Paul Kelly @ The Metro

Sydney, 12/05/98

Review by Marina Kmet - boatramp@ozemail.com.au

Well, just back from the Metro gig in Sydney and what a great night it was. Paul played for 2 hours and seemed to really enjoy it.....I know I sure did. Managed to get front and centre and my ears will hopefully forgive me by morning. Also managed to grab a song list but he did do a number of songs not on the list so I have to trust my memory... which is not very good.

Little Kings
I'll Be Your Lover
Nothing on my Mind
Words and Music
Gutless Wonder
Tease Me
I'd Rather go Blind
Lazy Bones (with Rebecca Barnard)
Beat of your Heart (with Rebecca Barnard)
It Started with a Kiss
Glory be to God
Staurday Night and Sunday Morning
Charlie Owens Slide Guitar
Melting (with Monique Brumby) PK played the bass
Deeper Water
Love Never Runs on Time
How to Make Gravy

1st Encore
You can put your shoes under my bed
Going About My fathers Business ( a revamped version which I quite liked)
Give in to my Love
Darling It Hurts (with Chris Wilson on harmonica)

2nd Encore
California

I enjoyed the night immensely and the crowd was appreciative although I think some of them wanted more of the old and less of the new.......but then this was a warm up for the 'Words and Music' tour so what did they expect. I really enjoyed seeing him do all the new songs and I think I like the album even more after tonight. Can't wait for the next gig at the State Theatre!!!!!

Review by Eva Zsigri - eva@amws.com.au

Frank and I were deciding not to write seperate reviews, but I have to make *some* comments.

> Well, just back from the Metro gig in Sydney and what a great night it was.
> Paul played for 2 hours and seemed to really enjoy it.....I know I sure
> did. Managed to get front and centre and my ears will hopefully forgive me

You'll be thankful in the morning and when you get older. I'm already paying the price for the loud music I've listened to in my youth (I'm not THAT old) and I used ear plugs last night and enjoyed the show just the same. So maybe I shouted into Frank's ear a little louder than I should have, but at least I woke up feeling good this morning.

The venue was packed, and that was a great thing to see. Paul was quite animated on stage and the band was really working well as a team.

> by morning. Also managed to grab a song list but he did do a number of
> songs not on the list so I have to trust my memory..which is not very good.

[straight throught the album]

> Deeper Water
> Love Never Runs on Time
> How to Make Gravy

These were very well received!

> 1st Encore
> You can put your shoes under my bed
> Going About My fathers Business ( a revamped version which I quite liked)

A kind of regae style which I found hard to get into the groove of, but was interesting....

> I enjoyed the night immensely and the crowd was appreciative although I
> think some of them wanted more of the old and less of the new.......but

Someone will always call out for Bradman....

> then this was a warm up for the 'Words and Music' tour so what did they
> expect. I really enjoyed seeing him do all the new songs and I think I like
> the album even more after tonight. Can't wait for the next gig at the State
> Theatre!!!!!

Beat of Your Heart is *much* better live. Hearing Rebecca do Lazy Bones live was another highlight.

Anything to add Frank??

Eva.

Reviewed by Frank Savaglio - frank@lake.com.au

Yeah.... wear earplugs if you're standing next to Eva! :-)

It was loud yes but that seems to be the trend with all gigs now. PK continues to take advantage of this great band he's put together (hence the volume). I guess this is why we don't see PK doing his solo acoustic thing nearly as much as I'm sure we would all like to see. Still, for some of the encores, he did put on his harmonica holder which always gets me excited! In "band" mode, I sometimes think that PK's singing isn't as good as it used to be but when he's on his own, I think he can still cut the mustard. Personally, I would love to see him do an acoustic tour again.... it may happen when PK goes through his "back to roots" phase :-)

I was initially surprised that they basically performed Words & Music, the album, in the same order... that is until I remembered that this gig was a showcase cum album launch gig for industry types. I wouldn't expect that the tour proper be the same and would expect a few more oldies to creep in. As I remarked to Eva, this was the first PK gig I went to where he didn't do Dumb Things!

While they went through the album, you get an appreciation for how much better some songs turn out live (of course, I think any song sounds better live), but I really enjoyed the performance of Glory Be to God, a song I tend to skip a bit on the album.

Live standouts from Words & Music for me were Beat of Your Heart (how I wish a live version made it onto the album), Nothin on my Mind, Saturday Night, with special mention to Lazy Bones with Rebecca Barnard and Shane O'Mara's sitarish guitar. Man that sounded superb!

