THE WORLD IS A VAMPIRE

The World is a Vampire Tour had a great line up.

Amyl and the Sniffers, Jane's Addiction, and Smashing Pumpkins.

I have always wanted to see Amyl, LOVE Jane's Addiction and Andrew loves Smashing Pumpkins.

It was at Newcastle Entertainment Centre AKA The Shed, one of the worst venues you will ever find. But sometimes you just have to let go and attend.

And so we did.

There was another support band and a LOT of Wrestling, Billy Corgan has his own wrestling troupe. It started mid afternoon, but no one needs to sit at that venue for longer than they need to.

So we cruised in and arrived as Amyl started, perfect timing.

They are an Australian female led punk band, and I bloody loved them. They sounded great, she was amazing and had everyone entranced. I heard later it was not as good as they usually are - in smaller venues, so I really look forward to that opportunity in the future.

After that we suffered a little wrestling, it was a bit of fun.

Poor Andrew was not feeling the love for the venue, so he had to go for a little wander. I had warned him it was shit, we had pretty good seats to the right of the stage, angled in. But when I say good seats, I mean we could see the stage fairly well. These are unaccommodating plastic bucket seats on bleachers that wobble. And the seats are close, and the place was packed. Awful doesn't even begin to explain how it feels.

By the time Perry slid on stage with Jane's Addiction we were too caught up in the music to be too bothered by the seating. 

Jane's Addiction kicked arse! I hoped they would. I know Perry can be 'difficult' but he sounded great, looked happy and chatted occasionally in a lovely playful way. They played everything you wanted to hear and more, and just rocked the joint, what more can I say, but this fan was very happy.

Now I could have gone home there, but Smashing Pumpkins were still to come on. I knew a spattering of songs and whilst not the biggest fan thought I should enjoy the set. I was not prepared for how many songs I knew and how much I loved it. Billy Corgan, also known for being 'difficult' was also great. He sounded amazing, as did the band. Really uplifting too. They rocked and they played some great pop. They also delighted the audience with covers of Once in a Lifetime (total punk version, fantastic!) and a really pretty version of Under the Milky Way but in the style of SP.

We unfurled ourselves from the awful chairs, and wandered back to the car happy and full of joy and great music.

Live gigs are the best aren't they!!!???

THE CHURCH

Last night a group of us took a punt and went and saw The Church at The Civic Theatre.

I say took a punt as they have not played for a while and it would appear Steve is the only remaining member, there is a drummer he has had since the mid 90s, but none of the original line up. This sort of thing always leave me concerned.

And Steve can be cantankerous.

I saw them once back in the day and they were great and I have seen Steve solo a few times.

This concert was billed as The Hypnogogue World Tour. The Hypnogogue being a new album, I was curious.

After another amazing meal at Menya Makoto, we headed to the theatre. We immediately could see it had not sold out and there were a LOT of empty seats in front of us. The tickets were a bit exy for a Aussie band. 

We commented on the many empty seats and waited for them to start.

Out they came to thunderous applause and they played an unfamiliar but ok sounding song. But something felt wrong, they sounded flat and a little off. Halfway through the song you could see a roadie trying to get Steve's attention. I had initially thought the small audience and many gaps put them off, but it was a tech issue. So much so they had to go off stage for a small amount of time while it was fixed. Not a great start understandably

It was not a long break, of course the bogans in the audience had to go out and get more booze. I really will never understand the human race. The amount of people heading in and out to the bar was very distracting and rude and may have influenced the evening for the band.

They came back on after a few minutes and restarted the concert.

They sounded much better. But this first half lacked something, even with the tech fixed. I appreciate and enjoy the laid-back guitar focused pop/rock that is The Church, but I am no way a huge fan. I don't know every song, but I do know a lot. They played a mix of hits and popular songs mixed in with songs from the new album. 

This first half was mostly the atmospheric guitar songs, and that was fine, but as an older audience, it kinda made you (me) sleepy.

The main problem was the new album - it was actually quite good, but it was a concept album and high concept at that. It was obviously made to play as a whole, as concept albums are meant to. And this is how they should have started the concert. 

