Malmö Sweden, May 4, 2003
Review and pictures by Anders Sandvall
First and foremost, I have to say that Iīm not a huge fan of Thin Lizzy.
I have never really followed them as a band. Once again, Lizzy is out on
tour (The Global Chaos Tour). They
were also out on tour in 1998-99 and 2000. There aren't too many members left: Sykes and
Gorham are still left with a new drummer and bassist. Mr. Aldridge and Mr. Mendoza, who
were members in the band from 1999-2000 are now playing with Whitesnake instead. I suppose
Mr. Coverdale pays the guys more money than this band does. Darren Wharton (1998-2000) on
keyboards has also left. So, the big question is, how much Lizzy is this?
I asked the Swedish booking agency about a press/photo pass to the show. I got the
answer that they could only fix a photo pass and that I had to pay to see the show, which
I think is incredibly cheap of them. Because I had a photo pass, I was promised that
I
could photograph the whole show with flash, but that promise also fell flat. I was
brutally stopped by a security guard who told me that I couldnīt take any more pictures,
and even John on stage pointed at me and told me to stop taking pictures. Also, a thing
that is questionable is the high price - 280 SEK. (1 dollar is about 10 SEK) That is far
too much money spent on 2/4 of the band.
The band today...
John Sykes - Lead Vocals & Guitar
Scott Gorham - Guitar & background vocals
Guy Pratt - Bass & background vocals
Michael Lee - Drums
As usual, they didn't go on stage as scheduled - it was a delay of 25 minutes. The show
was much too short according to the price. They played only for 1 hour and five minutes
with only one encore. I saw them both in 1999 and 2000, and also this time the setlist was
almost the same. They played classics like “JAILBREAK”, “WAITING FOR AN
ALIBI”, “DONīT BELIEVE A WORD” and “COLDSWEAT”. Some new songs
that they did play now but not last time they were “CHINATOWN” and
“MASSACRE”. As usual, my favorite song “COWBOY SONG” went straight
into “BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN” as in the old days.
Mr. Sykes sings in his own way - he doesn't try to imitate Phil Lynott, as many people
think. But I think that Mr. Sykes vocals are not too good. Compared to the former gigs
here, he sounded very, very tired vocally. I also think that Mr. Gorham crushes Mr. Sykes
on guitar, both on solo and rhythm guitar. There was not too much talking between the
songs. Much of the little talk that they actually did was an old re-run from the past gigs
here. They let the music do the talking instead. The new bass player Guy Pratt looked a
bit lost onstage - he mostly followed in Mr. Gorham's footsteps. Michael Lee on drums was
clearly much better than the former drummer Mr. Aldridge, but some of us could have done without
Leeīs drum solo. One good thing about this evening was the sound - It was real good. Not
too loud or too weak. KB has a capacity for about 750 people, but on this sad night there
were only about 350 brave souls there, and no wonder about that. I have to say that
the band
worked pretty well without a keyboard player, so there is no longing for Darren Wharton.
The older gentlemen didnīt move around on stage so much. The most vital of them,
Mr. Gorham was the one who moved most all over the stage, but occasionally Mr. Sykes also
did an effort to walk across the stage too. Mr. Pratt stood solid on his side and didnīt
do a thing besides playing his bass.
Maybe this was a nostalgic evening for many of the old Lizzy fans who actually did stay
during the whole show, but I think, and many with me, that they have taken this too far.
They should have stopped touring under the name of Thin Lizzy after the second
tour in 1999. Now it feels like their just out to earn some more money. I rate this sad
evening a 1.0 out of 5.
Last night was the beginning of a long tour throughout Europe, and then itīs
America's turn to take part in Lizzy's tour. I have only a few things to say about
yesterday's show. First, it was too expensive. The show was way too short for that amount of money.
Maybe itīs time for these gentlemen to split up and do something on their
own? Maybe
itīs time for the boys are back in town to stay home?
Unfortunately things didn't go too well with Lizzy's manager and the Swedish booking agency - Scandinavian
Entertainment. Hopefully next time there will be no communication problems and I'll be able to better do my job.
Set list
Jailbreak
Waiting For an Alibi
Don’t Believe a Word
Emerald
Chinatown
Coldsweat
The Sun Goes Down
Bad Reputation
(drum solo)
Massacre
Killer on the Loose
Still in Love With You
Cowboy Song
Boys are Back in Town
Suicide Rosalie
Black Rose (encore)