The following review was published Jan. 30th. in the “Courier Mail”.
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Rod Stewart gives fans reason to believe
by Noel Mengel
THE world needs all the good feeling it can get right now, and when Rod Stewart has 10,000 fans singing along with every word of Maggie May, it’s hard to imagine how much more good feeling can be had.
Last night was Stewart’s first Brisbane concert in 10 years, and while his audience is ageing, the man himself is a ridiculously well-preserved 57.
The voice isn’t wearied by age either and last night’s concert showed why Stewart is regarded as one of the greatest white soul singers to emerge from the 60s.
These days audiences demand value for money and, with even the cheap seats costing $76, no one was complaining as Stewart delivered two sets and more than 20 songs covering most stages of his career.
Stewart fans divide into two camps – those who loved his raw and rocking early days, and those who loved everything that came after. But he managed to please almost everyone with this selection opening with a trio of his finest ballads, Handbags and Gladrags, The First Cut Is The Deepest and Reason To Believe.
Music and memory go hand in hand and some times at a concert it’s hard to know if a crowd is going crazy because they’re having a good time or because all of their favourite songs remind them of having a good time, but last night it was as much the former as the latter.
Even the doubters dragged along by their wives seemed to have forgiven Rod for any Countdown-era embarrassments especially after he’d let loose with a version of one of his toughest rock numbers, Stay With Me.
© Queensland Newspapers