Review by Richard Henry for MPM
I mean what can you say about these guys, 40 years recorded history since album one, they have been together as a band for one year less than I have been alive getting together in 1979, 11 studio albums (soon to be 12), I have yet to witness a bad show in the times I have seen them! So off I go over to Scotland to the lovely Royal Concert Hall for an evening with Europe!
Intro – So, as it all kicks off and the lights dim, we get a little glimpse into some footage that’s from an upcoming documentary of the band’s history, pre-Europe and how they all found each other, some in rival bands and how it all worked out that they got to be the band Europe, turns out it was a good idea to keep drinking when they were given the new name of the band from Joey (you’ll have to see the documentary to find out the rest)!
On Broken Wings – So we are kicking this off with a B-Side and this is exactly what I was wanting, a load of songs you don’t normally hear, it’s a proper kick off with the band hitting us with a proper rocker to start this off, no surprise, everyone knows the chorus to this one, John pulling off all manner of guitar faces during the solo (I have a man crush on John Norum people, deal with it), it’s weird being seated at a rock gig, but on one hand it really lets you take it all in, like how good is the harmony vocals with Mic and Joey, just on point!
Seven Doors Hotel – There we go, off to the first album, I love that piano intro to this one, then Ian hammers in and this one is a real driving hard rock song, now I love this era of Europe, first two albums and everything since 2003, now bear in mind here, we are in the original key for all these songs and Joey isn’t missing a note on the vocals, the crowd happily joining in on the Wow section on the chorus, plus by the time we hit the second verse, John has had two solos and there is nothing wrong with that as I stared at him most of the night, I love it when the tempo shifts on this and we hit an almost Yngwie/Thin Lizzy style harmony section, then John launches into a proper flurry of notes for this solo, the crowd are absolutely loving this, it’s such a good atmosphere in her tonight!
Rock the Night – I mean it’s a classic from the Final Countdown album, they have played this one every time I have seen them, but you can’t escape that massive chorus and the roof gets lifted off the place when they hit this one, Joey going from stage left to right, up on the monitors getting every last person to sing along with him, the man is a ball of energy, smiling his way through the whole set, keeping everyone engaged the whole time, plus I love the Ian drum fill after the chorus, there are not many drum parts that stick in your head, that one always has, that solo, enough said, taste, flash but all to serve the song, everything about this song is just classic!
Start From the Dark – Now this one I was really looking forward to, from the album of the same name and it did not disappoint, that is one heavy ass riff down in I think B tuning, it just slams with that driving backbeat from Ian, then that chorus I as signing away to myself on this, this is the stuff when I say to people about Europe and straight away they say oh the final countdown, then I play them something like this and they invariably go, I didn’t know they could be that heavy! Oh, and as always that’s a class solo from John, full of swagger and Wah Wah, now this song is hard to be seated to, then into that chorus again, what a cracking track!
Walk the Earth – The intro fires in to this one as the stage goes dark, title track from the last studio album, this one screams Led Zep with that Kashmir sounding riff and that rock solid backbeat from Ian, then you hit that chorus and everyone is singing away to this one, its huge and then in the break you can hear the place scream like champions, again that solo, full of melody for the most part and then a furious run followed by more melody, the it breaks to the keys and Joey before boom it’s in again, the whole place singing along with the band!
Hold Your Head Up – Well here we go; this is the first track from the new Europe album that’s due out soon, I get a real Deep Purple vibe at the start of this and then it goes all happy once the verse comes in, it’s a really upbeat sounding track, it’s a great chorus, the guys laying it out and then Joey singing refrains over the top of it, the first half of the solo is pure melody before John gets to stretch out a bit in the second part of the solo, little guitar and vocal call and response and then into the chorus again!
Dreamer – Mic starting this one from the Wings of Tomorrow album, you really hear how Joeys voice has gotten stronger and better over the years, so much depth to his vocal and subtly in this one, it’s really cool hearing this one extended with the two of them playing and it really sounds so good as the duo playing it, the crowd joining in on the chorus, what a beautiful song stripped right back!
War of Kings – Lights out and then that droning vocal intro and we are off to the War of Kings album, the first time I heard this for some reason I thought of Dio and don’t know why and its maybe just me, but it still to this day gives me that vibe, I love when they do this material, just a driving hard rocker of a tune, heavy as it needs to be but still full of melody, now I sang the whole way through this one, I absolutely love this track, even more the solo, again it’s so melodic with little flourishes of flash but not for the sake of it, just well executed, its these songs I find hard being at a seated gig, I want to be on the rail screaming away to it, so good!
