Night Ranger / Osaka, Japan 10.08.2013 Complete

NIGHT RANGER’s 12th visit to Japan in three years with their new album “High Road”, the live performance at Namba Hatch on October 8, 2013 in Osaka, was recorded in full by “West Japan’s Strongest Taper” with the highest quality audience recording ever. The recording was from the center of the front row of the reserved seats on the second floor. There was nothing in front of you, so even if you were in the second floor seats, the sound was direct and there was no distance loss. There was almost no audience noise around, and there was no annoying singing voice at all. The recording was from the same seat and with the same texture as Taper’s previous recording of Y&T and WINGER “NAMBA ROCK CITY 2014” (which was also a great recording!). This Osaka version of NIGHT RANGER’s live performance, which can be heard in the highest quality, is a must-listen and must-experience for fans! This time, after the decision to perform in Japan was made, a sudden member change occurred, which upset the fans. The story goes that Doug Aldrich, who was thought to have been on honeymoon with WHITESNAKE, left the band due to a feud with David Coverdale. His successor was Joel Hoekstra, who joined NIGHT RANGER in 2008. As a result, Joel Hoekstra left NIGHT RANGER. Jack Blades, who is currently working on an album with Doug Aldrich, offered Doug Aldrich the opportunity to join NIGHT RANGER. However, Doug turned it down, so Kelli Kelly, who had previously helped out when Joel Hoekstra was unable to tour due to other work, was brought in as his replacement. Kelli Kelly is known for her work with Alice Cooper’s band, WARRANT, Slash from GUNS N’ROSES, Vince Neil from MOTOLEY CRUE, and Stephen Pearcy from RATT. Although he didn’t use Jeff Watson’s eight-finger technique, his playing skills were impeccable, and his youthful, rock-like looks and active movements brought a certain glamour to the band, despite his sudden participation. The live performance at the same venue three years ago was initially an all-standing performance, but due to poor attendance, it was suddenly changed to a seated performance on the day of the performance. Even so, the attendance was not good. For this live performance, the reserved seats on the first and second floors were sold out in advance. On the day of the performance, there were standing room only on the first floor and even on the second floor, and it was a full house. It is true that the new album “High Road” was good, but it was not a big hit worldwide, and NIGHT RANGER itself has not been talked about publicly in the past three years, so it was strange that the attendance was so good. Is there an increase in interest in classic rock in recent years? The set lists for all four performances on this Japan tour were different, and the band’s wonderful attitude of entertaining the fans no matter which performance they see is appealing to the fans. In terms of the number of rare songs, the second day in Tokyo and Nagoya would be the first, but this Osaka set list was a great one to enjoy the royal road of NIGHT RANGER, with many hit songs and classic songs. Among them, “Penny” is rare. With the participation of Keri Kelly, they also performed a cover of Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out”. They thoroughly entertained the audience. The MC introducing the members “KK1, KK2” before “School’s Out” was hilarious. The improvised acoustic cover of AC/DC’s “Highway To Hell” was a song selected only for Osaka. “I’ve never played this song acoustically before,” they said, making us laugh here too. From “When You Close Your Eyes” to the last “(You Can Still) Rock In America”, they created a wonderful peak with a series of famous songs. It’s been 31 years since their first visit to Japan, and it was also moving for fans that the stage design was similar to their first visit. Not only the stage design, but also Jack Blades’ youthful looks and singing voice, Brad Gillis’ technical and tricky playing, and Kelly Keagy’s simple yet tasteful singing voice were all unchanged since their first visit to Japan, and they played a number of timeless classics along with some incredibly enjoyable American hard rock that completely blew away any concerns about the sudden member changes. Live at Namba Hatch, Osaka, Japan 9th October 2014 ULTIMATE SOUND(from Original Masters) Disc 1 (54:55) 1. Pre Show Music 2. Introduction 3. Touch Of Madness 4. Four In The Morning 5. St. Bartholomew 6. Coming Of Age 7. Growin’ Up In California 8. School’s Out 9. Sentimental Street 10. Eddie’s Comin’ Out Tonight 11. Sing Me Away 12. The Secret Of My Success Disc 2 (53:24) 1. Don’t Live Here Anymore 2. High Road 3. Highway To Hell 4. Goodbye 5. When You Close Your Eyes 6. Don’t Tell Me You Love Me 7. Band Introduction 8. Penny 9. Sister Christian 10. (You Can Still) Rock In America Kelly Keagy – Drums, Percussion, Backing & Leading Vocals Brad Gillis – Guitars, Backing Vocals Jack Blades – Bass, Lead & Backing Vocals Eric Levy – Keyboards, Backing Vocals Keri Kelli – Guitars