Just watched the San Jose stream in the hope of being given a lifeline for the IOW festival... and now I'm struggling to reconcile how I can get on the ferry.
People say 'there's still Jon, Dave, Tico and Phil X is a great guitar player... '
1. Jon is already struggling to sing songs like WGIGO that were written for his voice five years ago. Look at RYH from the San Jose gig, then watch this from just three years ago and tell me his tone, his ability to actually move whilst singing and his agonising facial expressions haven't gotten ten times worse.
2. Dave and Tico. Great... except watching streams and videos and clips from this tour... it might as well be called 'Because I Can.' There are a whole host of subtle differences in Jon's performance that really do make this a solo show. The level of interaction just isn't there for me.
3. Phil X... from everything I've seen of him, what a great guy. Superb musician too. It doesn't matter, it's just a giant game of Guitar Hero for him... he's a session player, his heart and soul can never be in it like Sambora's is. Anyone who plays will know, that translates into how you deliver each note.
This isn't panic stations, I just think the band has changed too much for me now. Jon's voice is woeful and I might have been able to have stood that for one last greatest hits show if Richie had been there. But I think I am done.