The concept was a dystopian future - highly original (I jest!) - about a thing called The Hypnogogue that can pull songs out of people's heads and a musician goes in search of it. This is a very very basic explanation, Steve had many many more highly detailed explanations. I am still unsure if he was being amusing or serious. The thing reeked of just out of high school, early University wankery. But the songs were quite good, despite the long winded explanations before each one. Having said that, it was lovely to hear Steve being affable and chatty, as opposed to his usual cantankerous self.

About 80 mins in they took an interval, which is odd for a rock concert. As my friend said, if Springsteen and The Stones can play for 3 hours + straight, surely they can do a tight 90-120 mins gig. 

A lot of people left during the interval, which is a shame as the second half was much better. Still nowhere near great, but better. They played a lot of the more uplifting and rockier/pop songs in this half. They sounded a little more together in this half. 

I've seen a lot of concerts and lucky to only have a handful of bad ones to report back about. And I am picky, when I pay big bucks for something I want value for money. This was not bad, it just wasn't great.

I think the venue was not suitable, something smaller, more intimate - Lizottes or even the good ole Cambridge (where I think I saw them way back when) would have been a better choice.

They most definitely should have played the concept album in full and in order for the first half, I would have enjoyed that rather than the disjointed mix of songs that were pulled together. It was like they had an amateur who had never written a set list or made a mixed tape pull it together.

They didn't need an interval, but if they played the concept album first, took a small break and then came back to play the hits in the second half, well, that would have been perfect.

Please don't think I hated this concert, I really didn't, I enjoyed it but it left me feeling a little cold to be honest. I cannot rave it was brilliant or the best thing I have seen because it simply was not. I have seen them before and they were better. Thing is this is a new and youngish band, you cannot replicate the original sound and for some very odd reason (especially for a band known for guitar music) they had 2 drummers that added nothing special to the music. One drummer is sufficient, but whatever. That was the least of their worries.

They played Under the Milky Way mid way through the second half. They probably should have saved that to go out on, but I get not making a big deal of their biggest song. It did sound great, better than anything else played, but then it is a great song, better than anything else he ever wrote. I loved seeing all the bogans in the audience finally awakening and getting up to dance - to that one song, and then sitting down again as he played a slower, less dancey song. 

My personal favourite, Almost with you, was also played in this half and it sounded good. The jangly guitars not quite as good as they used to be but close.

It finished just before 11 and we were done, but the audience wanted more (really!?!) and they came back on and played Reptile - which Andrew loves and sounded great and You Played, an ok song that they stretched out for way too long. They had worn out their welcome with me, I was done, we left before they finished the song - as many others did.

We all debriefed as we walked back to our car, we didn't hate it but didn't love it. Something was missing or off. We all agreed the venue just didn't work for them and the many empty seats in the audience was probably off putting. I explained my theory of playing the new album in it's entirely and everyone agreed.

Maybe we are getting too old and cynical, maybe you can never revisit old faves, I am certain - from observations - that many people enjoyed the evening far more than we did. Although that could have been the alcohol they consumed, lol. But we do see a lot of gigs and listen to a lot of music. They WERE good, just not as good as they could have been.

ROCKWIZ LIVE

RocKwiz is up there in the vault as one of my all-time favourite shows.

It is a perfect set-up, originally filmed in The Gershwin Room at The Epsy Hotel in St Kilda, Melbourne. The Espy is a grand old hotel, and mecca for lovers of music, specifically rock. You can almost feel the sticky of the floor, the ringing of your ears when you watch the show. You swoon over the red velvet, the atmosphere is palpable and very much your usual pub experience.

4 regular people/punters from the pub are chosen to sit on panels of 3 on the main stage to answer all sorts of questions about music. It is next level pub trivia!

There is a wonderful backing band, initially the 3 piece of Mark Ferry on Bass, Peter 'Lucky" Luscombe on Drums, and the genius James Black on keyboards and guitars, often together! They were phenomenal in terms of replicating the sound of well-known and beloved songs and new music too. 

