SOUL SIRKUS COMES TO TINSEL TOWN!  4/21/05
A boisterous hometown crowd greeted Soul Sirkus to the stage of the House of Blues on Hollywood’s famed Sunset Strip last night for an evening of songs from World Play, the group’s debut CD, as well as a handful of tasty covers. Neal Schon’s guitar soared over the Zeppelin-esque (“In the Light”) intro to “Highest Ground” before the vocalist Jeff Scott Soto’s powerful vocals emerged to literally engulf the audience. The nearly two hour show included Soul Sirkus songs such as “My Sanctuary,” “Periled Divide,” “Soul Goes On” and “New Position” as well as cover versions of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Chile/”Third Stone From the Sun,” Ted Nugent’s “Hey Baby” (featuring lead vocals by bassist Marco Mendoza) and a semi-Journey medley/tribute, which featured snippets of “Send Her My Love” and “Lovin’, Touchin’ Squeezin’” At about the halfway point of the night, Schon treated the Hollywood crowd to what is rapidly becoming a trademark; his guitar-blazing rendition of the National Anthem, just prior to launching in to the Hendrix set. The Soul Sirkus tour continues on Friday night in Las Vegas.