Vasastan – Is this John Norum’s “The Loner”? For me yeah, and I am a guitarist, I love this track from the War of Kings album, this is twice now I have seen it live and it just gives me the goosebumps every time, the way it builds from quiet and build momentum and the shifts key, comes back and then goes down again, and it’s a beautiful melody as well, I could gush on about this for pages, but as a guitar player, I would love to write something like the or the afore mentioned Gary Moore track, it just sticks in your head and for me it’s so moving, I think I had my eyes closed for part of it and I was pulling guitar faces even though I wasn’t playing, as the song comes down the keys shift and we venture into the start of another song….
Girl From Lebanon – The previous song melds into the synth and guitar intro played by Mr. Marcello from the Prisoners in Paradise album, this one kicks live, it just drives, really subtle keys part in the background as well during the verse, great chorus, also fair play to the girls to my left who were on their feet at the front of the stage dancing and singing away the whole gig, I love Johns interpretation of the solo, playing all the key melody parts but also mixing it up with his own licks as well!
Carrie – Back to the Final Countdown album, it’s really easy to overlook that intro from Mic as well, its beautifully played, again this is in the original key and Joey is nailing it, and it’s just him and the piano, no backing tracks here folks, it’s all them, how do I know, I can hear his acoustic voice as I was front row and there is some power in there still, now as you would expect the crowd are all singing the chorus back to the band, that solo to me has always had that Gary Moore Celtic vibe at the start of it, I love it so much, it’s a classic song for a reason!
Stormwind – Back to Wings of Tomorrow, I absolutely love this album, so I was so pleased to hear this one played again, driving rocker of a track, I love the way when it hits the pre chorus it lifts up and then I was signing away with a load of others the chorus, it’s great to see so many people at the gig know all these tracks and not just the hits! This is no surprise if you got this far, I love that solo, loads of speed picking pentatonic licks and a bit more flash, still with loads of melody, then back into that majestic chorus
Then it all went dark, we have had 12 songs so far, and we had a message from Ian informing us they were having a twenty-min intermission, and they would be back!
So, after 20 mins the house lights goes down and we are treated with a bit more of the documentary, this time featuring the comeback and the Sweden Rock show, it was really cool seeing this, and I for one am really looking forward to seeing the whole documentary when it gets released!
Always the Pretenders – Secret Society album gets hit next and this is a proper way to start the second half off the set, this album had some really heavy riff on them, and this track was definitely one of them, again this is a track to play to someone who only knows the band for one song, yet as heavy as the verse is, the chorus is so singable and I did song it, that solo, I love the way it picks up with the low notes before he slides up a bit then back down for a fast lick then into the drum stabs before it quiets down again and then bang, you get slapped with that chorus again, what a track!
Ninja – Back to the Final Countdown again, I always liked this track as it was a bit more like the first two albums, I am going back to the fact this is in original key and Joey is hitting it all, the guy is just the consummate frontman, up on the monitors, roaming the stage, getting everyone involved on the floor, up in the balcony, you really can’t take your eyes off him, well unless you staring at Mr. Norum that is, that solo is iconic, when he plays between the breaks then it gets really aggressive before returning to the melody and that sums up his playing in a nutshell, everyone again getting involved for the chorus, its party central in here with everyone smiling and singing away, it really is a celebration!
Prisoners in Paradise – From the album of the same name, Mr. Tempest slaps on a rather nice white Les Paul Custom for this one, I love that guitar melody at the start of this one before it drops down to Mic and Joey playing with John adding little licks in and out, then it picks up into the pre chorus, again everyone is joining in on this one, very Beatles if you think about it in the chorus, again it’s really nice to see the main parts of the solo there and then John improving some of his own parts in it!
Sign of the Times – Mic starting this one off, from the Out of This World album, it’s a real have track live compared to the album version is the one thing I kept thinking, Joey commanding the stage, and again you have to hear the way Mic, Ian and Joey sound on these choruses, it’s so well-tuned, great harmony vocals on that chorus, now there is no way for John to play that solo exactly, you need 24 frets and he has 21, but for the most of the solo he plays it exactly like Kee played it and then improvs the end of it, it’s a glorious solo, I love this track!