The 2 big keys to the show's success are Julia Zemiro and Brian Nankervis. Julia is your hostess with the mostess. She keeps everything running smoothly, with grace and much humour. Always dressed in black and white with sometimes a touch of red, Julia fits in visually as a rock n roll chick. She is effortlessly cool, hilarious, quick witted, and utterly charming. Brian is a force of nature, he moderates the show, keeps time, does the warm-up, and helps with the selection of the audience.

The show starts with Who Can It Be Now, where Julia asks questions about a performer that is waiting backstage to sing a song. This is always a mix of prominent and well-known Australian singers and musicians, up and coming singers and musicians, and often visiting singers and musicians from overseas. This is always fun and exciting. Once they have sung their song, they join one panel, and the next Who Can It Be Now is up. So each panel has a real life musician sitting with them, answering questions. This is always fabulous, seeing the reactions of everyday punters when Martha Wainwright or Tex Perkins joins their panel!

The rounds of questions come next including the Million Dollar Riff, where the band plays a classic riff, that you need to guess. This is my area of expertise! Bloody love that round.

Throughout the show, Dugald, the roadie, comes out in his white singlet and grin, and shows us how each panel of contestants are going with pieces of cardboard and scores.

At the end of the show a winning panel is announced, there is no prize, just the glory of winning. The two singers join forces with the band and sing a duet. This is often the highlight with some amazing pairings and songs.

Here is a link to one of my favourite duets of all time from the show, Deborah Conway and Tex Perkins slaying the Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris version of Love Hurts. It smoldered so much, I got a text message from my Mum (My parents were huge fans of the show) asking how long they were married, lol!

The show was instantly a classic and a favourite, especially for those answering at home. Back in the hey day of twitter, a group of locals would watch RocKwiz and tweet, we became friendly online and ended up all meeting for a local 80s gig - despite never meeting before - and had a great night, most of them are still close friends to this day.

This show means so much to me.

It finished up some years back, sadly, but has had a reprieve this year, in a slightly shorter format. It is pretty good, not quite the same, but better than no RocKwiz!

And over the past decade or so it has toured. The touring show is pretty much the same at the television show except you often get more than 2 singers or musicians AND you get to see how they find the 4 panelists for the main show.

This show was a superb one, I have seen the live show a couple of times before, Andrew had not. We'd had a big week and were both really exhausted. And it was in the middle of the Newcastle Writers Festival weekend. However, once we got to The Civic Theatre the vibe was so warm and uplifting we felt immediately great.

Brian was outside in the foyer, bouncing about and getting everyone excited. We took our seats and he came into the theatre and was telling stories music and his childhood and so on. He had a soundtrack playing and then it happened.

He told a story about a childhood favourite song and played it.

The song was Snoopy Vs the Red Baron by The Royal Guardsman!

It was a childhood favourite of mine, we played it A LOT!

It was on a compilation called Goofy Greats, that Dad had brought us, with loads of cool bubblegum and groovy pop from the 60s and 70s.

I cannot begin to tell you the joy this song brought to me, hearing it again for the first time in many decades. It was a song I had forgotten even existed. But it took me right back to dancing around the lounge room with my sister when we were little. We loved that song. I remembered every word and nuance of the song, it was a glorious moment.

When I got home later that night I found Goofy Greats and the original 45, both part of Dad's vinyl collection he gifted to me some years back.

I also found the original video, which I had never seen, and it is great. The song itself is very catchy of course, but quite subversive if you listen to it, it is about WW2.

So after that, we couldn't not have a great night!

There were special cards placed around the theatre under seats, which gave a lot of people a chance on stage to answer questions and possibly be chosen as the final group of 4 for the main part. This was loads of fun and Brian did a superb job of running through this.

Once the contestants were chosen, Julia appeared. She is so very charismatic and just one of the best people. I am sure we would be great friends, if we got to know each other, lol! So much in common.

The first 2 guests were revealed, Wilsn and Chris Cheney.

The show went on and a third, Thando was revealed.

Julia had to have a wry chat to the audience about calling out the answers, as everyone was doing, lol. The contestants were to do this and we needed to answer internally and silently lol.

