Rick Astley

What a great concert experience that my wife and I won t forget.Rick didn t disappoint.Old songs plus new and great crowd interaction.We even met him after and he signed autographs and took pics.Just a cool guy.Cant wait to see him again somewhere.

Astley is like a fine wine: only getting better with age! I traveled from Texas to see the last show on his "50" tour & it was beyond worth it. He is a wonderful person, talented artist, & the most underrated crooner of our time.

Never gonna give you up, never gonna say goodbye! Excellent concert.

At 50 Rick was charming, in great shape and even better voice. A nice balance of hits, new songs and a few covers Rick made it a solid and entertaining concert. Hoping he tours the US more often.

This was my first time at the Paramount and the first time seeing Rick Astley. I did not know what to expect. I LOVED IT. The venue is smaller than a regular concert arena so no matter where you sat, you had a great view of the stage. Rick was so funny and engaging. I loved the old songs and I loved his new songs. I'm glad he decided to tour and let us hear his music again.

The singing! The banter! Covers of AC/DC, Ed Sheeran. The old hits! The new songs from his 50 album. It was a GREAT performance! I wasn't expecting him to be so talented! What a fabulous show!

Rick gave a Fantastic performance with his deep, velvety baritone voice and his self-effacing charm, which is so British! And who knew this guy was such a Showman!! Cleary, singing LIVE he was Booming over the top and his voice was as Smooth as can be - a Perfect complement to the recent album s catchy melodies, esp. in Keep Singing, This Old House, Angels on My Side, and Dance. In fact, he opened with This Old House, a really funky, ballsy song, and closed with "Highway To Hell" AC/DC cover My Gosh, he really killed that one drumming it up, and then surprised everyone with his rendition of Ed Sheeran's Shape Of You which was heavenly and showed his artistic versatility. Also interestingly, the audience was of mixed ages, including teenagers, and evenly split between genders, with many only having found him through the Rick-Roll, and it just loved his witty banter (Like Tintin Ricky s a quick thinker on his feet!) and how he worked the audience, chanting Let s Go Boston, which had folks on their feet, Roaring and Applauding, just as an example. OMG it was all just so exciting and stunning \u2018cause Dude was incredibly fit and youthful-looking he drew gasps from people! To Rick: Enjoy the rest of the tour; and to everyone: Go out there and See Rick NOW while he s in the States! This is a Real Performer who doesn t come by often, and you ll get more than your money's worth. He s THAT good Superb in every way!!!

It was a great show. Rick sounded great and was very personable with the crowd.

Ticket says 7PM showtime. Line at 6:15PM Waited in rain and snow outside in line until 7:15,doors finally opened. Get to door and find out show does not start until 8:30PM Turned and walked out. this is outrageous that ticket says showtime an hour and a half before actual showtime. I had reserved seating and would have planned to show up at 8:30PM Unacceptable!!!!!.

Great venue, I had a great time. It was so nice to be able too see Rick so close!!!

Great concert! Classy guy who really enjoyed mixing it up with the audience. This man genuinely enjoyed himself in Boston and told us we were the best audience in America. And what an outstanding voice!!! Great show! Do not miss him if he ever comes back.

Rick still has it! His new CD is amazing and sound great live! His classic material made the crowd go nuts dancing and singing along! If you get a chance please pick up his latest CD. I honestly think he has gotten so much better since the 80's. He is so talented and sweet to his fans!!

Didn't know what to expect and we were pleasantly surprised. Rick Astley put on great show.

Was a great show! He looked and sounded like the 20 year old version of himself. Old hits were great and so were the new ones! Would definitely go again!

Rick Astley's performance was great! We had seats near the front with an unobstructed view. Rick's voice was in fine form and the audience was very enthusiastic. I will definitely come back to this venue again.

This was just way more than we expected. Thought it would be something fun to do on a dreary winter night, but man, this show was awesome! His voice is better than ever and he sang everything from Nat King Cole to AC/DC! Really, a first-rate concert, we loved every minute.

