CHEAP TRICK was out on the road last summer as Special Guest on FOREIGNER's 40th Anniversary tour during which I made an uncharacteristic blunder. Having requested photo access for the show I mistakenly believed that being granted a photo pass for FOREIGNER would allow me to shoot the Dream Police as well. Wrong, but I would not make that same mistake again, making sure that this time around I would be able to shoot all three bands and not be left out in the cold, er...the Texas heat as the case would be.

Because of POISON's stage configuration, which consisted of an extension that protruded from the center of the stage into the pit area, we photographers would be unable to travel the full length of the stage barricade to shoot any of the bands and had to decide in advance which side we chose to be on and then remain there for the duration of the 3 songs we were given. I wisely chose the side with Rick Nielsen. I had been told that Nielsen likes to target the photographers with his picks during our time and that was no lie. The guy throws out more picks than I have ever seen, and if you've ever seen them in concert you'll notice that two rows of picks line his mic stand from top to bottom and that still isn't enough, as several times he would reach into a box filled with picks and grab handfuls at a time, all while still playing, and throw them into the crowd.

True to form, about a minute into the band's opening number, the extremely apropos "Hello There", Nielsen hit me in the chest with a souvenir for my collection. Those of us on his side would continue to be pelted during the other songs "You Got It Going On" and THE MOVE cover "California Man" as he gleefully made faces and toyed with us before we regretfully had to leave our stations. That had to be the most fun I've ever had shooting photos at a show for sure! The band was as tight as ever and showed a vibrant youthfulness that many veterans rock bands seem to lack nowadays as they stormed through hits like "Ain't That A Shame", "Never Had A Lot To Lose", "Dream Police", "I Want You To Want Me" and "Surrender". And what can you say about lead man Robin Zander? His vocal performance on the ballad "The Flame" left no doubt as to his status among the most revered rock singers of all time. The 65 year old still has the pipes of someone half his age and it showed throughout the show. And the fun continued.....

Setlist:

• "Hello There"
• "You Got It Going On"
• "California Man" (THE MOVE)
• "Long Time Coming"
• "Ain't That A Shame" (FATS DOMINO)
• "Never Had A Lot To Lose"
• "The Summer Looks Good On You"
• Bass Solo
• "I'm Waiting For The Man" (THE VELVET UNDERGROUND, Tom Petersson on vocals)
• "The Flame"
• "I Want You To Want Me"
• "Dream Police"
• "Surrender"
• "Auf Wiedersehen"
• "Goodnight Now"

As we took our positions in front of the stage, the road crew was still busy rolling up the carpets and other CHEAP TRICK-related items that were still there and I noticed at that time that Rick Nielsen's side of the stage was literally still littered with picks from his shenanigans. I was given a half dozen or so more souvenirs by the stagehand who was scrambling to gather them all up lest anyone, like POISON guitarist C.C. Deville, slip on them and we can't have that now, can we? Soon it was time and as AC/DC's "Highway To Hell" blared through the venue's PA system, the lights went down and a short, animated video played on the large screen behind Rikki Rockett's kit as the band assumed their positions. Though frontman Bret Michaels has been steadily touring on and off for the past several years, POISON as a band hadn't played Houston since 2012, even though they toured last year and Texas as a whole was left off the tour routing that included DEF LEPPARD and TESLA.

Granted, the band's setlist hasn't changed for the better part of 20 years (that was sarcasm for those that didn't know, or was it?) and the band hasn't put any new music out since 2002's Hollyweird, but who really cares? POISON isn't one of those bands that cranks out a new album every couple of years and tours in support of them and quite frankly, most POISON fans don't give two shits, they come to hear the hits that put them at the top of the hair band pyramid, and that's exactly what we got as the band "Rockett"-ed into "Look What The Cat Dragged In" and proceeded to 'Poison' the crowd in Houston, Texas for the next hour and twenty minutes. When you take out the gratuitous guitar, drum and bass solos, the band actually played less songs than CHEAP TRICK (15 to 11), but no one seemed to notice as hit after hit rolled out: "I Want Action", "Talk Dirty To Me", "Fallen Angel", "Ride The Wind" and "Unskinny Bop" echoed into the night as the band displayed all the energy and excitement that has been missed in H-town the past half dozen years. One of the best moments of the night was during "Something To Believe In" when the band brought out members who do or did serve in our military and let them stay onstage while the band dedicated the song to them, a very moving sight to behold to be sure.

Other than the times he held a guitar, Michaels was all over the stage exhorting the crowd and generally having the time of his life as he interacted with his band mates and those that filled the venue. The band closed the regular portion of the show with "Nothin' But A Good Time" before returning for the encore of the KISS classic "Rock And Roll All Nite", during which Michaels was joined by POP EVIL vocalist Leigh Kakaty as they traded verse lines back and forth.

It was nice to see POISON back on the road again. They had become such a regular on the summer shed circuit for the better part of a decade and with all the mess in the world today, their fun time, party atmosphere absence was sorely missed. And on this night "Nothing But A Good Time" was indeed had by all.

Setlist:

• "Look What The Cat Dragged In"
• "I Want Action"
• "Ride The Wind"
• "Talk Dirty To Me"
• "Something To Believe In"
• "Your Mama Don't Dance" (LOGGINS & MESSINA)
• Guitar Solo
• "Fallen Angel"
• "Unskinny Bop"
• Drum Solo
• Bass Solo
• "Every Rose Has Its Thorn"
• "Nothin' But A Good Time"

• "Rock And Roll All Nite" (KISS, with Leigh Kakaty)

• 6/10 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center*
• 6/12 - Cleveland, OH - Blossom Music Center*
• 6/13 - Syracuse, NY - Lakeview Amphitheatre
• 6/14 - Hartford, CT - The Xfinity Theatre
• 6/15 - Gilford, NH - Bank of NH Pavilion
• 6/17 - Bristow, VA - Jiffy Lube Live*
• 6/19 - Toronto, ON - The Budweiser Stage
• 6/21 - Wantagh, NY - Northwell Health at Jones Beach*
• 6/22 - Bethel, NY - Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
• 6/23 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center*
• 6/24 - Allentown, PA - PPL Center