Judith and Harry’s Holiday Sing Along – Contemporary Arts Center,
New Orleans, 19 December, 2012
Okay, technically this was last year. In fact, there’s nothing
technical about it, the show was in December 2012, which was last year and if
you’re reading this tomorrow, then it’s the year before. I am including it in
this list because it’s where the year in gigs really started for me.
Judith Owen and Harry Shearer’s Holiday Sing Along shows literally
came out of Christmas parties they had in their home that outgrew the available
space. They have since become an annual thing in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles
and New Orleans, with proceeds going to local musicians’ charities and in 2012,
Hurricane Sandy relief. I’ve been a fan of Harry Shearer, and particularly leShow, for many years now, so when I saw it would be on when we would be in New
Orleans visiting dearest’s family, I suggested* it would be great if we could
go. *(“Suggested,” as in, “Can we? Can we? Please? Huh? Can we? Please?”)
It was not the kind of show you could go into with any expectations
but I didn’t care about that. The chance to see Harry Shearer doing whatever he
wants with friends in his adopted home town was too good to pass up. Of course,
Judith was the real host, and she did it wonderfully. Drinking, dancing,
singing and cameras were all lustily encouraged. It was by no means just the Judith
and Harry show. It was a get-together of their friends which, for this show,
included The Pfister Sisters, Leah Chase, Phillip Manuel and Phil DeGruy. The
Victory Belles from the National WWII Museum just around the corner from the
theatre also happened to be in the front row and joined in on a few
numbers. Unfortunately, advertised guest
David Torkanowsky couldn’t be there but the blessing in that particular
disguise was that stand-in Matt Lemmler performed a solo piano & vocal
version of Ode to Joy that was more beautiful than words can express. My throat was lumpy.
The night was an entertaining mix of the reverent and irreverent.
Being a family friendly show, parents were encouraged to take young children
out for an ice-cream when some of the naughtier numbers came up, like Judith
Owen’s sultry version of Spinal Tap’s Christmas with the Devil. As each artist
played, the others sat on a couple of couches at the side of the stage, joining
in where appropriate – or inappropriate as the case may be. It really did make
the small theatre feel like an extension of their lounge room.
The first “half” of the show went until nearly 10pm (from a 7:30
start) and Judith urged everyone to get as drunk as possible during the late
15-minute interval before returning for some real sing-along carolling. Only
about two thirds of the audience did return for the sing-along set, which is
understandable for those with young children and to be honest, dearest and I
were dreading the threat of audience participation in The Twelve Days of
Christmas. However, when it came time for that song, Judith divided the
audience into twelve groups, one for each day, and there were prizes offered for the best
performance-art interpretation of each present for the twelve days. And I have
to say, it was a ridiculous amount of fun! I won’t tell you how dearest and I
acted out the geese a’laying but I will say that it wasn’t nearly as attention-grabbing
as the guys in the next row who were equally praised by Judith for their
inventiveness and berated by her for improvising ‘eggs’ out of scrunched-up
pages from her lyric sheets.
The evening concluded with Philip Manuel and Leah Chase standing on
the edge of the stage with heads bowed and fists raised, Mexico Olympics style,
as the rest of the company sang White Christmas.
We had intended to meet my brother-in-law at Loa for drinks after
the show but it kicked on so long that the bar was closed by the time the show
had finished. It had gone over three and a half hours and didn’t drag once. I
even got to meet Harry afterwards and get my CD signed.
Mike Scott – Reading’s, Carlton, 15 January, 2013
Not a gig as such, but certainly a great performance from the head
Waterboy. Mike Scott and his band had been invited to Australia to perform at
the Sydney Festival and Mike had chosen to come a week early and immerse
himself in some of the local culture. He had already picked out a favourite Fitzroy
café, proving that he instantly understood Melbourne.
During his week off, he had been invited to do a reading from his
memoir, Adventures of a Waterboy at Reading’s book store. Even though I was
still adjusting after arriving home from the US, this was a drop-everything
moment for me, as it clearly was for many other fans there. Mike read with
gusto from several sections of the book, doing all the relevant voices which
certainly helped us to picture the Minister he described at a New York Gospel
church.