So, after this the guys reorganize things, and we get two microphones and two stools coming up onto the stage and we have Joey and John and two acoustic guitars, I loved the story at the start of this where they talk about being kids and going up a hill with two acoustics and playing songs they used to love, and you can tell just the two of them there how deep the two of them go and I just thought it was so lovely to just listen to the two of them talk, honestly it was a lovely moment
Space Oddity – We get a cover of this David Bowie classic, stripped right back and it was great hearing John singing and then Joey and the harmonies and just the two of them, very intimate I thought and just a really cool moment to share with them
Last Look at Eden – As the stage went dark the Prelude to this track from the album of the same name came on, it’s almost like a bond theme the start of it and then bang, it comes in another heavy back beat driver of a song, great build by the band, using the set list for the dynamics, again I was signing away in the chorus of this one as where a load of people round me, the band absolutely pitch perfect for the choruses, that little stop start part before the solo, which starts low and then comes up all melody, bit of flash and then more melody and also Mic plays a harmony at the end with John which is easy to miss, I love this track so much!
Open Your Heart – Back twenty years to the Out of This World album, Joey again taking center stage with the start of this one, his voice ringing through the place, we are 19 songs in, and he hasn’t faltered once tonight, when it kicks in the dancing starts again with the girls in the front row leading the charge, everyone singing away to the chorus of this one, the band looking like they are loving every second of this sharing it with the Glasgow crowd, this one had a great original solo by Kee and John sticks to it, great track!
Memories – Back in time to the first album again, I have never heard this one live before and the first thing that strikes me is just how heavy it is live with Ian double kicking his way through it and a really heavy riff, I imagine this cannot be easy to sing at this point in the set but here he is just nailing it, I am absolutely loving this one, and yeah I do like the heavier tracks, that’s is true, definitely a more shreddy solo to this one, we get at the end a bit of Mr. John Levin playing out a bit more bass, he really is the glue in this band, always solid, doing his thing interacting with the crowd and just looking cool over there!
More Than Meets the Eye – Back to Out of This World for this one, now I have to be honest, I was never a fan of this one, it’s too poppy for me, it’s of its time and again I love the heavier stuff but the crowd are loving it and they are all singing away to this one, great solo to be fair and John again even pulls of the tapping lick and for the most part stays pretty faithful to the original! Now I have to be honest, there were no tracks from Bag of Bones tonight and I would rather have one off it than another off this album but that’s just my opinion?
Drum Solo – Now if I was to say William Tell Overture and Mr. Ian Huagland, you would probably be looking at your screen quizzically, so I am not going to give it away, you need to go see them on tour, there is double bass, drum rolls, it’s all there but you need to see it for yourself!
Ready or Not – Out of This World again for this one, this one is a bit more of a driving rocker, great chorus on this as well, everyone singing that, it’s a really nice riff on this between all the clean guitar parts on the verse, lovely bendy bluesy solo from John, again keeping a good bit of Kees solo and then changing it for more of his own licks in there, great track!
Superstitious – Still on the same album for this one, everyone knows the words to this, I could hear it one the verse as well as the pre chorus and when it hit the chorus it was loud in here, the vibe in the room is just so positive and again everyone is here in celebration and it’s so cool, that solo is iconic at this stage and its pretty much faithfully replicated by John, then we get the bass break part after the solo, only we then change into a bit of Whitesnake with us all getting to sing along to a bit of Here I Go Again before we switch back into the original song, really cool little switch up!
And they are off or are they………….
Cherokee – Final Countdown album for this first encore, that’s such a good riff in the start of this one, at this point seating was abandoned and I was right in front of Joeys monitors, again we are 24 songs in, and I can literally hear him above me without the microphone and his voice is solid, a two hour set isn’t easy, that I know from experience, these guys are just unreal live, another iconic solo from John, full of melody, chops and just absolutely memorable, solo from Mic as well after that with loads of pedal point neo classical licks, back into that riff again and bang into that chorus, everyone In the place dancing and singing away, the people in the balcony where up out of the seats doing the same as the guys down on the floor!
And they are off or are they……
The Final Countdown – It was always going to be, wasn’t it, what can I write about this that hasn’t been said, every lyric is sung back, the chorus is deafening, the solo is iconic, everything about this song is ingrained into my brain and I am sure it’s the same for everyone in the venue and I can’t really think of a more fitting way to end the show!
This is a 40th anniversary celebration of the band, and I want to make the point of celebration, because that’s what it was, I smiled and sang my ass off for over two hours, as did everyone around me, and that alone is something to be treasured, that’s what it is all about isn’t it, going to a gig and being transported away from everything for a period of time and not wanting it to end, and that’s what tonight was, not just a journey through the bands history but a celebration of what they are for the last 40 years!
PS. I love John Norum in case you couldn’t tell, I also bought a guitar that looks like his before I flew back to Northern Ireland (don’t tell anyone!!!!)