I have been a long time fan of Rick Astley and was over the moon to find out he was heading to Boston FINALLY! Rick Astley did not disappoint with keeping intact his AMAZING VOCALS and band! The House of Blues, Boston was Rick Astley's final leg of his United States Tour supporting his new album "50." That being said he BROUGHT IT! His personality, his amazing back-up singer (Dawn Joseph) and singing his beloved tracks and new one's. I truly loved the experience that one could see he was pouring a lot of energy into. The one issue that brought my "overall rating" down from what should have been a 5 star to a 4 star was the end if the evening. Rick Astley decided to a lot of fun covers at the end of the concert which was a great idea and would have been enjoyed, IF RICK ASTLEY CHOSE SONGS HE KNEW. Every cover he did at the end of the evening was butchered with him admitting it. I would say PLEASE DO NOT choose covers that you do not have to do that you simply do not know. That dampened my experience. From trying to sing Elvis "Caught In A Trap" to The Cars....if songs were either gone over beforehand or just skipped to covers you know that would have made it a 5 Star night!

Music is my religion and concerts are my church. And last night I prayed! Rick Astley gave 2 hours and 25 minutes of that voice and if we could have had more we would have taken it. To start with this guy is just so fun and personable. He made you feel like you were at a party with him. He must be a blast to hang out with. He brought to town the hits you wanted and expected like Together Forever, Cry For Help, It Would Take A Strong Man, and Never Gonna Give You Up. He did a great cover of Bruno Mars' Uptown Funk. I had no idea he could play guitar and he proved he played drums when he did his cover of AC/DC's Highway To Hell. And if you want to know if he can still bring some new stuff to the table give a listen to Keep Singing and Angels On My Side from his new album 50-some powerful soulful tracks! He said he and his band are headed back to England now. If only was I going with them.

Rick was amazing! He was engaging, fun, and so easygoing on stage! The setlist was great!

Great show, he was amazing and still has it after all these years. I'd see him again in a heartbeat!

Rick Astley's voice is even more amazing than ever.....the whole concert blew my hair back! His band and his back-up singer, Dawn were just the icing on the cake!! If he was playing again anywhere close to me I would definitely go back!!

Awsome concert. He did bruno mars so good you would think is was the original artist. Very gracious man and he was all that I expected. I hope he comes back soon

If you grew up in outside America in the 80s then you get the phenomenon that was Rick Astley. He had more songs than "Never gonna give you up". This venue is perfect for Rick who genuinely seemed to enjoy the interaction with the audience.

Rick Astley's show was great! His voice is still amazing! He did a mixture of his 80's hits, songs from his new album, and a few covers, all of which were performed well.

Fantastic set, great opening act. This show has it all. All I need is to find a way to relive it!

What an amazing show.. from the moment Rick and the band walked out on stage til they finish everyone was singing and dancing what an amazing time.. You could tell how surprise Rick and the Band was from all love the crowd was showing . He promise to come back to Atlanta and we will be here waiting with open arms !!!

Fantastic concert...long performance..surprise connect with audience! .a definite redo.... Venue could have opened the upstairs or had some front row seating...viewing tough with haters in the eves and serious consumption. although tickets had seat assignment it was standing only.

One of the Best Venues I have ever been in. One of the most humble singers I have ever witnessed. I want to go to the NY concert this week, it was that good. Stood for 3 hours and enjoyed every minute of it. I was completely blown away with the sound of his voice, still there after all these years. I almost never buy music anymore especially after a concert but bought this one. Great new album! We enjoyed every minute of it. Not once did I think I had enough. The Band and Rick , made you feel like they were singing for the first time to only you and your friends. Of all the concerts I have been to this one was my favorite, it was personal, fun and LOVED that Rick sang extra songs, his new songs and his old songs. A very well rounded concert.

Rick Astley was fantastic! His voice is 100% perfection. I have dreamed of seeing him in concert since I was a kid. Rick filled all my expectations and more. He is also witty and charming. I can't wait for him to come back.

I love the concert! Rick was amazing along with band! His new album is great and inspirational!

From start to finish the show was brilliant! Rick's voice is awesome! Every single person in the place sang every song with him! I could see this show every week!!!!!

I was awed that the Rick Astley show was so good! I expected a show down memory lane, instead I got a great show that included the old hits, highlights from his new album (awesome gospel fueled R&B) and a wide variety of covers that just amazed! The crowd was so into it and his vocals are deeper & richer. I've told friends in NY they've got to go! It was a fun, great night!