After reading excerpts, he took questions on everything from working
with Karl Wallinger, to moving to Ireland, to whether he was aware of Hamer
Hall’s no-dancing rule. And following the Q & A, he happily stayed to sign
things and have photos taken. I was a bit concerned that he might only be
signing his book because I had seen some stores and artists have that rule, but
he was happy to sign anything. I felt a bit bad because I had bought his book
in the US the previous week having not seen it in Australia. Apparently Reading’s
had drafted every available copy in Melbourne into their Carlton Store. Fortunately,
they also had the new album An Appointment with Mr Yeats there as well. It was
the first time I had seen that album available in Australia too, and I was glad
of the chance to justify Readings’ hosting the visit with a purchase.
I was incredibly impressed that he had just shown up on his own,
without any agent or manager (he doesn’t have one) and following the event, he
just walked off up the road to where-ever he had to go next. So many artists
travel in a bubble. They travel the world but see very little of it. While it
came as no surprise, it was nice to be reassured that when he visits somewhere,
he means it, man.
The Waterboys – Hamer Hall, Melbourne, 30 January, 2013
Although the main reason The Waterboys were in Australia for the
first time ever was to perform the An Appointment with Mr Yeats show at the
Sydney Festival, their shows in other cities were a mix of old and new. While I
always respect the artist’s right to play what they want to play, I admired
their professionalism in recognising the fact that long-time fans who had
waited decades to see them would be disappointed if they played only new
material. So we were treated to a greatest-hits show, although without a whiff
of nostalgia, punctuated by segments from the Mr Yeats show.
My friend H-bomb (who really deserves to be listed by the National
Trust for his historically significant devotion to live music in Melbourne) had
procured the tickets, and then managed to get a couple more, which meant that
my friend T, who happened to be over from Adelaide, would be able to come as
well. I had forgotten until T mentioned it on the drive up to the show that we
had kind of cemented our friendship over listening to This Is The Sea many
years ago so it was wonderful to be able to share the show. Unfortunately,
H-bomb’s extra tickets were not beside the rest of us, so T had to make do with
the front row.
The opening act was Oh Mercy and they certainly won some new fans
that evening. I always make sure to be there for the opening act and listen to
them respectfully and it was certainly no chore to do that for Oh Mercy; they
were excellent.
 |
| Oh Mercy |
The Waterboys’ set opened, as I had hoped, with Don’t Bang the Drum.
The recorded trumpet intro was played as the band took the stage in darkness
and then exploded into life as the main part of the song began. I had seen some
spoiler setlists from other shows in the tour so I thought I might have a rough
idea of what was coming but I was wrong. They were smart and mixed it up.
Again, my admiration for them only grew because there are plenty of acts that
keep the same setlist for a whole tour. Mike Scott knows exactly how to play
the rock star roll, by being as just aloof and exotic as we expect our rock
stars to be without ever becoming a dick or giving the impression he doesn’t
care. At one point, following one of the quieter pieces, he just stood alone at
the mic stand, not saying anything, not acknowledging the audience, just having
a quiet think. This went on for several minutes as more and more audience
members became more confident about calling out to him. Then he just looked up
and grinned and said, “I knew I could draw you out.”
It went far beyond one of the best gigs of the year, it was one of
the best shows I have ever seen. Having said that, I have to pause and wonder
if it’s because I waited so long for it, but no. There have been other tours
that I have waited decades for that still didn’t hit the spot quite the way
this one did.
Setlist
Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band – Festival Hall, Melbourne, 16
February, 2013
Ringo is now with his 13th incarnation of the All-Starr
band and it has turned out to be a good thing for all of them. If we are going
to be brutally honest, none of them could fill the kind of venues they play on
a regular basis on their own – perhaps not even Ringo. Together though, they
are always reliably entertaining and can put on a show that doesn’t need to be
padded out with stories and album tracks.
