On February 1st 2009, a radio announcement on Koh Sakai's Buurn Presents: Heavy Metal Syndicate contained a short message from US rock supergroup Mr Big announcing the reunion of the original line-up featuring Eric Martin, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan and Pat Torpey, to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of their debut album release.  A June tour of Japan (Including the infamous Budokan) was a huge success and then eventually a new studio album 'What If...' followed at the end of January 2011, and with this new studio album your average Mr Big fan had more than they could have ever dreamed of from this regrouping.  Then up next during a week long trip to promote the album and it's then forthcoming tour, the band were invited to the WOWOW TV Studios in Tokyo to perform a special show in an acoustic setting.  The idea evolved with the involvement of a string quintet with arrangements by Takashi Miyazaki, and although Gilbert and Sheehan played electric on a few songs, the show was still pretty much acoustic throughout, and as they are captured here.

So, welcome to 'Live From The Living Room' ladies and gentlemen and it's straight down to business with the opening track from 'What If...' 'Undertow' the first of seven lifted from said opus, and what can you say? Nobody does it better in this particular environment, the musicianship, harmonic, lead and backing vocals all of exemplary standard. 'Still Ain't Enough For Me' continues apace taking this almost out of the acoustic bag due to a throbbing Sheehan bass lick mid section.  'As Far As I Can See' proves conclusively that the guys haven't lost anything as songwriters with all these new tunes and as for their playing? WOW!!!! what a (Mr) BIG treat this tune is.

Some Americanised banter introduces 'Lean Into It' album track 'Voodoo Kiss' performed tighter than an Uber Rock cock sock, whilst from 1996's 'Hey Man' we have the solitary inclusion of 'Take Cover' with some intense percussive action from Torpey and fretwork from Gilbert. The virtuoso playing from Paul Gilbert and the finger gymnastics courtesy of bassist Billy Sheehan glisten all over 'Around The World'.  A tribute is paid by Eric Martin "To our boys and girls overseas" 'via a poignant 'Stranger In My Life' which is a moving well penned ditty that incorporates the string quintet beautifully throughout.

Up next the wonderfully commercial 'What If...' tune 'All The Way Up' is the classic harmonic Mr Big trademark sound to the last sugar sweet note, before an introduction of the band and their guests leads up to what else but that track 'To Be With You.  Here  gloriously performed to absolute musical perfection and boy just listen to those  those harmony vocals!  Closing things out 'Nobody Left To Blame' rocks it up electrically with some complex studio jamming, and bringing things to an enthralling conclusion.

Check it out... .lean into it........ and put some Mr Big in your living rooms.

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