09/08/05 - FIFTH THIRD FIELD, DAYTON, OH

Review by Dawn (Def fan):
"How was the concert? In one word "AWESOME." My best friend and I arrived early to insure that we got a prime location to watch the concert. Sure enough, we did - right up front.

The concert began at 6:30 pm Eastern Daylight Time, with the opening act, Randy Coleman. His performance started off slow but picked up as he played on. He concluded his act by announcing that he would be at the front gates, signing CD's.

Then around 7:15 pm, Def Leppard appears on stage. YAY!!!!!!! (This is what I have been waiting 22 years to see). The guys looked great!!! They performed the following: Action, Let's Get Rocked, Foolin', Women, Promises, No Matter What, Armageddon It, Love Bites, Rocket, Rock On (A song that Joe just started singing), Rock Of Ages, Animal, Photograph, Hysteria, Bringin' On The Heartbreak, and of course, Pour Some Sugar On Me. Mind you this is not in order of how they were performed. Joe mentioned that they, including Bryan Adams, all had a Karaoke party and that he sang songs from Dolly Parton, Cher, and some other female singer. He also mentioned that it was great to tour with Bryan Adams and that the Dayton show was the second to the last show with Bryan. Also, Joe proudly announced that their cover album is finished and will be released soon (how soon I don't know). Joe also mentioned that they released Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection to celebrate 25 years of playing in America. Joe couldn't go without making a comment about the people watching from OUTSIDE the gates. Def Leppard finished the show with "Bringin' On The Heartbreak" and of course "Pour Some Sugar On Me." All I can say is that Def Leppard was worth waiting for. Ididn't want them to leave but as the saying goes "All good things must come to an end." Def Leppard left the stage about 8:45 pm, then the crews got busy in changing the set for Bryan Adams.

Bryan Adams graced the stage around 9:05 pm. He performed the following (again songs not in order of performance): Cuts Like A Knife, Summer of '69, Run To You, Open Road, Heaven, Can't Stop This Thing We Started, This Time, (Everything I Do) I Do It For You, Somebody, Kids Wanna Rock, Baby When You're Gone, 18 Till I Die, The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You, Straight From The Heart, and Back To You.

Bryan also rocked. Everyone seemed to come alive he started to sing "Cuts Like A Knife." Bryan brought a gal up from the audience so she can sing a "duet" with him for the song "Baby When You're Gone." She didn'tsing very well BUT she knew all the words, which impressed Bryan. During the show, Bryan also acknowledged the people OUTSIDE the gates. Towards the end of the show, Bryan came out into the area between the stage and the barrier wall in front of the audience, (Oh did I mention that my friends and I was at the barrier wall during the show). Bryan went to the other side first then came down to where we were standing. He leaped up right in front of me. WOW! I was awestruck by that move needless to say. Like any crazed fan, I just had to touch Bryan (a lot).

Let me tell you that Bryan's awesome performance renewed my interest in his music. Bryan was very personable at the concert. All I can say the Def Leppard/Bryan Adams concert exceeded my expectations!!!!"

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(Above) The venue being setup for the show

Review by Ron Rollins (Dayton Daily News):
Tension and drama filled the downtown evening air: Would Def Leppard's guitarists still play with their shirts off, after all these years? Could Bryan Adams make us forget just how awful the video for Cuts Like A Knife was? Would Fifth Third Field pass muster as at least a half-decent venue for a big rock concert? Taking first things first: Of course. Yes, pretty well. Um, sorta. The Brit quintet who remain the only worthwhile band from an entire era of glitzy, over-wrought pop-metal, Def Leppard put on a better-than-expected, ripsnortin' show of hits. They made us wonder, in fact, exactly how they'd ended up opening for Adams, rather than the other way around. Not that Adams did badly. The gentlemanly Canadian pop-rocker with the raspy baritone also ran through his catalog of adult-radio staples, from high-octane versions of Run To You, It's Only Love and a sweet take on the oddly nostalgic Summer of '69, but let things slow down too much on the ballads and mid-tempo rockers. Adams showed a warm rapport with the audience, eliciting plenty of easy and heartfelt singalongs. He even drew a young woman from the audience — we were introduced to her as "Danielle from Fort Loramie" — to join him on Baby When You're Gone. It's a lesser-known tune, but she knew it by heart and did such a bang-up job that Adams declared her "the star of the show." Not that the Leppards could be counted out. They never turned down the fuel on their set, piling through a mountain of shredded chords and bombastic beats with everything we remember from the 1980s — wide-straddling vocal stances, naughty guitar-solo gyrations, improper uses of the Union Jack — and from Photograph to Hysteria, they pretty much ruled the night. One lump or two? Two, please. So, how did the field perform on its first outing as a rock stage? Frankly, that one's harder to call. Fans who'd paid $50 a head arrived to find the stage that should have been behind second base all the way at the backfield fence. Any seats north of third base were obstructed to the point of unacceptability, and home-plate seats felt miles from the stage. The Fifth Third staff and volunteers did their best to be pleasant and easygoing with a bigger-than-ever crowd, and generally everyone seemed to have fun. But next time, some adjustments to the logistics would seem in order.

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Pictures by Teresa and Alijca

Bryan holds aloft his strat to end a song

The k-man on a solo

Bryan enjoying the show

Keith!

Karen showing off her tatoos with her friends she made pre-gig!

The Def boys and a local DJ before the show