This year’s model featured Todd Rundgren, Steve Lukather from Toto
and numerous sessions, Gregg Rolie from Santana and Richard Page from Mr
Mister, as well as perennials Gregg Bisonette on additional drums and Mark
Rivera (also of Billy Joel’s band) on sax, keyboards and musical direction.
Unfortunately for everyone, the show was at Festival Hall – or Festering
Hole, as it’s often referred to by regular gig-goers. It was originally
designed as a boxing venue and has the acoustics and seating to match. It’s a bloody
sweatbox at the best of times and this was the middle of February which only
made things worse. It feels like a large pub, which is fine if you’re going to
pogo along to whatever nu-punk band is fashionable this year but really not
appropriate for a lot of mums and dads who are there to see The Funny One. Why
they chose this venue above other far more comfortable, similar sized venues is
beyond me, unless they were going on the fact that this is where The Beatles
played in 1964.
There was a lot of chatter around the venue while waiting for the
show about how this would actually be the first time Ringo had played there and
it took an awful amount of self control not to tell them they were all wrong. Ringo
was struck down with tonsillitis in 1964 and forced to miss part of the that
tour, which was already booked since the Beatles were being worked like dogs at
the time. Jimmie Nicol filled in on drums for those dates, which included the
bulk of the Australian tour, but Ringo rejoined the band in the middle of the
tour. Melbourne was Ringo’s first show after catching up with the rest of The
Beatles, so Festival Hall is possibly the only Australian venue he has played
twice (or indeed, three times since an extra date was added this year). Jimmie
Nicol has since disappeared from sight, which is interesting given the fact
that people who have had far less to do with The Beatles have made a career out
of it on the convention circuit.
Be all of that as it may, the show was exactly what you would
probably expect. Everyone played three of their biggest hits in between Ringo
playing his best known songs from The Beatles and his solo career. There were a
couple of surprises inasmuch as they didn’t open with It Don’t Come Easy, instead opting for Matchbox, and
Ringo took to the keyboard for the first verse of Don’t Pass Me By. Although
everyone knows these are meant to be hits-only shows, I was impressed that
Richard Page played a brand new song, You Are Mine. Steve Lukather insisted that everyone
stand for his Toto numbers because apparently Africa is a party song. Who knew?
I’m sad to say it dragged a bit during Gregg Rolie’s numbers. Black Magic Woman
just sounded like every other cover band that does Black Magic Woman even
though this band had the real keyboardist and two legendary lead guitarists to
play it.
It wasn’t an amazing or moving experience, it was just a fine
evening’s entertainment. It has to be said that there is something a little bit
sad about Ringo & the All Starrs shows. The elephant in the room is that we
have someone who was in the greatest band in history needing help from his
friends to put a full-length show together, and the fact that those friends are
all giants in their field but not quite giant enough to be leading the band
either. Not at a show this big, anyway. And it’s not even that Ringo lacks
either the musical or showmanship talents to put on a great show in his own
right – it’s just getting past the ingrained, unfair public notion that Ringo
was an also-ran in musical history.
You might think that is the case. If you do, all I have to say is
this:
Ringo was in The Beatles. And you weren’t.
Setlist
The Hello Morning – Westernport Hotel, San Remo, 24 February, 2013
I first became aware of The Hello Morning when I happened to flick
past ABC Dig Radio while channel surfing one night and being absolutely
enchanted by a song which I now know to be Poolside Lover. Since it was digital
radio, I jumped online to find out what was playing, and began quietly
following them.
The Westernport had been doing Sunday afternoon gigs so I went over,
and it was an excellent way to spend a stinking hot late Sunday arvo. They were
playing in the front bar, just in a corner and the room was small enough that
they really only needed the PA for the vocal mics.
The crowd was pretty sparse, so it almost felt like a public
rehearsal, which was fine with me. It meant I could listen without the
impediment of conversations around me.
There is something of a retro sensibility, with Gretsch guitar, Hammond
organ and Leslie speaker, but it’s not a self-consciously old fashioned sound.