The night was full of music and comedy and laughter and joy. If you have never been to a live RocKwiz, I cannot recommend it enough.

I went home singing Snoopy Vs the Red Baron and it kept me smiling for weeks after.

Some nights are 11 out of 10!

(see what I did there!!)

MARCH/APRIL REVIEWS

 What I've Been Reading

The storyteller: tales of life and music by Dave Grohl

I really enjoyed this memoir by Dave Grohl. He is a born storyteller. I loved hearing his stories from his youth and Nirvana and Foo Fighters. He has had the good luck of meeting many of his heroes and those stories are great. I did feel he held back though, there were gaps or areas where he either didn't mention something of glossed over it. He went into more detail about Kurt than he has in the past but then I felt like there was so much more to tell. Maybe there will be another one later on. It is still a great book; an easy, fun read.

Sahara - Michael Palin

I listened to Michael Palin read his Sahara book, I have heard this before and of course watched the show it is based on many years ago. The audiobook came through at work and I just felt like listening to the comfort of an old friend, which is what Palin's voice feels like to me. The story is about his trip to and across the Sahara. There is a lot about the terrain, wild and crazy, and the people he met along the way. Palin taps so beautifully into humanity and some of the scenes he describes took me back to the show itself so I could see in my mind's eye what he saw. Pure escapism.

Geraldine Brooks on Tim Winton (writers series)

This is a short little essay like book about Tim Winton, written by the writer Geraldine Brooks. It is part of a series on Australian writers. She writes about the trajectory of Winton's career and of the man himself. I found it patchy, but then it is a small book so not meant to be everything about the man and his works. IT focused very heavily on religion, of which Winton is but - in my experience - it doesn't figure as heavily in his works as she would have you believe. There is not much written about Winton, so I will take what I can get, but this was a little disappointing.

Twelve summers: being a life-long fan of Australian cricket is harder than it looks by Adam Zwar

I really loved this book. In my younger years I was a cricket tragic for sure. This was when cricket was interesting, and not the homogenised BS that it is today. It was the days of Lillee and Marsh, The Chappells, Viv Richards, Desmond Haynes, Javed Miandad and many more. Zwar is the creator of Wilfred (and played Wildfred's owner amongst other ABC and SBS shows, and has a lovely dry wit. He also was a cricket tragic and this is the story of twelve cricketing summers that intersected with events of his own life. It is a cracker of a read, heaps of amazing cricketing statistics and stories, along with a few from his own life. 

Lisa - Lisa Curry

Lisa is the memoir of the outstanding Lisa Curry. It is the story of a life lived to the absolute full. Covering her elite athletic career swimming, her personal life, her subsequent athletic pursuits, her media empire, and everything in between. It is a very personal story, and full of detail and information you probably didn't know. I cannot recommend this highly enough.

Ten Steps to Nanette by Hannah Gadsby

I found this a difficult listen, I listened to it on talking book with Hannah narrating. I love Hannah, always have, but have been concerned for her mental health during this recent rise. Listening to her story, warts and all, made me even more concerned about her. This is not to say it is a bad book, it is wonderfully raw and open and honest, but please be aware that it holds a lot of triggering elements within. It was a rough read/listen at times, but it is also incredibly funny.

What I've Been Watching

War of the Worlds S3

OK, this once great show has crawled up its own butt and jumped the shark. They just took the concept too far and it got too confusing. I love the initial concept and the original cast, but jumping around in time as this series does means a lot of change. Which is fine if it is executed well, S2 introduced some odd changes, and this continued into this series sadly. I hung on to the end, cause I really wanted a turn around, but sadly this did not happen!

Call the Midwife S12

I still love this great series, it is a comfort show for sure. But always tackles medical issues historically and with grace. The characters are like old friends, and this season we see lovely Trixie finally marry the man of her dreams, but of course things do not go according to plan. Sister Monica Joan has more health issues, and spoilers (but this is important) she lives to see another day. Thank goodness, she is my favourite and I will be utterly bereft if they kill her off!

