Upon entering Clearwater’s Ruth Eckerd Hall on Saturday night, I was a little bitter that Mick Jones would not be joining his bandmates in Foreigner onstage. Jones—the only original member who still performs somewhat regularly with the band, had heart surgery in 2012, so it wouldn’t be illogical if he thinks of himself as too vulnerable to COVID-19 for travel.
Even without the band’s key songwriter/lead guitarist present, Foreigner circa 2021 still managed to rip through a 12-song setlist, consisting entirely of greatest hits, in just over 90 minutes. Among those keeping the British-American band’s radio staples fresh were former Dokken bassist Jeff Pilson, and lead singer Kelly Hansen, whose powerhouse vocal cords and jumpy stage presence made 60 years old the new 25.
Like the vast majority of electric Foreigner shows before COVID-19 hit, Hansen, dressed in white Nikes, a skull-covered gray scarf, and a gray vest, confirmed his presence by jumping off a centerstage high platform, as the rest of the band kicked into “Double Vision.” As he strutted around the front of the stage in his Steven Tyler-esque way, (don’t worry, he knows.) the band carried right into another album title track, “Head Games.” Much like many of other hits to come, that one got every voice in the crowd belting out the chorus, and maybe bits and pieces of the verses.
“Live music is back in the house! This is our third show in 14 months!,” Hansen exclaimed, two songs in. Whenever he came up to the mic to speak in between songs, the pandemic was not a subject he held back on—which is probably a practice we’re going to be experiencing from a good while as touring artists returning to the stage in the coming months, or even years. Hansen even took the liberty of dedicating Foreigner’s 1979 semi-hit “Dirty White Boy” to all the women in the crowd who had to deal with the constant stupid questions from their dimwit husbands and boyfriends, while in isolation. “How many of you became better drinkers?” He honestly asked, to which more than half of the socially-distanced crowd raised their hands and cheered. They probably weren’t joking, either—who could blame them?
Big changes have also been happening recently in the Foreigner circle. Earlier this year, it was announced that Thom Gimbel, who has served as Foreigner’s resident multi-instrumentalist since 1992, would retire from the band. Every time Foreigner would dust off “Urgent,” from the iconic 4 album from 1981, he would break out the sax for those solos. He was also well-versed in rhythm guitar, keyboards, and even the flute. But taking Gimbel’s place, and performing his third ever show as a full-time member of the band, was Luis Maldonado, who replaced those sax solos on “Urgent” with the same notes, just on one of his wailing guitars.
Luckily, Gimbel was not the only multi-instrumentalist in Foreigner, and the sextet proved that throughout the Saturday night show. Jeff Pilson took on the main piano parts during “Cold As Ice,” and keyboardist Mike Bluestein literally picked up a keytar in the middle of “Urgent.” Not to mention that I think I actually caught Hansen banging on a cowbell at one point, too. So, while a sax-free version of “Urgent” did feel a bit naked, Maldonado did showcase a nice change of pace, and if his energy and focus levels are half of what they were at Ruth Eckerd Hall, he’ll make a fine addition to the ever-evolving 21st century lineup of Foreigner.
Before the main set ended with a triumphant, doubled-in-duration version of the unmistakable “Juke Box Hero,” about 10 minutes worth of duels, solos, and jam sessions between Mike Bluestein’s keyboards, and Chris Frazier’s drums were squeezed out. If it were a competition, Frazier would have easily won. When you do that trick where water comes out of the heads, you wow the crowd instantly, no matter how fast the other fighter’s fingers are capable of gliding across the ivories.
Remember how disappointed some of us were when we learned that Mick Jones wasn’t going to be at the show? Well, Foreigner made it up to us, by making history.
While Hansen introduced “I Want To Know What Love Is,” (which did not have a high school choir backing them up for obvious health reasons) an older man in white randomly came onstage with a bass. Semi-original bassist Rick Wills—who played on every Foreigner album between Head Games and Unusual Heat, had joined the fun. He would slapadabass and provide backup vocals for that song, as well as the show’s “Hot Blooded” closer. So, in the end, Clearwater did get the opportunity to see Foreigner perform with somebody who recorded on those timeless classics.
Most didn’t seem to care about who played what, though. At the end of the day, whether it’s one of the Double Vision shows with Lou Gramm and Kelly Hansen sharing the mic, or a show like this one, minus the Rick Wills cameo, the current lineup of Foreigner does not do a bad job keeping the Jones-Gramm legacy alive. Even better yet, said songwriters openly and fully endorse these guys.
On a side note, keep your eyes on Foreigner’s social media for the next few weeks. It was just confirmed at one of the shows in the last few days that after a COVID-caused, full cancellation, Foreigner will, in fact, be touring with Kansas and Europe very soon. No dates have been announced yet, but should be in the coming weeks.
See a list of Tampa “Safe & Sound” live music venues here.
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