Watch: MR. BIG Plays First Show With WHITESNAKE’s MICHELE LUPPI

MR. BIG played its first concert with Michele Luppi (WHITESNAKE) Friday night (March 22) at KK’s Steel Mill in Wolverhampton, United Kingdom. Luppi is assisting with the lead vocals during MR. BIG‘s ongoing U.K. tour while singer Eric Martin is dealing with an unspecified voice issue.

Fan-filmed video of the Wolverhampton show can be seen below.

Earlier on Friday (March 22),Eric took to his social media to write: “Hey fine folks, Eric here .. So after these last couple shows with my voice going in and out and struggling to keep it together (I’m not gonna get into it ..wear and tear, work overload, voodoo doll curses etc.) I had a crazy idea that could work. I’m bringing out my dear friend and singer Michele Luppi (WHITESNAKE) to join me on stage on these next two shows so I can get my strength back. We’ll duet on most of the tunes including the album.

“I don’t know how this is going to work but it’s better than the alternatives and it sure would make me feel a whole hell of a lot better.

“I met Michele when he was the lead singer in a famous MR. BIG tribute band in the 90’s (way before he joined WHITESNAKE as their keyboardist and background vocalist). We’ve shared the stage a few times in Italy. Michele is a great singer and one of the coolest dudes in this business. If you don’t know him already, you’re gonna love him.

“We pulled all this together yesterday …the band is all on board … Once in awhile my crazy ideas shine….let’s get rocked!”

MR. BIG‘s ongoing last worldwide tour is aptly titled “The BIG Finish”. Since the band’s original drummer and co-founder Pat Torpey lost his battle with Parkinson’s disease in 2018, the band now feels it’s time to mark the end of this chapter of their legacy. The first leg kicked off in Japan and Southeast Asia in July and August 2023, where the band performed for hundreds of thousands of loyal fans at 11 sold-out shows including Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. Joining MR. BIG on drums for this special final world tour is longtime friend of the band Nick D’Virgilio (SPOCK’S BEARD, BIG BIG TRAIN),stepping in for Torpey.

MR. BIG‘s final tour sees the band performing the entirety of its breakthrough platinum-selling 1991 album “Lean Into It” from start to finish as a featured highlight of the live setlist.

MR. BIG recently entered the studio to record a new studio album to coincide with the last shows of the band’s farewell tour.

As a session musician and touring artist, Nick has worked with many different kinds of artists and bands, from TEARS FOR FEARS, Sheryl Crow and Kevin Gilbert to Peter Gabriel and Eric Burdon and the ANIMALS. In 1996, Nick took Phil Collins‘s place in GENESIS and played on their “Calling All Stations” album. He has also carved out a major presence in the progressive rock world with his bands, SPOCK’S BEARD and BIG BIG TRAIN.

Before joining the Sweetwater team, Nick spent almost five years touring with Cirque Du Soleil‘s “Totem” as drummer, vocalist, and assistant bandleader.