Because he had said "No nostalgia tonight" and was running straight through W&M, it was a real pleasant surprise to hear some older songs. I loved them all. especially Gravy which is in my top three of fave PK tunes. His solo acoustic performance of "You Can Put Your Shoes Under My Bed" was a real teaser for more solo stuff that never eventuated :-(

..and Give in to Milo always rocks for me. (well that's what you hear when you aren't wearing earplugs :) )

We only got the one reworking of an oldie which was "Going About my Father's Business". It seems now that a PK reworking simply means giving it the reggae treatment. I agree with Eva in that it didn't quite come off.

All in all, a great night in a packed Metro with a real appreciative crowd and a performer who's obviously enjoying playing with this group of really good musicians.

There you go Eva, I guess it turned out to be a review after all!

Cheers,
Frank

Reviewed by Vincent Simonetti - VSimonetti@sydney.cairn.aust.com

Paul Kelly
Live at The Metro, Sydney - 12 May 98

It 's always a good sign when a venue is more than half packed prior to the support act even starting. Once again Paul Kelly had hand picked the support, in the former sometime Coloured Girl Chris Wilson's band Crown Of Thorns. Their set showcased the bluesy sound of their excellent new double CD "The Long Weekend". Wilson's harmonica playing was as superb as ever and together with the two guitars, if you closed your eyes their train sound was reminiscent of The Yardbirds playing circa 1964. Great to see former Triffid and "Where Joy Kills Sorrow" guru Graham 'Evil' Lee playing the slide guitar. He really is the best player of the slide in this country and that includes Charlie Owen (sorry Paul). But then again Evil was also playing with Paul back in the early days of "Post".

The Metro was soon packed, as the show had sold out weeks ago. Just after 9.30 Paul Kelly came on, opening with "Little Kings". Not acoustically as he had done at last year's State Theatre show, but with the full 6 piece band. What followed next was the full 14 songs off "Words & Music", all performed in the same chronological order as on the album. It was after all his album launch performance. When someone called out for something old prior to "Tease Me", Paul's reply was simply "no nostalgia tonight". Rebecca Barnard joined him to duet on "Lazy Bones" and provide backing vocals on "Beat Of Your Heart". Her presence on stage is always a plus. "It Started With A Kiss" was a crowd favourite and from the new songs "Saturday Night And Sunday Morning" seemed to get the best response (a great sign for a new single). Shane O'Mara's guitar playing was as immaculate as ever and former Johnnys frontperson Spencer Jones's permanent inclusion on guitar (sometimes slide, lead and rhythm) is another plus. His guitar playing transformed "Glory Be To God" from a very ordinary album track, to a great live song and anyway, Spencer still looks so damn cool (even without the cowboy hat). The newly carrot topped Monique Brumby joined Paul for "Melting". She has a great voice, but I'm afraid her stage mannerisms don't do much for me. The highlight of the new songs was for me my favourite song off the album "Beat Of Your Heart". Live it was even better and this will now surely be a permanent fixture of his live sets for many years to come.

After "Word & Music" was over with, the familiar guitar intro of "Deeper Water" bought those not familiar with all the new stuff alive. This was followed be another of his live standards "Love Never Runs On Time" and then the night's other highlight (in fact probably the highlight of the last 10 years of Australian music) - "How To Make Gravy". Did anyone else pick up on Paul's very clever impromptu lyrics in this ? Instead of "Remember the last one, what was his name again, just a little too much cologne", he substituted "Remember the last one, what was his name again, the one that looked like Joey Ramone".

The 1st encore opened with Paul in acoustic mode, performing the beautiful "You Can Put Your Shoes Under My Bed". Paul never says much on stage, but when he came back on he said something like "now it 's time for some nostalgia" and he really meant it, digging out this old one. The rest of the band then joined him for a reworked almost reggae version of "Going About My Father's Business", which I wasn't overly rapt in. "Give Into My Love" soon got the crowd on the up escalator again and they hit a peak when Chris Wilson came on to play his harmonica on "Darling It Hurts".

The 2nd encore consisted of just "California", perhaps being road tested again for the forthcoming U.S. tour. This I thought was a downer to close with. Overall the show was fantastic though. Those who came expecting last year's "greatest hits" tour again, may have been a little disappointed (what ? no "Bradman" or even "To Her Door"), but those like me who really wanted to hear the new songs left very happy, as performed live "Words & Music" is even better!

I've been seeing Paul play live for the past 14 years and must've seen him perform on well over 30 occasions.