Mr. Big Announces Farewell Tour, ‘The Big Finish’
Mr. Big has announced a farewell tour that will take place this year called the Big Finish.
The shows are scheduled to launch in Nagoya, Japan, on July 20 and continue through Southeast Asia through August. You can see a list of tour dates below.
Earlier this year, singer Eric Martin confirmed that a tour was in the works, "no question about it." He and the band's two other original members, guitarist Paul Gilbert and bassist Billy Sheehan, will be joined by a new drummer, Nick D'Virgilio, a longtime friend of the group who has also played with Spock’s Beard and Big Big Train and has done session work for Phil Collins, Tears for Fears and others. (Original drummer Pat Torpey died from Parkinson’s disease in 2018, after which Mr. Big began considering bidding a "proper goodbye" to their fans.)
"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," Sheehan said in a press release. "We want the audience to be one with us and feel our evening together was a magical and beautiful event."
According to the press release, more shows in the U.S., Europe and South America will follow in early 2024 and be announced soon.
"I love playing with these guys. And if I'm being honest, I don't want it to ever end," Martin noted. "I'm the guy who just knows we still have that special spark together, and I always want to keep the torch burning. But if it really is the end, then I want us all to have a happy ending together. We're a great live band. I want everybody to come out and see us, because we want to blow you away and have you all think as you're leaving, 'Mr. Big really is the real thing.'"