TSO 2008 - Believe (Trans-Siberian Orchestra)

Charleston, SC, Nov. 19, 2008. Tim Hockenberry performing "Believe". On the 2008 TSO tour this was in tribute to the late Criss Oliva of Savatage. This song is on TSOs new CD Night Castle as one of five bonus tracks not associated with the rock opera storyline.

[@timhockenberry]

I am barely worthy of this song and i thank you all for your words of praise and love TH.

[@PaulCashman]

I got teary-eyed during "Believe" at TSO's Atlanta show. Truly splendid, and Jon Oliva was there for it. R.I.P. Criss!

[@DullerImage]

Tim Hockenberry. This version of Believe is on the new TSO album Night Castle. He also performs another song on Night Castle called Sparks .... excellent as well. Lots of people are saying that Night Castle is very Savatage-like. The ENTIRE album is a MUST HEAR in my book!

[@kevinwinburn8971]

Tim Can Really Sing And Alex Can Really Make That Electric Guitar Scream.

[@bazdaniels7420]

what a great voice to sing that song.

[@Aaron66Strickland]

Simply put--an incredible performance. My wife and I saw TSO for the first time in Jacksonville, FL in Nov. '08, and we were blown away. Tim Hockenberry on "Believe" was probably the most moving performance I have ever seen. After playing the drums for 22 years, I have seen a lot of shows and performed a lot of shows. TSO has by far the best musicians, vocalists, and production that I have ever seen. This band is a must see!

[@brettv9859]

His voice and those lyrics make this sound fucking perfect.

[@eclipsedheart93]

saw this live on 11/22 in raleigh...sent chills through me, brought tears to my eyes. AWESOME!

[@terppoker21]

I had never heard much TSO and just saw them in concert on Saturday afternoon in Philly with my family, and this song moved me to tears.. incredible

[@kathybrinkman1978]

Have seen you in person x2. Took our sons and daughters-in law, Oldest son is a pastor(35),but we all we were in tears and awe. Being a musical family, my boys far exceed me, it touched us on a heart level, but also musical level. You are blessed with musical ability. Thank you for touching our lives so deeply.

[@HotForTrot]

This rendition of this song is incredible! I was almost in tears when he was singing this. Saw him in Worcester, MA 12-11-2008. Double meaning for me though. I lost my Fiance a little while back and all the memories come flooding back every time I hear this song! Great Job!

[@rickfire1971]

imgoing this yar for the 5th year in a row-TSO is awesome the concert is about 2/12 hours which is the longest 1 i been to-i love TSO

[@burnier10]

I'm also in Austria man... and a SAVATAGE reunion is one of biggest dreams in life! best regards!

[@stina3246]

I got to see him perform live in Tampa...just breathtaking!!

[@user-fy5jo2qs1v]

Who else is coming back and commenting in 2024? Who’s crying. I’m not crying! Saw their first show at the Tower theater in ‘99 and many many since.

[@CassimaPwnsWoW]

Saw them in December... this performance literally gave me chills. SO much emotion.

[@DullerImage]

Amen, brother! I went to see TSO (again) expecting the same great show with the first-half rock opera "Christmas Eve and Other Stories" and the second half "kick it up a notch", and this song caught me by surprise too. But that's TSO ... anything's possible. Thanks for the comment. Just a few more months until TSO Season!

[@NoxasRisen]

Criss was awesome. I wished he could have been there to participate in later albums. I saw this show in Philly, and as far as I'm concerned, anyone who has ever heard of Savatage should be impressed by the tribute.

[@BigMateo24]

It's nice to see them keeping the spirit of Criss alive.

[@waspfan1]

I would like to say thanks to TSO for ONLY having TSO EAST play BELIEVE In memory of Chris Oliva!!! It would seem to me that Paul & TSO thinks that TSO WEST fans don't care about Chris Oliva. This was my 10th time I have seen them & I will say that no TSO concert will ever compare to the way I felt when I first saw them in 99 in Chicago. I will see them next year even if Paul thinks that TSO East fans deserve more than TSO West fans.

[@UFO151]

Amazing! One of the best songs on this tour!

[@lawlbob]

Great song, awesome cover! Well done. RIP Criss.

