Eighties iconic firecracker, Pat Benatar, brought her fierce pipes to Hard Rock Live at Universal CityWalk on Tuesday night. Also in tow was her hubby and bandmate, Neil Giraldo, who has been her partner in the battlefield of love and music for over two decades.
This Grammy award winner is certainly not the girl, with the rad headband and quaffed ‘doo, we saw seriously shimmying in the “Love Is A Battlefield” video, but she still knows her way around a stage and mike.
Benatar’s “don’t mess with me attitude” is alive and well, and bursts forth from her tiny frame. At first glance, her dolly face and doe eyes may be deceptive, but don’t fool yourself— this is one burly-voiced Brooklyn-born babe.
Before Benatar’s performance, attendees were treated to the innocent vocal stylings and acoustic guitar playing of Lindsay Rush. Between her songs, she shared little anecdotes. Teetering on the cusp between adorable and annoying, she let us all know about an incident involving a water stain on her trousers and a touch-sensor faucet. When not attempting to disperse useful tips, she sounded pretty good. A favorite was “Civil War,” a passionately strummed number in which Rush’s voice possessed a certain spunky edge.
After an amped drum and bass session by fellow bandmates, Benatar and Giraldo took the stage to dish out some hits to the audience.
Setting the party tone, Benatar opened with “All Fired Up.” Her undeniable presence, gritty and girly, seeped out with the first few lines.
“Invincible,” the angst-ridden anthem, had Benatar belting out battle cries with conviction. At the closing, she gave the peace sign and dramatically held it for what seemed an eternity.
An unplugged version of “Strawberry Wine (Life Is Sweet) ” was savory and had us speculating if there was something a little more fermented in Benatar’s red plastic cup, which she swore contained water.
“We Belong” brought on swaying. Suddenly I felt as if I was at an ‘80s high school prom, minus the pastel streamers and disco ball.
Next came “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” arguably the greatest brawl song ever written, dare I say even better than Queen’s “We Will Rock You.” During this clock-me classic, fans sang along and a few even seemed to snarl during the chorus.
The most hard-hitting moment of the evening came with the stormy, goosebump-inducing, “Hell Is For Children.” Benatar informed the crowd that she wrote the song after reading an article about child abuse in The New York Times. “Long ago we made a promise to play this song every show, til every child everywhere was safe.”
The lyric “And you shouldn’t have to pay for your love with your bones and your flesh…” reverberated throughout the venue. It was then that this pop goddess seemed to take on the role of advocate and, like the spandex leopard-print miniskirt she rocked in the ‘80s, it seemed to fit.
After this banner against brutality, she lightened the mood with her classic “Love Is A Battlefield.”
She closed with a bitchin’ rendition of “Heartbreaker.” Her catchy warning to future ex-lovers provided us with sweet vocals and bite— an ice-cream treat drizzled with molasses and diesel fuel. The hyper guitar playing and punk sound had fans rockin’ out like it was 1979.
Benatar is sensually vulnerable, yet tough as nails, and still looks cool doing a fist pump. She proves that not only can women rock, but that they can do it without having any wardrobe malfunctions. Even when Madonna’s underwear became outerwear, Benatar opted not to shed her integrity or clothing for the sake of a dollar. While she’s the sort of girl you could take home to mom, I get the feeling she could also hold her own in a drinking contest. It’s safe to say, that 20-plus years later, this spike-heeled spitfire still has the ability to get us all fired up.
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