Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
It is in the flourish of the performance, the smile upon an artist’s face when they can be seen, witnessed by all, to be having just a good a time as their audience, the equality of art is assured and in the end it doesn’t matter a jot who the performer is, what matters is that the love between crowd and musician is real, complete and without end.
It is a two way street of adoration and respect that has been nurtured and refined, cultivated and fostered between Liverpool’s music lovers and Dennis Locorriere, the voice of Dr. Hook, a voice that has entranced millions and one that is so easy to rock out to with pleasure seeping out of every pore.
The amount of energy Dennis Locorriere expends on stage is enough to make even the most hardened cynic appreciate why the founding member of one of America’s much loved bands is treated with the reverence befitting a grand statesman of music, his pedigree, his past is beyond reproach and yet he still bounds on stage as if was the product, the love child of the Duracell Bunny and a whirling dervish and with the humour of a native New Jersey man in his blood, the sharp insight, the cherished response to the eager and excitable calls to catch his attention coming from the auditorium; this is a man on fire but who remains so super cool that he blossoms with sincerity and wit with each passing song during the night.
The Philharmonic Hall audience has always had the very best placed before them, no matter the genre, the artists always gives their time to make sure the notes and the endearing nature of their soul is captured, Dennis Locorriere is no different. Billed as Dr. Hook starring Dennis Locorriere, this was more of a celebration of the music that caught the awareness of a generation of fans and to whom the likes of the Eagles and Alice Cooper were fans enough to take them on tour with them. It was a celebration that accompanied the Timeless C.D. release from a couple of years ago but which now has hit the tracks running.
With songs such as More Like The Movies, The Heat, If I Had A Nickel, Only Sixteen, You Make My Pants Want To Get Up And Dance, Freakin’ At The Freaker’s Ball, The Cover Of A Rolling Stone, Sexy Eyes and the spectacle, the cardiac pull of When You’re In Love With A Beautiful Woman, Mr. Locorriere and the superb band took the audience, not just down memory lane but onto a new highway, one that is sure to be followed for a long time.
A night of bubbling cool, of the memory that once made the 1970s have a semblance of colour in its otherwise shaded beige and one that was fully enjoyed in every part of the Philharmonic Hall; a night of natural charm supplied by one of the greats of American music.
Ian D. Hall