[@taradevuono]

This is the amazing Tim Hockenberry!

[@hoobler08]

Agreed. This song is probably one of my favorites on the album.

[@carolazh]

oh my God, I love this song sung by Tim Hockenberry. It touches my soul!

[@hendrixv]

Without words... amazing...

[@DullerImage]

Better go soon (only a week or so left). They usually cover a song or two during their tours. This year they chose to honor their roots and to pay tribute to Criss by performing "Prelude to Madness" and "Believe". I wouldn't expect it to be on the setlist next year. And only the East group is doing "Believe" live. Rumors (maybe wishful thinking?) have it included on NightCastle. They recorded 90 songs, which will be culled to 60 on NightCastle, so maybe .....

[@DullerImage]

@DTzerb Actually, this was the 2008 Winter Tour and they dedicated two songs to Criss O. And Caffery was actually playing stage right but I just focused on Alex because he was in front of me. When they played Prelude to Madness (The Mountain on Night Castle) , Caffery took over the stage. John Lee Middleton announced it. So they all took part.

[@fireguye4]

i saw criss oliva do this solo....sad hes gone

[@rodrigorosel]

Thanks a lot for the information. I totally agree with you on your comments about the TSO last album. Amazing!, as usual. We need another Savatage album.

[@timhockenberry]

Hey Maxx!!!! See you in Toronto!!! I love you

[@stevenlemons2602]

A beautiful Alex Skolnick solo. So good.

[@sixgun45]

Incredible rendition! I don't know how Mr. Hockenberry can keep it together singing this, I have a hard time keeping it together listening to it! It touches way too many nerves. I'm new to the Savatage/TSO history, this is the version I know from "Night Castle", a stunning album in its own right. The closest thing to rock opera I've been to was Meatloaf, I've got a lot of catching up to do!

[@JimmyTheBlackOne]

Beautiful version

[@BCTTV_DTJ]

I read an interview with Jon a couple years back and he said he stopped Savatage because he was losing over a million dollars a year trying to keep it going. The whole reason TSO started was because when Savatage released Christmas Eve as a single, radio wouldn't play it. When they rereleased it under a different name (TSO), radio ate it up and it shot up the charts to #1 (no justice).

[@DullerImage]

I agree 100%! Regardless of what their soon-to-be-released Night Castle CD is about, slipping this song on there as a bonus would only add to it's popularity. We can only hope ....

[@DullerImage]

Tim, you absolutely nailed this song, especially here in Charleston, and you're a welcome addition to the TSO-East tour this year. It was nice meeting you after the show. Keep up the good work and have fun the rest of the tour!

[@Mogoamerica]

This song is awesome and Alex rocks the solo at 4:20. Tim is a fantastic singer. I think they should re-release this song.

[@ditroiamusic]

AMAZING song!

[@Waylandar]

I`m holding my breath with you man! Best wishes and hopes from Austria!

[@TSOfan]

@nickhorvath I have to completely agree with you. One of the few guitarist that can play a solo with feeling. Alex say's so much more with one note than the majority of the guitarist out there.

[@jms980]

Everyone should be open to criticism. No matter what your competence level, one can always improve or make bad choices from time to time.

[@DullerImage]

Alex Skolnick. As Chris Caffery calls him during the band intros .... The Master of Jaaaaazzzaster!

[@theaterdreamer]

Oh wow, I didn't know TSO was doing this live. This is my fave Sava song. It takes on so much extra significance after we lost Criss. He was musically one of my biggest influences; still is. Tim is an incredible singer, and does incredible justice to the song. His voice bears an uncanny resemblance to Tom Waits at times. Bravo, Tim!!!!! I will def have to see TSO now. And for God's sake, a new Sava album, please!!!! Merry Christmas, all!!!

[@OCDLibrarian]

such powerful lyrics

[@verticleman69]

They released Christmas Eve sajiavo and Savatage single and it got air play during Christmas on genre's of radio stations. That why they deciede there was something to this and created TSO

[@DullerImage]

I would agree on the quality thing. I took this video with a small Kodak Point n Shoot digital camera with video capability. I think it did a great job, but the live performance was SO MUCH BETTER! The last thing I was thinking about during the concert was Jeff Plates' cymbal style.

