Way back in 2018, Eric Martin – lead singer of Mr. Big – announced that the band would likely record one more album and subsequently call it quits.
The band's drummer and co-founder, Pat Torpey, had passed away from Parkinson's disease earlier that year, and Martin felt “uncomfortable” continuing the band for an extended period following Torpey's passing.
A few years have come and gone since, and we've yet to see that new album, but today, Mr. Big – Martin on vocals, virtuosos Paul Gilbert on electric guitar and Billy Sheehan on bass guitar, and new addition Nick D’Virgilio on drums, in place of Torpey – announced “The Big Finish,” a trek that will serve as the band's final worldwide tour.
At each show, the band will perform their 1991 album, Lean into It – including the album's sing-along, chart-topping smash hit single, To Be With You – in its entirety, along with a host of other favorites from their discography.
“We’re in the process of making sure we come up with a suitably big entertainment extravaganza to go along with our music," Gilbert said in a press release, "and since our music has resonated so wonderfully in places all over the world, we’re going to play in as many of those places as we can.”
“I hope the people who come see our shows get to feel what it’s like when musicians get together and really play and sing the songs they wrote,” added Sheehan. “We want the audience to be one with us, and feel our evening together was a magical and beautiful event.”
Thus far, the band have only announced a run of summer shows in Asia, but more dates on other continents are promised for 2024. You can see a list of those Asian dates below.
"I’d seen the success of the Eat ’Em And Smile band [with singer David Lee Roth] and I wanted to see that level of success with a band I’d put together,” Sheehan told Guitar World last year when reflecting on Lean Into It and its impact on the band. “It changed so many things in my life and for the first time, this was my success – I put the band together. It’s me, Pat, Eric and Paul’s success – we made it happen. It was not only a life-changer, but a life-completer."
For tickets and updates as more tour dates get announced, visit Mr. Big's website.
Mr. Big 2023 tour dates:
July 20: Nagoya, Japan – Nagoya Shimin Kaikan
July 22: Osaka, Japan – Osaka Maruzen Intec Arena
July 25: Tokyo, Japan – Budokan
July 29: Seoul, Korea – Yes24 Live Hall
July 31: Hong Kong – Southorn Stadium
Aug. 2 : New Taipei City, Taiwan – Zepp New Taipei
Aug. 4: Singapore – Marina Bay Sands Theater
Aug. 5: Singapore – Marina Bay Sands Theater
Aug. 7: Bangkok, Thailand – Show DC Hall
Aug. 9: Manila, Philippines – Skydome
Aug. 12: Kemayoran, Jakarta, Indonesia – The 90's Festival