They also do a smouldering slow version of Ring of Fire.
Unfortunately, they had forgotten bring their case of CDs that day
so I couldn’t buy one. Bass player David Oxley very kindly offered to send me
one for free but I couldn’t do that working musicians and there would be other
chances.
Paul Simon – Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, 28 March, 2013
Dearest and I had previously seen Paul Simon with Art Garfunkel in
2009 when dearest was only a few hours off the ’plane. What was most impressive
about this solo show was that while almost all the songs were instantly
familiar, there were only six that were played at both shows. In fact, he only
did four Simon and Garfunkel songs and the setlist didn’t suffer for it one
little bit. Do you know what I’m saying, Paul McCartney?
The show was opened by special guest Rufus Wainwright who did very
well with a 40-minute solo set. An artist of Rufus Wainwright’s stature ought
to command an audience’s attention but he was professionally resigned to the
fact that he would be accompanying stragglers still finding their seats. It’s a
brave thing to do being the opening act at such a large venue on your own. The
set was split between piano songs and guitar songs. He did do his version of
Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, which he freely admits is a cover of Jeff Buckley’s
version rather than an interpretation of the original. In fact, we really need
an international moratorium on covers of Hallelujah. It has become the singers’
Stairway to Heaven – something you do just to prove you can. I’m not accusing
Rufus of that, but there shouldn’t be any more.
When he switched to guitar, it quickly became clear that he doesn’t
play guitar nearly as well as he plays piano. In fact, he doesn’t play guitar
very well at all. I don’t mean that as a criticism by any stretch. While I love
hearing great players, I also have no problem with people who are just good
enough to accompany themselves at a solo show. It just made his performance all
the more gutsy.
Paul Simon’s set opened with Gumboots, which was the first of
several underrated album tracks from Graceland that he included. Banter and
interaction was minimal, with Paul speaking just enough say hello and “I love
you too,” to a call from the audience before adding (in the nicest possible
way), “Not really, I don’t know who you are.”
I was somewhat disgusted to see almost a hundred people get up and
leave the auditorium during So Beautiful or So What. I know that two hours can
be a long time to go on hard seats without a pitstop, especially if you’re old
enough to remember when Paul Simon was up and coming, but I really thought that
such a conspicuous exodus during one of the songs from his new album was
downright disrespectful. In fact, it seemed a lot of people were there just for
the hits. Perhaps I’ve been to enough pub gigs to be immune to noise behind me,
so I didn’t really notice the couple behind us talking through Crazy Love Vol.
II (a highlight of the show for me – I’ve always loved that song. It’s like a
Woody Allen film condensed into a four-minute song) but dearest did and to her
credit, she turned around and told them to shut it or take it outside. It does
make you wonder why people spend so much money on tickets only to wilfully miss
half the show.
I don’t think he minded too much though because they came back for
an additional encore of The Boxer (The first encore included a lovely version
of Here Comes the Sun). Although clearly planned in the setlist, they gave the
distinct impression that they kept that last song up their sleeve for if they
felt like it.
Something that is rarely mentioned is that Paul Simon is a seriously
underrated guitarist. It’s as if you can only admire an artist for one aspect
of his work and since Paul Simon has been given the ‘songwriter’ tag, his
guitar playing is overlooked. That’s a pity, because he was absolutely cooking
and he knew it.
On the whole, it was an excellent show, although it didn’t come
across as an event. They came, they played their music, they did it wonderfully
well and they said goodnight.
Setlist
The Hello Morning – Westernport Hotel, 18 May, 2013
My second Hello Morning gig was on a Saturday night and although I
enjoyed hearing them play in the corner in the front bar, I was looking forward
to hearing them in the band room.
You can imagine my dismay when I got there to see that they had been
shoved in the corner of the front bar again. Not only that, but I’d missed
their first two sets. Usually there isn’t any point in going to a pub gig
before 9:30 because they’ll still have the football on, and the Westernport has
its big screen over the stage. So normally, 9:45 is a pretty fair time to
arrive if all you want to do is see the band. However, for reasons unknown,
they’d had the band start early in the front bar, without any lights, while the
band room was used to show the footy – because where else can you watch the
footy on tv? Be reasonable!
