What started as a short series of charity concerts has turned into a full-blown renaissance for the rock band Foreigner.
Now 32 years into their history, the band, with an almost completely different lineup from its hit-making days of the late 1970s and early 1980s, has found a new audience with a seemingly insatiable appetite for Foreigner songs.
One of the newcomers is bassist Jeff Pilson, who is best known for his tenure with 1980s glam rockers Dokken. He joined the Foreigner family two years ago, with no intention of it becoming a full-time enterprise.
Only founder Mick Jones, now 63, remains from the band’s classic lineup. He and the band’s new drummer Jason Bonham (son of legendary Led Zeppelin skin basher John Bonham) were working on pulling a band together for a benefit concert when Pilson’s name came up in conversation.
"Jason and I had worked on a movie together called Rock Star that came out a few years ago. And we had established a good working and personal relationship through that," Pilson said. "And we got together to play and the chemistry was just amazing. Then we found Kelly Hansen, the singer, and the rest has been just a real nice roll down the rock and roll road."
Hansen had tough vocals to fill, as former lead singer Lou Gramm’s unique soulful powerhouse voice on songs like Cold As Ice, Hot Blooded and Waiting For A Girl Like You made Foreigner stood out from a lot of its contemporaries.
According to Pilson, while Hansen has his own style, his voice is powerful enough, with enough range, to make the songs sound authentic in live shows.
"He’s remarkably close (to Gramm’s sound). In fact, it probably sounds closer to the originals than people have heard out of Foreigner for years," he said. "Kelly does sound a lot like Lou. But it’s not like he’s really trying to. He’s just being true to the songs. And he’s also one of the few human beings on the planet that can hit the notes."
From those early charity shows, word began to spread amongst old Foreigner fans as well as a whole new generations of boosters, weaned on classic-rock radio.
The response, and the subsequent full slate of concert bookings that has lasted two solid years, surprised everyone in the band, including Pilson and the veteran guitarist songwriter of the group, Jones.
"First of all, Foreigner has great songs. In fact, I think Foreigner’s songs are more popular than Foreigner itself. I think people know the songs of Foreigner, more than they know the name Foreigner … I mean, there’s been 15 top-10 songs. That’s quite a legacy," Pilson said, in trying to explain the band’s resurgence in popularity. "And then to top it off, I think the new reformed band has a lot of life to it. It’s a very high-energy show … It’s just a uniquely qualified group of musicians and performers, and it makes for a great band. And when you have a great band playing great songs, you can’t go wrong."
The demand for Foreigner to play live at various venues across North America compelled the band to get back on the road. Jones, who is a successful producer, certainly didn’t need the money.
"If [Mick] wasn’t doing it for the right reasons, I wouldn’t be talking to you on the phone right now. He doesn’t need to do this … actually, none of us do. This is a labour of love to all of us. I have a two-year-old daughter, and my plan was to be at home, and raise this daughter. But even my wife said, ‘no, this is just too good of a thing. This is something you have to do.’ And it is. We’re all really energized," he said, adding that it’s nice to be able to help Jones secure Foreigner’s musical legacy with a new generation of fans
"For Mick, Foreigner … that’s going to be the thing in his time capsule. He appreciates the fact that we are all giving it a lot of respect. And at the same time, it’s giving him the opportunity to extend a career that he probably didn’t think would go this long.
"For him, it’s all about the fun and the rush you get when you get on stage and a crowd is interacting with you. That’s the ultimate. That’s why we all do this. I think a lot of musicians forget about that. I even forget," he continued. "But when you reconnect with that original primal thing that got you into music, it’s a very powerful experience."
For more information on Foreigner, visit foreigneronline.com.

ON TOUR
Foreigner has dates in the northeast U.S., the U.S. south and the west coast this spring and summer including several in July with Canadian Bryan Adams. Visit ticketmaster.com to check out 11 Foreigner concert dates. Foreigneronline has another five May dates for New Jersey, California and Nevada.