I've been a fan of Rick Astley since I was a kid. I have his new album, 50, and have been following his music career for some time now. It was my first time seeing him live and BOY, did he NOT disappoint! He put on such a high-energy show. He really loves his career and sung his heart out! He did several cover songs, such as Uptown Funk and Highway to Hell, and also strummed on guitar and played drums for an entire song. Unlike some people who only know him for the "Rick Roll," I have been a fan long enough to appreciate his growing repertoire of music. He's not simply a man who made his career off an internet meme, he's a talented performer who puts his heart into his music and gives the audience a wonderfully interactive, high energy show they'll remember. No special effects or fireworks needed to make this show sparkle!

What terrific night! All the hits you know and love with a few new ones and some covers sprinkled in. He was personable and self-deprecating with the audience. He and his band were smiling the whole time so the energy was awesome!

Highly recommend Rick Astley Live in Concert! Two years is a charm and I loved every moment.

So much fun to sing and dance with Rick Astley and his Band at the Taft Theatre! His voice is truly a gift and I m glad he is sharing it with the world. The Ladies singing with Rick and all the Band members really complimented the performance.

My fave thing about a HoB show is getting in early to get close to the stage. The best thing about seeing Rick live is ... no... there isn t one thing. He is funny. He interacts with the audience. He clearly likes and has fun with his band. Anything he covers he makes better. And he can freaking SING.

For the first time ever, British Pop Icon brought his #50 Tour to Center Stage in Atlanta, Ga. Not only was the location perfect, the live show was AMAZING!

It was phenomenal! That voice and personality! The band was fantastic! They performed for 2 hours!

Thanks to Rick for such a great show. Twenty years off the road didn't hurt him one bit.

