Jimmy Barnes
29th March 2017
Powerstation, Auckland, New Zealand
Review by Sarah Kidd.
It’s barely past the hour of seven. Doors don’t open for another hour, but the line is already starting to snake down the street. Jimmy Barnes is in town and if you weren’t quick enough to grab a ticket – neither love nor money is going to convince any of these fans to give theirs up (although there are a couple of guys outside trying). The crowd is mainly made up of those that would have been teens in the days that Barnes rose to fame; and while most of the punters look like they have already had a few, all are rather well behaved. Many spend their time waiting in the line sharing stories of the numerous occasions they have seen the man himself in action (so far the best is 14).
Opening for the king of Aussie rock, is the Christchurch band Decades who are quickly gaining a loyal following thanks to some catchy singles – ‘I Was with Him’ and ‘Terrified’ kicking ass live tonight – that are currently doing the rounds on both The Rock and Radio Hauraki. Coming out to an almost full venue, Decades may have been playing the Powerstation for the first time, but they handled it like absolute pros. Lead vocalist Emma Cameron taking centre stage with her guitar, and absolutely blowing away the front rows with her exceptional vocals. Liam Muir on guitar and Curtis Booth on bass make up the front line of the band, with both providing backing vocals on some of the tracks. Booth in particular adds a real depth and personality to a couple of the songs. Daniel Perry on drums supplies the heavy bass beats that the songs build upon, propelling them out over the audience where they crash like waves. There is no denying that these guys are one hell of a rock act worthy of being added to everybody’s playlist.
During the short break between acts the last of the fans have arrived, every available gap within the site being filled. The revelry was in full swing when the first of the band members arrived on stage – roars emitting from the crowd. Two young men appeared and quickly walking up to the microphone they asked the crowd to quieten down while they went through a couple of housekeeping rules – mainly “be kind to each other”, sage advice for any concert. They then began the chant “Jimmy let’s rock together” which quickly gained traction and was rattling the walls of the venue when the man himself jogged out sending the crowd absolutely wild.
Dressed in a simple black t-shirt and jeans it’s hard to believe that Jimmy Barnes is now sixty, such iconic artists truly never seem to age. Barnes wasted no time in jumping straight into it with ‘Ride the Night Away’; featuring that perfect chorus that everyone can sing along to.
Barnes is on fire tonight and is immediately on the edge of the stage leaning out over the crowd; even while singing he is always making deliberate eye contact with members of the audience. Every so often he would let slip a small curve of the lip as he catches someone grinning back at him. The Scottish born Australian rocker has a unique singing style all of his own, love him or hate him you cannot deny that when you hear Jimmy Barnes sing you know exactly who it is. With over 14 Australian Top 40 albums as lead singer of Cold Chisel and another 13 charting solo albums, Barnes is no stranger to success. And his show tonight promises to play many of the hits that featured during both his Cold Chisel and solo work days.
After a ripper of a start to the show, Barnes addresses the audience for the first time “Good Evening – How the fuck are ya? Haven’t played this place in a while”, a huge smile on his face as everyone cheers back at him. He then begins to croon (as only Barnes can) ‘I’m still on your side’ a clear favourite amongst the ladies in attendance. But in true Jimmy Barnes style, as soon as the song has ended he looks around and growls “alright enough ballads” and that definitive riff of ‘Lay down your guns’ screams through the speakers, the masses in ecstasy as they belt out the words.
What follows is 19 tracks of superb rock with a dash of the blues thrown in for good measure. Barnes’s backing band (comprising of three back-up singers, three phenomenal guitarists and his own son Jackie Barnes on drums) matched his energy levels throughout the night and recreated the classics flawlessly.
Barnes wasn’t big on the banter tonight, preferring to let his music do the talking, however a humorous anecdote earlier in the set in regards to the song ‘Love and Hate’– “I wrote this song after having a fight with my wife; later this friend of ours came up and said I’ve come to read your tarot cards, I said read my lips … fuck off’ – reminded the audience of just how down to earth and brutally honest he really is. He finished his set on the classic ‘Working Class Man’, the spotlights illuminating the audience as they threatened to drown him out with their singing. Signalling good night, the band quickly left the stage only to return a short time later to perform the Cold Chisel track ‘Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye) as an encore.
Slowly everyone filed out into the night, rather dishevelled but so very obviously happily contented. Just the way Jimmy would like it.
Were you there at Powerstation for this epic while intimate show? Or have you seen Jimmy Barnes somewhere else over his long career? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Ride The Night Away
- I’d Die To Be With You
- Red Hot
- Love Is Enough
- I’m Still On Your Side
- Lay Down Your Guns
- Love And Hate
- Boys Cry Out For War
- Too Much Ain’t Enough Love
- Little Darling
- Resurrection Shuffle
- Merry Go Round
- Flame Trees
- Driving Wheels
- No Second Prize
- Seven Days
- Khe Sahn
- Working Class Man
- Goodbye (Astrid, Goodbye) – [encore]
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