Fast-rising rock act Mr. Big overcomes Vancouver bomb threat to deliver explosive gig at Club Soda

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 15, 1989

By Steve Newton

Just before Mr. Big was about to take the stage at Club Soda Monday (September 11), somebody phoned in a bomb threat to Vancouver police, saying they were going to blow the Homer Street nightspot right off the map. The boys in blue came down to check it out, and CFOX deejay Mary Ann McKenzie got on stage to ask people to look around under tables and chairs for any suspicious items.

She also announced that anyone wishing to leave the club would be given a refund on their ticket, but not one person went for it. What’s a little explosion here and there when you’re seeing one of the most promising new bands in rock ‘n’ roll?

The bomb threat turned out to be a hoax–probably called in by some disgruntled fan who couldn’t get into the sold-out show–and things went ahead as usual. Mr. Big–a band put together by former David Lee Roth bassist Billy Sheehan–soon allayed any fears of detonation with its bluesy barrage of riff-heavy hard rock. Paul Gilbert‘s hot-pink guitar was steamin’ throughout, and Sheehan’s super-fluid runs had you believing that Roth was a fool to lose him.

After about five songs the technicians really got a handle on Sheehan’s bass sound, and anyone leaning up against a wall was nicely lulled by the vibrations running through the structure of the room. Diminutive singer Eric Martin displayed a great voice, and one that gives Mr. Big something most of today’s hard-rock acts don’t have–a whole lotta soul.

For the encore, Sheehan raised a few eyebrows with a rave-up of “Shyboy”, a song he wrote for Roth’s Eat ‘Em and Smile album of ’86. The band came on for a second encore and blew people further away with the Who’s “Baba O’Riley” and an Aerosmith-inspired “Train Kept a Rollin'”.

To hear the full audio of my interviews with Mr. Big’s Billy Sheehan and Paul Gilbert subscribe to my Patreon page, where you can eavesdrop on over 700 of my uncut, one-on-one conversations with rockers since 1982.