As an FYI, this review is a copy of the one posted on the "Radio Creme Brulee" blog by me. To say 2016 has paved the way for a full circle for late 80s (and early 90s) pop star Rick Astley would be quite the understatement. At the age of 50, hot on the heels of his 2nd UK #1 album (his first #1 album since his groundbreaking debut) aptly titled 50 , Rick Astley is back on American stages and more importantly, back in the hearts of ardent fans. His resurgence has been a slow one though. In fact, it dates back 15 years. After six years in the limelight, Rick Astley went into voluntary retirement. The relatively lacklustre performance of his 4th album Body and Soul (despite the fact that its second single Hopelessly charted in the US top 40) is a likely catalyst for that decision. In 2001, instead of picking up where he left off as the rebranded soulboy that he had morphed into in the early 90s, he briefly flirted with his pop roots albeit within a cloak of modernity. The end-product was the album Keep it turned on . The timing of its release, at least in theory, seemed wise given that 2001 was the 4th year of the 80s revival. Sadly, its limited release in Continental Europe ensured that Rick Astley s popularity (whatever little he regained through the minor hit Sleeping off the Keep it turned on album) would be limited to a rather narrow realm of the consumer market for pop music. A few years later, he released an album of covers titled Portrait . This album, rather unsurprisingly went unnoticed. 2007 marked an inflection point for Rick Astley when his signature hit single Never Gonna Give You Up become a viral hit via a phenomenon popularly referred to as Rickrolling . While his status as yesteryear s star had not changed, his signature single had become an essential and ubiquitous element of contemporary pop culture. He started performing live again at festivals along with his contemporaries. The one thing that became obvious to those that paid attention to this gradual resurgence of Rick Astley is that he wasn t trying to stage a comeback. He just did what he felt like and had fun with it. His musical endeavors did not reek of desperation. That attitude along with his charisma and obvious comfort with himself at interviews made him increasingly likeable with every subsequent piece of media exposure. It made people more welcoming of his passive (but not conscious) overtures to fans and skeptics in the media. Towards the end of 2013, he seemed ready to release an album titled My Red Book . In fact, one of our guest bloggers reviewed the limited release of the album in 2013 for our blog. Despite, the album s lead single Superman being released in late 2013, the album never saw the light of day (although there are a few copies floating around on Ebay). It is not clear what effect any of these events had on the British success of Rick Astley s album 50 . The greatest end-result of his rather surprising return to the top of the album charts, is that it laid the foundation for live concerts in the US. I had the privilege of attending his concert at Town Hall in New York City on October 6, 2016. This was his second American concert in the last 25 years. Rick Astley was undoubtedly faced with the challenge of reconciling two goals that were at odds with each other. The primary goal is to promote the new album 50 but after 25 years of being away from American stages, he was acutely aware of his obligation (probably self-imposed) to fans that attended to hear songs that formed the soundtrack to their youth. He made this awareness very obvious when he said but you guys don t care about the new stuff. You just want to hear the old stuff with a huge smile on his face. Fortunately, Rick rose to the occasion and struck a near optimal balance between the old and the new. In fact, other veteran artists promoting new and relatively obscure material can take a page out of Rick s playbook when they put together setlists for their concerts. Rick ensured that he flitted constantly between the old and the new. As a result, there were no lulls or filler sections in the concert. In fact, Rick made a conscious effort not to perform two consecutive tracks that were obsure. His opening track was This Old House (from the new album) but he quickly followed it with Together Forever his second US #1 single from his debut album Whenever you need somebody . He maintained this balance through the entire length of the concert. rickastley-50thThe first emotion that many in the crowd must have felt during the concert was one of envy. Rick Astley has barely aged. He still looks like a fountain of youth despite being a father to a 24-year old daughter. His voice sounds better than ever. His personality bubbles with a blend of humor, charisma, gratitude, and comfort. His banter with the audience was almost as entertaining as his confident and powerful vocal delivery on each of the songs in the evening. In recent interviews, Astley revealed that one of the frustrations of being a product of the Stock Aitken and Waterman era (popularly referred to as SAW) in his early years in the music business is that the focus of the musical effort was almost exclusively on creating a record as opposed to playing live. It seemed that at the time, being a pop star was at odds with being a live musician. Fortunately, at his Town Hall performance, he was able to bring songs from the first album (whose recorded versions were drenched in hallmark SAW studio gloss) to life with beautiful live renditions especially on tracks such as It would take a strong man and When I Fall In Love ( a Nat King Cole cover). The electric guitar solo on It would take a strong man is particularly noteworthy. rickastley-holdmeinyourarms-liveThrough the introductions to his songs, he gave the audience a fascinating glimpse into his journey as a musician. He talked about his early years playing covers when he introduced his version of Uptown Funk (originally performed by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars). While introducing Cry For Help (a US top 10 hit from his third album titled Free ), he talked about the gospel choir singing and trying to encourage a man who was down on his luck while recording the song. He provided a little peep-hole view into his interaction with his daughter while performing a mashup of a track from his second album with Rihanna s We found love . But his most surprising performance showcasing his musical journey was the performance of Highway to hell after the encore. It featured Rick Astley on the drums and vocals simultaneously. Many of his ardent fans know that his foray into music was as a drummer. At this concert, they got to witness something that only locals in his hometown in Northern England had the privilege of watching back in the early to mid 80s. The musical highlights of the evening were the achingly beautiful Cry for help , It would take a strong man , When I fall in love , Hold me in your arms , Pray For Me (the song from the new album 50 that evoked the most enthusiastic response from the audience), and rather unsurprisingly Never gonna give you up his signature hit single and final song of the evening. He knew the final song was the moment people were waiting most for and he celebrated the end of that anticipation just as much as the crowd did. rickastley-keep-singingFor all the praise that I have heaped on Rick Astley , I would not be doing this review justice if I did not highlight the concert s obvious potential improvement areas. Rick Astley added a fantastic dimension to the concert by taking the audience through his journey as a musician and popstar and for that he deserves his fair share of credit. Unfortunately, there were two noteworthy omissions from his setlist that may have undermined the completeness of this exemplary endeavor of his. Including a song from his Keep it turned on album would have undoubtedly piqued the curiosity of his audience. It would have been an opportunity to showcase his re-visitation of his pop roots in 2001. This was an important piece of his musical journey and the failure to include it was a missed opportunity. His second missed opportunity stemmed from his exclusion of his Adult-Alternative flavored 2010 single Lights Out . He could have displayed yet another facet of his musical evolution. There were two other omissions from his setlist that have nothing to do with this musical journey. The songs are Don t say goodbye (from his debut album) and My Arms Keep Missing you (a b-side that was eventually released as a single only in parts of continental Europe). He has performed these songs at live gigs in Asia and he brings them to life very well in a concert setting. Rick Astley is a reminder of an era in which a popstar could be a small-town talented musician that looked like the ginger-haired boy next door with a baritone voice that seemed almost incongruous with his look. His concert explored milestones in the journey of that boy from Newton-Le-Willows (Lancashire) to upper echelons of pop stardom and the audience was better off for it. I am just thrilled Rick Astley is back. He has been sorely missed.

I remember seeing Rick Astley in the 80's, he was just as fun and energetic today as he was back then! His voice is amazing and he looks great! I know some of his music has a cheese factor, however it also brings back a lot of great memories!! If you have a chance to see him live go!! You will not be disappointed! The cover songs alone are worth the price of admission!