[@Ponine24601]

Absolutely beautiful. I have gone to TSO's concert every year since that first performance nearly 11 years ago and I always think there is no way they can top the previous year. Every year they manage to do just that. I can't wait to see what they have in store this year and heard that this song will be on Night Castle. Here's hoping!

[@SouthernSkeptic]

Oh, no doubt this is good. the guys deserve this success.

[@alloztome]

The lyrics are on the Savatage site go to index, click on band info, discography, streets, Believe. Sorry-no urls here:( Thank you-DullerImage for Sharing, Tim for the heart. Without Savatage there would be no TSO.

[@DullerImage]

Nope. And that includes me. But then again, no other group has a demographic from 7-70 yrs old. But they all heard his name on the TSO tour. TSO gave props to their Savatage roots and gave a shout-out to Criss. As John Lee Middleton pointed up he said "this is for you buddy". I hope long-time Savatage fans see it as a good thing.

[@TheDarthlazy]

this was sooooo dam good!!!!! thank you

[@jackielle]

awesome!!!

[@fireguye4]

i bet. amazing song

[@JColeComedian]

Tim's voice is amazing, great version, great song, thanks for posting the full song. A note to drummer dude- take it easy on the cymbals, no need to smash and crash on ever other beat.

[@AZSkydancer]

The lyrics are included in the Savatage CD called Streets. It's the last song...

[@DullerImage]

Thanks for the compliment! (and to others who have complimented the video). By the time they made it here to Charleston, SC, about 3 weeks into the tour, the buzz on the TSO Fan Club discussions board was how powerful this version was live. I intentionally captured the entire song, especially since fans who were seeing the West group did not see it because only the East group is doing it. By the way, I have plenty of still shots on Photobucket . com under DullerImage.

[@DTzerb]

@DullerImage I know, just during Savatage years Caffery was playing all off Criss solos, so it was kinda strange that he passed the torch to Al and Alex. But when I saw Al's version during the BLN spring tour I was impressed, he improvised the original solo and made it so cool. Respect.

[@VandelayKavorka]

This song is a Savatage staple and no disrespect to this singer but every singer in a band has the one song that no one can replace and this is one, this song is made for Jon Oliva, Jon's staple song!

[@TSOfan]

Great move at when Hockenberry turns away from the mic stand and walks away.

[@fitzgeraldsfire]

this is a master piece bro.!!!

[@TSOfan]

Just an AWESOME guitar solo! Way to go Alex.

[@DullerImage]

TSO recently updated their member list for 2009 (removed the people not touring this year, added new ones) and Tim Hockenberry is still there. His site doesn't list dates yet so I'm not 100% sure, but it looks promising. Then again, who says he won't move to the West group this year. But I would be very surprised if Tim's version is not the one on Night Castle. That just wouldn't make sense to me to introduce a remake on tour then have yet another version on the album.

[@DullerImage]

No, I'm not (DullerImage). I shot the video. But a few comments above is one from the singer, Tim Hockenberry. A couple of people have made comments directed toward him.

[@TSOfan]

@KsErockr19 Chris's contribution to the solo is towards the end. Alex plays most of the solo, however your are right Chris Caffrey is no slouch when it comes to solo's.

[@OCDLibrarian]

EPIC lyrics!

[@fireguye4]

criss is smiling from the heavens....

[@DullerImage]

@DTzerb Yeah, I hear ya! I've never seen Al live (I've seen only the East group). I couldn't make it to a BLN show, but I have the complete show audio on CDs from Chicago and the DVD from NY (both fan recorded) and you're right, Pitrelli is awesome. At the Chicago show, his work on The Dark is almost haunting. (I hope you don't think I was dissing your post!)

[@burnier10]

I WANT SAVATAGE BACK!!!!

[@DullerImage]

This year they played two Savatage songs, Prelude To Madness and Believe. P2M was pretty much all Chris Caffery in front of a light board, so (just a guess here) maybe they were just "sharing the spotlight" for the dedication to Criss Oliva? Search for KZbin user temptationrevelation for a video of P2M during the same show here in Charleston, which also includes JLM's intro to the tribute.

