#10 Def Leppard and Journey at Jones Beach, Wantagh, NY, June 24, 2006

I remember it was a rainy and yucky evening for this show. My wife (then fiance) and I went fully armed with our ponchos that we purchased from Rite-Aid an hour before. I was not expecting much from this concert at all. I just wanted to check Def Leppard off my list of bands to see. What I got was an amazing rock concert.

First of all, I was never a real big Journey fan. My wife knew all the songs and loved them growing up. Usually, when she is into a band, I look the other way because she really digs country music. Journey played with a withered line-up that night and still blew the headlining Def Leppard completely off the stage. All the Journey fans I talk to, to this day, swear that this was Journey’s worst performance ever. If that is true, then Journey just may be the greatest rock band ever. During Journey’s set, my smile did not leave my face. They just ran through their classics and ripped the place apart. I realized that night that I knew the words to about 12 Journey songs. I had no idea that their tunes have crept into my head through the years.

Def Leppard took the stage shortly after Journey and a quick pretzel, and rocked the house too. They did all of their hits, which was very predictable and did a great job. They were supporting their Yeah! CD of cover songs, which I think is a pretty solid album. What surprised me the most about Def Leppard was drummer, Rick Allen. It sounded like he had four arms at times as he nailed his fills and drum solo.

I guess one of the main reasons I singled this concert out for the top 10, was because I had fairly low expectations going in. Both of these bands ended up blowing me away. Hail! Hail! these rock legends.