On the upside, I did get to hear the set I missed the previous time
and they brought some CDs this time, but I really would have preferred it if
the venue had treated them like a proper band and I told them so.
This was also the night that gave me flashbacks to things that shit
me about pub gigs, like when I’m just standing there quietly listening to the
band – specifically, being asked why I’m not getting into it when I am
completely into it, I’m just not making a spectacle of myself being into it. It
led me to design this t-shirt which you can order in your choice of colours for
just $26.94 (or your local equivalent) right here. Bargain? I think so!
Bob Evans – Westernport Hotel, 24 August, 2013
Although it’s about half an hour’s drive away, the Westernport has
effectively become my local for live music since all the pubs within staggering
distance stopped getting bands except for the occasional hobby band playing
Guns’n’Roses covers for beer money.
Bob Evans is the nom de solo of Kevin Mitchell from Jebediah. I have
always liked his solo work, which is kind of odd because I’ve never really like
Jebediah and still don’t. I had seen him on RockWiz a couple of weeks earlier
and loved the song he did but I didn’t realise at the time it was a brand new
song.
Laura Imbruglia opened for him. In case you’re wondering, yes, she’s
Natalie’s younger sister but that won’t tell you anything about her. Her solo
acoustic set had a strong alt-country feel which is slightly softened on her
album. Straight to the Bar was a standout for me.
Bob Evans’ set was also solo acoustic. He made up for the lack of
spectacle with a cute device of stringing fairy lights around the edge of his
guitar. He began with a few planned songs and after that said, “Okay, what do
you want to hear?” It was a courageous move and there were moments where he trod
a fine line between improvisational and slapdash but he pulled it off extremely
well. To his credit, he stuck to his policy of not playing Jebediah songs at a solo show, despite several requests for Harpoon.
By the end of the show, he had won the audience over and they were
participating in his make-it-up-as-you-go-along style. When he was close to the
end he said that this is the point where he would leave the stage, wait a
minute and come back, so he would just keep going unless everyone wanted to go
through the motions. Well, the crowd did want to go through the motions, so he
really made them work for the encore.
Cyndi Lauper – Palais Theatre, St Kilda, 29 August, 2013
I found out about this show when I got an email about the pre-sale.
(By the way, why do they do this? There’s an agency-member presale, a fans’
presale, a specific credit card presale, all starting at different times before
they go on sale to the “general public.” One can only assume they define “general
public” as anyone who has never bought a ticket from an agency before, doesn’t
have a credit card and has paid no attention to the act before). I wouldn’t
call myself a fan of Cyndi Lauper, although I have plenty of respect for her,
but dearest quite likes her and the show was coming up close to her birthday so
this was her present. It was the first time I had been to a show primarily as
Mr L.
There are some shows where you’re aware well in advance of who the
support act will be and others where you don’t know until you get there. This
gig was in the latter category and I was absolutely thrilled when we got to the
venue and learned that the opening act would be Max Sharam. I didn’t even know
she was back in the country. I had wanted to see her since she first appeared
in 1994. It was a quiet set with just her and a guitarist, and she played
guitar herself for a couple of songs. She opened with her biggest hit, Coma,
and the rest of the set was previews of songs from her new EP, The Gods Envy, and
forthcoming album. She also wasn’t backward telling people to wait outside if
they weren’t going to listen to the support act. Good for her!
This was the She’s So Unusual tour, marking the 30th
anniversary of the album by performing it in its entirety. Having seen a couple
of shows based around whole albums, I was expecting there to be one set
featuring the album and another set featuring other songs, but as it turned
out, the entire show was She’s So Unusual. In between songs, she told stories
about the making of the album and the times when it was made. This show was
just a few days after the whole “zomg, Miley did what?” thing and Cyndi had
plenty of choice words for Miley during the storytelling segments, none of them
complimentary. While the show may have been one third talking, don’t get the
idea that she has slowed down. She performed with an energy that would put
artists half her age to shame. We didn’t have close seats, but you would never
guess the lady is 60 years old.
