buddha posted on July 21, 2009 05:39
What do you get when you have a perfect marriage of two of the best 80's glam rock bands on the same bill for for a night of fist pumping, pyro and ballads? You get the Def Leppard / Poison tour that rolled into Verizon Wireless Amphitheater last evening much to the delight of over 13,000 fans. In what was a perfect night for an outdoor show, the place was rocking from start to finish by bands still bringing it strong after 25 years. There was a definite stench of Aqua Net and Budweiser in the air and the people in attendance would like it no other way.
Cheap Trick opened up the show as a special supporting act and they put on a solid set of their old tunes mixed in some new stuff for good measure. Since their catalog spans nearly 35 years, they had a lot to choose from to fill their abbreviated time. Lead singer Robin Zander sounded strong and bold on old classics such as “I Want You To Want Me” ,”Surrender” and “Dream Police”. 
They also dropped a few tunes from their new album “The Latest” which really fit in the set quite well. All in all a good start and great primer for the evening to come as Cheap Trick did their job of setting the table.
Poison was up next and all the rabid old school Poison fans were charged up as were the army of “Rock of Love” starf*cker's in attendance. From the opening notes of “Look What The Cat Dragged In”, Brett Michaels commanded the crowd to rock and they most certainly did that to the 10th degree. As expected, big pyro was the standard and the boys blistered through an hour set of mostly hits much to approval of every boisterous cougar in the house. Many homemade "We Love Brett Michaels" type shirts spotted on groups of women along with the standard bandana/cowboy hat combo, keep it classy. Save a few long and drawn out solos(which Poison is known for), the set was pretty damn entertaining. A few standouts included a harmonica intro into a jumping version of “Your Momma Don't Dance”, “Every Rose Has It's Thorn” that saw at least 10,000 lighters and cellphones in the air and some hoosier tears shed and “Unskinny Bop” with flames shooting high and the crowd screaming the chorus back note for note. You could tell as the set progressed that Brett Michaels was fighting through voice issues as he was a bit raspy and relied on the crowd quite a bit. All that aside however, this was just what a Poison show should be, “Nothing But A Good Time” which coincidentally, closed the set.
After a short change over and with much anticipation, the stage was set for the evening's main event: Def Leppard. They came barreling out of the gate with a set of old classics sure to please any fan of the boys from Sheffield, England. “Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)” led the way directly into “Rocket” to start the set and Joe Elliott and the boys were just getting started. Def Leppard had a much bigger, fuller sound than did Poison so that helped the ramp up the energy for their set quite a bit. The 3 tiered LCD covered stage and big lights made a great backdrop for a night of familiar hits. There were many standout's from the set but a very strong version of “Love Bites” featured great solos from every member of the group. 
A deep, dark bass intro led into a cover of the David Essex tune “Rock On” which was surely a highlight of the night. An acoustic version of “Two Steps Behind” with the band gathered at the front of the stage was great. Classic Def Leppard hits closed the 90 minute set with “Hysteria”, a growling version of “Pour Some sugar On Me”, “Rock Of Ages” and “Let's Get Rocked” as the encore. Def Leppard showed once again last night that after more than 30 years, they still have what it takes to rock a packed house and the fans in St. Louis could not have enjoyed it more.
Fun show and a great night, go check it out if it comes to your neck of the woods. And do not forget your Aqua Net.