Corey Hart Wears Sunglasses with Ottawa

It was back to the future this past Wednesday night as 80’s heartthrob Corey Hart and Glass Tiger hit up  Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre.

Being out of the limelight for over 20 years most would call putting a new album out and embarking on a tour somewhat of making a comeback. For Corey Hart I would say it was more of a resurgence than the latter. Hitting the stage with his brand new single Dreaming Time Again, fans old and new raised the roof with approval as he walked out clad in a black leather jacket.  Hart was quick to thank the crowd for coming out and spoke of how playing music makes him feel so alive and how grateful he is for all the support he has received from his fans.

Keeping it in the family, Hart’s wife, vocalist Julie Masse, joined the tour singing backing vocals as well as performing La Bass together from Hart’s 1998 release ‘Jade‘. The chemistry between the two was very electrifying to say the least. There was also some local talent on stage as Ottawa native Alison Young was invited to play saxophone on the tour. Her solo in the opening song added a nice touch and gave it a real E-street band kind of feel.

Halfway through the set, Hart made his way out to a smaller separate stage at the back of the floor seats. There he spoke of how he always felt that everyone regardless if you could afford to sit up front or only able to afford the lesser priced seats in the back, should be included in the show. He then read two letters from life long fans that were sent to him at the beginning of the tour. They told of how much his music meant to them and one in particular mentioned the song Goin’ Home off of his 1986 release ‘Fields of Fire’, and how much it would mean if he could play it live. Not only did Hart perform the song live for the first time ever, but the two fans were also invited to come up and sit on a couch that was on the stage while he played it.  Tears of joy quickly ensued giving the lucky fans a memory that will last a lifetime.

Closing the night off, Hart and the band busted into a cover of Moon Martins Bad Case of Loving You. The decibel level were maxed out as everyone at the CTC sang along to the classic rock-n-roll hit. Hart and the band took a bow, thanked the crowd and left the stage.  But wait was that it? It felt like something was missing. The audience was quick to start calling for an encore. The video screens quickly lit up with some 1980’s images of Hart and that signature synthesizer sound was starting to fire up over the sound system. Hart came walking back out in an old jean jacket with, you guessed it, a pair of sunglasses. Quickly surveying the crowd, everyone was now wearing sunglasses. I’m sure you can figure out what came next.

Glass Tiger was the opener for the evening, as well as the whole tour. They performed all their classic hits as well as a couple off of the new album ‘ThirtyThree’.  The tour almost didn’t happen for the band, as frontman Alan Frew had a terrible accident a few weeks prior to the start of the tour and broke his neck. It did not show through as Frew sounded as great as he always has.

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