Rick Astley was amazing! His voice is just as good as ever! He put on an incredibly entertaining show with a mix of old and new stuff. He's got a great band and back up singers as well. I can't wait to see him again! Great show!

Richard Paul Astley does not disappoint . This was our second time to see him in concert at the Loft - Center Stage and he was his fabulous self interacting with the audience and sharing bits of his life with everyone. This man puts 110% into every song he sings as well as trying to do a song set that includes something for everyone. His sense of humor is great and he keeps the audience laughing while he is all over the stage and rarely in one place very long. His energy and voice is unbelievable. He belts it out the entire time for over an hour and forty minutes non stop. Keeping in mind that this was his last show of the tour and he gave it his all. I do not understand how a man's voice can hold up the way his does, just as strong as ever. "It Takes a Strong, Strong Man. On a lesser note, the sound system was not so good as last year's pushing out the music a little hard and covering the vocals at times. We quickly learned to live with that and thoroughly enjoyed the show!

What a great show! he has not change at all- the looks, the voice- very charming too! We have been waiting for so long for him to come to Chicago! I cant wait to see him again!

Great Show! Rick is very humble and engaging. The music was spot on, even the cover songs. Just a fun, enjoyable night!

No Rick Rolling here....this was our 2nd time seeing him and he is pure energy !! Fun show.....and great to listen to musician/singer that you can enunciate and sing .... High Five and hope that you will tour again.. Just got your CD ....

My first time at this venue and it doesn't look like there is a bad seat in the house. Plenty of staff on hand to keep things moving. Rick Astley was fantastic. Not a flashy concert, just great entertainment. He was very himself with the crowd and I was pleasantly surprised by a couple of numbers he did that were not his own (including playing drums for "Highway to Hell" - so fun!)

He said he would never give me up and he completed his task of doing so.

Rick put in a great show - he was enthusiastic, funny and best of all an awesome singer. We had a great time

Rick Astley put on an awesome performance. His voice is as silky as it was in the 80s and he was quite entertaining!

Excellent! Rick was so entertains and amazing voice and even played drums!

This show was tremendous. The energy and enthusiasm Rick put into each song was impressive, as was his distinct and powerful voice. Rick had a great rapport with the audience and put on as phenominal a show as I have ever seen!!! Please see him if you can---he's spectacular! And everyone should have the chance to sing "Never Gonna Give You Up" in a large crowd!

Rick put on an outstanding show in Cincinnati on Sunday Night. His voice was as strong as ever, and the musicians and singers backing him up were equally great. He did his classic hits, as well as some great covers. He played so well to the audience despite a smaller audience than I had hoped he would have. Despite that, he pledged to come back to Cincy in the future. I will hold him to that, because he's 'never gonna tell a lie!'

RIck Astley was a super tight show with a great flow. It was super professional and very fun. I really enjoyed it.

Rick engages with the audience his voice is still amazing.sings his biggest hits!

Rick Astley is fabulous live. My 14 year old daughter loves him and had a smile on her face the entire concert. He exceeded her expectations.

Great service, great atmosphere. A truly fun experience.

His voice has actually gotten even better over the years. Old songs and new songs equally great. Very entertaining and enjoyable show!

The staff at HOB was awesome and very organized. Rick Astley was a ton of fun. It was great to hear his music. His interaction with the crowd made it a ton of fun. Love the intimacy of the venue.

Sounds like the 88 record all that is needed to be said. Plus he is a funny and humble guy.

Rick Astley has one of the best iconic baritone voices in the music industry. He really put on an excellent concert at the Paramount in Huntington, Long Island. NY on 4/17/18. He sang many of his SAW songs from the 80 s plus some later hits from the 90 s and also some new songs off his current CD. His 2 backup singers added a lot to the show and sounded great with him also.. This was really a great concert. Rick your fans will never give you up.

Rick Astley is fantastic in concert. Sounds and looks amazing. You forget how many hits this guy has had. Really great time.

This was one of my all time best concerts. Rick was energetic, funny, and knows how to please his fans. Rick's set list was perfectly mixed with old hits and new music and even included an awesome mash-up featuring Rihanna and Calvin Harris' club hit "We Found Love" Rick was personable and just plain awesome and the songs sounded just awesome.....This is a must attend concert.