Setlist
Nik Kershaw and Kim Wilde – Chelsea Heights Hotel, 17 October, 2013
Okay, let me explain. I’ve got no time for 80s nostalgia, which this
tour was unashamedly about. I was there the first time and they were crap.
However, Nik Kershaw was several cuts above most of the singing hairdos of the
time and I’ve always liked him.
When I booked the tickets for this show, it was the only date on the
tour that had been announced, which seemed kind of odd. Later, there was a show
announced at the Palais, which wouldn’t have taken much longer to get to, but I
was glad I had already booked this show because it’s a big pub with a dedicated
band room. The wait was a bit depressing though as all the 80s tragics were out
on their (ahem) finery and, as someone who just appreciates the music, I really
didn’t want to be counted among a bunch of nostalgic Gen-Xers. I will give
credit to the guy who came in white makeup, spiked blonde hair, knee-high Docs
and a black and white kilt (cross Johnny Rotten with Julian Clarey and you’ll
be most of the way there) but the worst crime was the guy in his late 40s
wearing stonewash jeans with pockets all the way down the legs and a tight,
light brown collarless leather jacket. Mate, just no!
Nik’s set was excellent and although was a greatest-hits kind of
show, he also played the sadly underrated Radio Musicola and a couple of songs
from recent albums.
Setlist
During the break, I relinquished the position I had bagsed down the
front for someone who might want it more. I admit to having a crush on Kim
Wilde when I was 10 and I still have nothing against her, but I was there to
see Nik Kershaw. I did somewhat regret it when the band came back though. Nik
had played with Kim’s band backing him and when they came back, Nik played lead
guitar for Kim’s set. That’s a nice touch.
Naturally, Kim did all her hits, as well as a cover of Black’s
Wonderful Life and great version of I Touch Myself as an unannounced tribute to
Chrissy Amphlett. They concluded with a duet of Pink’s Try.
Setlist
Clannad, Hamer Hall, 26 October, 2013
Some things just fall in your lap. I didn’t find out that Clannad were
even touring until I saw a facebook post from H-bomb wondering how on Earth he
hadn’t found out until then. He has his finger on the pulse way more than I do,
and I’m already on every ticketing agency’s mailing list which means that every
week we’re swamped with VIP pre-sale offers for a dozen wretched acts I’ve never
heard of. How the hell did we miss this?
There’s no stopping H-bomb though. He got onto Gumtree and found
someone selling two tickets. I called and left a message and the seller got
back to me. She was a real fan who had an unfortunate scheduling clash, so a
week later, we had our Clannad tickets. Front row, if you please!
The word Unique is overused and often misused but it truly applies
to Clannad. They are rooted in traditional Celtic music, but not full of
endless fiddly-dee rigs and jeels. (notthatthere’sanythingwrongwiththat) They
mix the acoustic and electronic in a way that almost completely disguises the
synthesised parts. They have done soundtracks and pop songs, and dueted with
Bono back when they were the more famous ones. And they’re one of those groups
who I have always enjoyed and admired without ever really going out of my way
for, so I was really glad of the spur to reacquaint myself with their music.
After the show, they all came out to the foyer to sign things and
just about everyone there took advantage of that. The signing lasted as long as
the concert. That’s dedication, from both artist and fans.
If anything good has come from the arse falling out of the record
industry (and I’m not sure it has), it’s the increased opportunities to see
artists live who I never thought I would get the chance to. Even in the first
quarter of this year, I felt it had been a vintage year for gigs, but it may be
becoming the norm. This Saturday I am going to see the legendary Johnny Marr,
two weeks later I will be seeing Edwin Collins and then in April it’s Suzanne
Vega. And who knows what might happen in between? I can’t wait.
All photos by me. Click them and they get bigger.
