Cinderella in Foxboro, MA -- Live Review

On Wednesday, August 3, the Cinderella tour rolled into Foxboro, MA, so how could I not go? To sum my review up in a few words.....it was a Cinderella show.  If you have seen the band live over the past few years, you know what I mean.  The band has essentially played the same set and put the same show on for years.  Everyone knows that Tom will wear the top hat during "Night Songs," that Jeff and Eric will spin their guitars during the Night Songs-era songs, Jeff will have more costume changes than the cast of a Broadway musical, and that before "Shake Me," Tom will say, "Are you ready to get this place shaking? I said are you ready to get this place SHAKING?" 

While it may sound like I am complaining about a stale show, that certainly is not the case. I walk into to a Cinderella show knowing I am going to leave satisfied that I saw a great show and clearly I am not alone, as the show was either sold out, or very close to being sold out.  The guys are entertaining live and put some real effort into entertaining the crowd, and above all else, they still sound amazing. Musically, they are as tight as they have ever been. Vocally, you can tell that Tom is holding back some when singing, but as someone who witnessed him at his worst during the Poison/Cinderella tour a few years ago, I fully understand why he chooses not to blow out his vocal cords. 

 

From top to bottom, the set clocked in at about 1 hour and 20 minutes, and contained 13 songs. The addition of "Once Around the Ride" this tour was a nice touch, as was "Long, Cold Winter."  Personally, I would love to hear "Loves Got Me Doing Time" or "If You Don't Like It", but again I understand what they are doing.  You can't drop the hits and risk disappointing the loyal crowd when you know what they want to hear, and Tom probably does not want to do longer sets for fear of reinjuring his vocal cords. 

 

One brief, stand out moment for me was during "Shelter Me," Tom began playing his saxophone solo, but something was clearly wrong with the horn. He took it off and gave it to a stagehand and said, "It's f---ed up."  But what he did next, all "rocks tars" should take a note of... he shrugged his shoulders and just went on with the song.  No tantrum that things weren't working properly, no storming off stage, and I can't imagine anyone got fired over it.  He rolled with the punches and just kept on delivering a show for the people that paid to see him that night.

 

The band MASS opened the show, but I only caught 1/2 of their last song, so I can not review their set (but I can, however, review the Five Guys burger, as that was where I was during their set).

 

On a side note, I will say that this is the second time I have seen a show at this venue, and I think this place is amazing. The club is called Showcase Live, and it is a nice, clean, big room with great stage and lights; but most importantly, the sound is fantastic.  It is a bit of a drive for me to get to there, but it is definitely worth the time it takes to get there.

Comments

[Rita]

Nice to see Tom is learning to roll with the punches. When I saw them in TO last year playing with Scorpions, something happened and the guys started playing the wrong song. He was really pissed the whole night after that. Ofcourse, there was a monsoon that night too so it could have been the weather. Anyway, he seemed off (really mad) the rest of the night, which is too bad because I hear he's a really nice guy.

[ricksav65]

Thank you for the review! I'm going to see them in New Hampshire next week and can't wait!

[brian L]

I saw them in Baltimore earlier this week, and they were really good. Tom's voice was great and everyone had a blast. They didnt play Push Push, though. I was surprised.

[Sleaze Rocker]

I was at the Foxboro show myself and agree mostly with the review except I thought Tom was basically mailing in the performance. The dude never smiles and sings with his eyes closed most of the time.It was an average Cinderella performance and I have seen them many times over the last 25 years. He basically seems bored/burned out singing the same ol songs every tour for the past 10 years.
Mass is a cool band that still sounds as good as when they first came out back in the day.

[John]

MASS is a great band! Everyone should definitely check them out! I was at the show also and it was awesome!

[jimbo]

Brian,nice review..but you were a moron for missing MASS..google them and see what a great band they are (from Revere Ma)..Im going to see em in NH next Wed and no way and I missing John Corabi,then MASS then Cinderella!

[Brian]

Thanks for the review. By my clock, the lights dimmed at 9:22 pm, and the house lights came back on at 10:33 pm. So, I thought a 70-minute set was a bit light. However, there was no filler. I also assumed that they stick to 70 minutes and 13 songs so as not to blow out Tom's voice. That, plus, I was thinking, was Cinderella ever a headline band? They probably never played a 90-minute set back in the day, so why start now.

Otherwise, it was a solid show. Very similar to the Live at the Key Club disc. For $35, I'd see them again.

[Brian C.]

I've seen Mass. They were good, but just didn't do "it" for me. When they did the cover of Kashmir while opening for Stryper, it was so good the hair on my arms stood up, but their originals weren't my thing. But, they had alot of support at both shows, so good for them.

[Ben B]

Cinderella kicked ass, this was an awesome show. I thought they sounded great. Anybody out there get any quality video, other than what's already on youtube?

[Metalboy!]

Sorry I missed Cinderella in Baltimore. But my ex-lead guitarist caught the show and said they were phenomenal (and far from boring).

I did see 'em, point blank, last year at M3 and on Shiprocked!, and I was just blown away!

I look forward to catchin' 'em on The Monsters of Rock Cruise comin' up in February.