From EricCarmen.com / May 25, 2000
RINGO STARR AND HIS ALL-STARR BAND
State Theatre: New Brunswick, NJ - 5/24/00
By Bernie Hogya
Ringo Starr
and his All-Starr Band (Eric Carmen, Jack Bruce, Dave Edmunds, Simon
Kirke and Mark Rivera) electrified the sold-out audience at the State
Theatre in New Brunswick, NJ last night.
It was another triumphant appearance by the boys in the band who seemed
to get a standing ovation at the conclusion of just about every song.
From "It Don't Come Easy," their first number, to "With
A Little Help From My Friends," their last, the crowd was on it's
feet clapping and singing along.
For Eric Carmen fans, it was another amazing performance and certainly
a night to remember. Turning to Eric as the other members of the All-Starr
Band left the stage, Ringo said, "We're going to slow it down a
bit now. You're in for a real treat. This is only the second time Eric
has performed this song on the tour."
And with that introduction, Eric played the poignant intro to the song
he has often called his favorite: "Boats Against The Current."
There were plenty of ardent Eric Carmen admirers in the audience that
night as pockets of spontaneous and sustained applause broke out around
the theater instantly as Eric began to sing.
His voice, stronger than ever, passionately expressed each nuance of
the magnificent ballad. Then, in an unbelievable "one-two punch,"
Eric strapped on his guitar as the other members of the All-Starr Band
regrouped on stage and launched into his Raspberries hit, "Go All
The Way."
Eric's last number, "All By Myself" was also greeted with a large
standing ovation. His first, "Hungry Eyes" was slightly marred
by Mark Rivera who, perhaps nervous that his mother was in the audience,
played the wrong notes on the intro. Upon hearing the discordant sound,
Eric looked over at Mark, who made an "I don't know what happened"
shrug of his shoulders causing both of them to laugh.
Unbeknownst to both performers, "Hungry Eyes" composer Franke
Previte was also in the audience. After the show, I caught up with him
backstage and said, "You know, I've seen this show four times and
Mark has always played the 'Hungry Eyes' intro perfectly except for
tonight." Looking at me he deadpanned, "It figures."
I told him, "You did a great job for Eric," to which he replied,
"Eric did a great job for me!"
Eric and Franke met for a few minutes and spoke briefly. Franke asked
Eric if he was planning to do any new recording anytime soon to which
Eric responded, "Possibly."
Hearing that, I told Eric, "Your voice sounds just as good as it
did 25 years ago. After the tour you should immediately go into the
studio and cut a bunch of new songs."
Eric looked at me and smiled, "Well, you know, that's what you're
supposed to do," and for a brief moment I imagined myself holding
another new Eric Carmen CD in my hand.
You might say, "Wishful thinking," but after seeing Eric perform
"Boats Against The Current" more magnificently than on record
I can safely say, "Dreams can come true."
