Entertainment

Review: Choirboys, Angels, Icons & An Idol- Day On The Green (SA)

If there’s one thing that Adelaide has nailed, it’s the art of the outdoor music festival and although the Day On The Green format isn’t new, it works, and that’s why punters keep coming back for more

$_75If there’s one thing that Adelaide has nailed, it’s the art of the outdoor music festival and although the Day On The Green format isn’t new, it works, and that’s why punters keep coming back for more. Sunday’s concert at Leconfield Wines, McLaren Vale, was no exception and featured some heavy hitters from both here and overseas in a lineup that was pure genius.

The weather started blissfully warm, and just when the sun started to bite a delightful cloud cover came to the rescue at just the right time for the estimated 8,000-10,000 people in attendance.Set on the grounds of a winery, it was a picnic in the park affair with deck chairs and wine bottles being as numerous as guests.

The first band to play were The Choirboys, all decked out in ‘Cheap Trick ‘ T-shirts and sounding as cool as ever under the lead of Mark Gable. They got off to a strong start and played their hearts out, with Run To Paradise and Never Gonna Die bringing back 80’s memories galore.

Next up were The Angels, who were celebrating 41 years to the day of their inception as one of Australia’s greatest rock and roll acts. These guys kicked things up a notch and the Brewster Brothers (John & Rick) still had the energy and hard edge sound they’ve trademarked over the years. If there is anyone more worthy of replacing the charismatic and sorely missed Doc Neeson, it could only have ever been Dave Gleeson, the wild man of rock who summed up the day in his own words- “This is rocking’ it’s tits off!

Decked out in a sequinned jacket and a Police cap, Robin Zander of Cheap Trick burst onto the scene with the typical aplomb you’d expect of an iconic 70’s/80’s group. Their songs still carry the same sentiment that they always did, and although Zander’s voice doesn’t have the same range it did, he still belted out a string of their old hits (If You Want My Love, Surrender, Dream Police, I Want You To Want Me) as well as a decent selection of their earlier rock numbers. Rick Nielsen’s choice of guitars were notably extravagant, with a quiver of multi necks ranging from 1-5 necks, and a beautiful Beatles decorated guitar which he played like a true master.They were fantastic to see live and still remain one of the greatest rock acts of all time.

For the grand finale though, it was none other than the Prince of Sneer himself, Billy Idol. For a performer just shy of 60, he looked amazingly fit and still had the energy of a 20 year old on stage. Even more noteworthy is that he pronounces ‘dance’ in the same accent as we Adelaideans apparently do (like last, fast). His set consisted of some of his earlier songs from Generation X, up until his more known hits including White Wedding, Dancing With Myself, Mony Mony (which he saved for last) and paid tribute to our great state with a cover of The Doors’ classic, L.A Woman, instead replacing ‘L.A’ with ‘Adelaide’. Steve Stevens on lead guitar was undoubtedly brilliant, but perhaps he was allowed to indulge in too many guitar solos thus breaking up the flow at times. Nonetheless, it was an amazing day of music in our gorgeous state, and a chance to promote the magnificent McLaren Vale wine region as a great place to visit.

There are still some shows to go around the country, so if you feel like dusting off the old leather jacket and frizzing your hair up, then this is a great excuse to do so.

By Darren Hassan

Twitter: @DazzHassan

 

http://www.adayonthegreen.com.au/news/billy_idol_media_release

Remaining DOTG shows 

Sat Mar 28- A Day On The Green Bimbadgen Winery, Hunter Valley NSW Ticketmaster.com.au 136 100

Sun Mar 29- A Day On The Green Sirromet Wines, Mt Cotton QLD  Ticketmaster.com.au 136 100

Arena show (Frontier Touring) 

Tue Mar 24- Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne VIC Ticketek.com.au  132 849

a day on the green presented by AAMI & Sunsuper.

 

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