Motley Cruise Day 1
Friday, January 25, 2008 at 08:59AM What an odd world we live in.
My husband and I pulled up to the Miami cruise port, checked our bags and wandered for about two feet before seeing Evel Dick of Big Brother fame. I knew he was going on the cruise, but I didn’t expect to see him straightaway. Since Big Brother is one of my favorite shows – and I rooted for ED to win - I was very excited. Imagine my surprise when I ended up in line right behind him to check-in. I haven’t had my picture taken with him yet, but that’s coming – don’t worry.
If you’ve cruised, then you know the ships are like floating cities with thousands of passengers. To my surprise, I keep seeing the same few people over and over – including band members. I literally brushed by Vince Neil on my way to the bar (notice I said my way!) and have seen Jacob Lynam about 97 times. I also sat at the table across from Vince at dinner. I have to admit, watching the lead singer of Motley Crue drinking a Coke isn’t all that exciting.
The entire point of this vacation is the music and last night was Slaughter and RATT in that order. Eric and I got in line early and we waited…and waited…and waited for the doors of the theatre to open. I suppose it didn’t matter because somehow we ended up in the balcony which disappointed me a little. It’s a trade-off I suppose: better sound, or better pictures?
Slaughter sounded really good in my opinion. I thought Mark Slaughter sounded good at Rocklahoma but no one agreed with me then. Please believe he sounded even better last night. My pen died during their set, so I don’t have the full list but Slaughter did perform “Take Me Away,” “Burnin’ Bridges,” “Mad About You,” “Fly to the Angels” and “Up All Night.” The band also performed a new song; I believe it was called “Inside Myself” (don't quote me on that!). It was slower, but I enjoyed it well enough. Toward the end of the set, the band was having feedback issues, but no one really seemed to care.
A short intermission and it was time for RATT. I was ready to go in my “RATT & Roll” shirt, thank you very much. A new pen means a full set here. The band played:
Sweet Cheater
Walkin’ The Dog
Dangerous, But Worth the Risk
I'm Insane
You Think You’re Tough
City to City
Slip of the Lip
Wanted Man
Nobody Rides for Free
Way Cool, Jr.
Back for More
Lovin’ You’s a Dirty Job
Lack of Communication
Lay It Down
You’re In Love
Body Talk
Round and Round
Judging by the length of the set, you can tell RATT played for well over an hour. This was cool, except the set was a little “gappy.” By that I mean Stephen Pearcy and company would play a song, then stand around for a minute to get back into position. At one point Pearcy said that last night’s performance was the band’s first show together in more than two months. In a lot of ways you could tell. Pearcy’s voice sounded o.k. at the beginning of the set…and sort of went downhill. To be fair, I think it rebounded a little toward the end, so maybe he was just tired. The stage banter was sort of getting on my nerves, but what can you do? I mean, there are only so many times Pearcy needed to say “Are you ready to party?”
Every time I see RATT live, I can’t help but wonder why none of the band members move. I am a John Corabi nut, but he stays on his side of the stage for nearly the entire set…and Warren DeMartini stays on the other side of the stage while Pearcy sort of jumps in the middle. The good news is that most of the feedback was gone during RATT and I was impressed by the concert volume. I probably would have forgotten I was even on a cruise ship except for the fact that the band members kept referencing it and the ship was swaying a little more than usual.
Vince Neil stood to the side of the stage while Slaughter and RATT performed and he seemed to be having a good time. Then again, every time I saw him he was all smiles. At the end of the day, this cruise is a way to raise money for the Skylar Neil Memorial Fund. I’m sure Vince is pleased with the turnout for his charity.
Today I’m in Key West and I see Lynam at midnight. There’s also something called “Heavy Metal Karaoke” which sounds fun. Ah, the drunken debauchery.
Reader Comments (7)
Peace,
fletch
I'm sure the RATT and Slaughter concert was awesome. My mom had Mr. Pearcy call me today. :) She said she's seen many members over and over too...I thought it was interesting. haha.