[@fireguye4]

@TSOfan agreed...called respect

[@RobTheRoadie]

Anybody else notice that the video quality makes this look like an 80's music video? :D

[@SouthernSkeptic]

Not sure who negged me, but nobody can play Criss' music like he can. Anybody who thinks they can is foolin themselves.

[@zzzombie888]

WOW.

[@DullerImage]

Tim Hockenberry

[@SouthernSkeptic]

Yep, I love TSO> Didn't get to go tis year. I love Alex, but I'd bet he'd tell you he can't play Criss' music as well as Criss either.

[@SouthernSkeptic]

nobody can play like Criss, bro.

[@deltafour1212]

Please, don't ever take this video down.

[@AytekCan]

Oh my God ...

[@scruffy2112]

Zak Stevens does a good job on it. I believe it is on "wake of the magellan"

[@danmcbride95]

there is only ONE Jon Oliva... Hockenberry does a nice tribute here, but nobody can be compared to Jon!

[@DullerImage]

@johnearl0268 - for those of you who don't know yet, Paul O'Neill is taking Gutter Ballet to Broadway.

[@Kellettcj71]

Alex Skolnik nails that solo!

[@DullerImage]

@sardhikhaansi Tim Hockenberry. On my channel here I have a newer video I took of this same song from 2010. He's on TSO's Night Castle album singing this song, Believe, and another one called Sparks. He also sang on the remake they did last year of Dream Child (and also performed it live a few times on the 2010 tour).

[@theeducatedfool]

It'd be a little nicer if they could be recognized on their own terms. I always want to blare "Edge of Thorns" or "The Dungeons Are Calling" whenever someone goes on about TSO... Having said that, "Beethoven's Last Night" kicks some serious ass.

[@BigMateo24]

Not true. I am a permanent resident of the West Coast, and Criss Oliva is a HUGE influence for me as a musician. I wish I could have seen them, but I would have only been like, 5 y.o. back then before he died. Criss was by far one of the best guitarist to ever come out of the whole 80's scene, except for say, Randy Rhoads.

[@sardhikhaansi]

@DullerImage Yeah I'm big TSO and Savatage fan, thing is i could never find this guy's name. I listened to whole Night Castle Album and it was Epic.

[@timhockenberry]

There are actually THREE Jon Olivas now!

[@jonathonrose5141]

No. Not even a little bit.

[@SouthernSkeptic]

I wonder if most TSO fans even know who Criss Oliva is.

[@hoobler08]

Tim Hockenberry isn't doing a bad job though. It's still a great sounding version of the song.

[@scruffy2112]

Let me state that I love TSO greatly. But I feel that somehow they are or were a contributing factor to the demise of SAVATAGE. They played to huge stadiums all over the US, but Savtage just had more of a region popularity like that. The guys got to see bigger audiences. I think that although Jon O. said that they are basically savatage (JO's Pain) That somehow Paul O'Neil and Robert Kinkel did what he did on Dead Winter Dead and replicated it on a huger scale, and he feels left out of the loop.

[@BigMateo24]

I would love to see a Savatage renunion tour, but I think many would agree with me that Savatage without Criss Oliva is not Savatage. I don't want to knock Al P. or Alex Skolnick, they are tremendous musicians, but Criss and Jon made that band really special, and without both together, it wouldn't 'feel' like Savatage.

[@DeathDlr73]

To Acjunk- The singer of Savatage was the brother of TSO guitarist - learn respect!

[@davemustaine6694]

DeathDlr73 no he wasn't.

[@TSOfan]

@TSOfan Ugh! Forgot the time stamp 4:17

[@wildbill1]

I think paul Oneil has a master plan for savatage! and your looking at it!

[@AgentFour]

Louis Armstrong gave this guy his voice. Jeez

[@boangeres]

Alex plays with such emotion. Joel Hoekstra is great but I miss Alex.

[@cowboyn6]

anyone have the lyrics for this? great song

[@rodrigorosel]

Sorry, but can you tell who sang this version?. I really liked the voice a lot.

[@TSOfan]

@fireguye4 Yeah it is, let his hair grow with the grey stripe.