Only Murders in the Building S2

S2 took a little bit to get back into but soon picked up the pace and hilarity of S1. By now the chemistry between the 3 main characters, Steve Martin, Martin Short, and the gorgeous Selena Gomez is cemented and utterly brilliant. The twists keep coming this time and everytime you think you know what is going to come, it goes the other way. No spoilers, but this show is clever and witty, a real romp and worth watching. 

The cleaner S1

This was great, a UK comedy about a crime scene cleaner, played by the brilliant Greg Davies. Each episode has him heading to a clean and getting involved with those left behind in very odd and often hilarious ways. Guest stars such as Helena Bonham Carter and David Mitchell help raise the comedic bits also. Really recommend this one.

Mandalorian S3

I bloody love this show! I love Diego, I love Grogu, and I love love love Amy Sedaris' mechanic. Actually, I love all the characters. It is a great show, and this season took the guest stars up a notch and then some. No spoilers from me, but this IS the perfect show.

The Book of Boba Fett

Apparently, If you love The Mandalorian, you need to watch this. So I did, and I loved it too! Follows Boba Fett from Star Wars, and introduces a whole range of fascinating characters, good and bad!

The Lost City

Look, this is a poor (sort of) remake of Romancing the Stone, but it was ok. Sandra Bullock is a romance writer, who is over the whole thing, and is kidnapped. Her cover model tries to save her. It is very funny in parts, Bullock, and Tatum are great and a cameo by Brad Pitt even funnier. Daniel Radcliffe is the greedy billionaire behind all the drama, and he is nasty!

Bullet Train

Brad Pitt is an assassin on one last mission. He lands on the bullet train in Japan and realises he is not the only one on a mission, and chaos ensues. Funny and great action!

Downton Abbey movie

I think this was ok, nothing new, nothing great, but always a comfort watch. A bit of humour, a bit of drama, great fashion, and stunning set design. They family gets caught up in 'talking pictures', chaos ensues. Part of me thinks they should probably stop, but then part of thinks, if so many people get comfort out of this (and they seem to), why not keep going. I'll still check in...

Hearts Beat Loud

I wanted to love this, Nick Offerman is a single dad with a musically talented daughter. He wants to start a band with her, she wants to study academically. This should have been so much better, the story seemed forced, the humour was empty, the music was even that great. Oh well...

Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

This was a lot of fun, Pedro Pascal and Nicolas Cage. Nic Cage plays himself and all he wants is a break at a small resort. Pedro Pascal's character runs the resort and is a super fan of Cage, but also may be attached to a mafia like organisation. The CIA ask Cage to penetrate the organisation and bring it down. So Cage has to act in 'real life' like his on screen action persona and save everyone. Absolutely hilarious. If it wasn't cast with Cage and Pascal in on the silliness, and had they not had the chemistry they had, it may not have worked; and whilst not the most amazing film, it was pretty good.

Broadcast News

I rewatched this classic, and it totally holds up (except for the fashion). Albert Brooks was as funny and great as you remember, William Hurt as suave and a bit of an arsehole as you remember and Holly Hunter was bloody everything in this behind the scenes of a TV network movie. I had forgotten about the clumsy ending, I wish they would detach that part, but otherwise still one of the great dramedys!

Eternal Sunshine of the Endless Mind

This is one of my all-time favourite movies. It is out there, but essentially one of the most beautifully melancholy films, it just brings me to my knees. I rewatch it regularly but had not for a while. It always holds up. I think it is one of Jim Carrey's best performances and Kate Winslet is everything in it. It is a difficult film to describe (and follow) due to a magnificently crazy script by Charlie Kaufman. It does jump around in time, Kate's hair colour will anchor you, if that helps!?! 

Jim and Kate play lovers who break up terribly. Jim's character comes across this company who can erase your love memories and he goes all in. Once into the process, he realises he does not want to lose those beautiful memories, despite how it ends. And this is where things get crazy, but stunning and amazing. This film is so incredibly romantic and beautiful. all the performances are remarkable. It is a great film.

From Paris to Rome with Bettany Higgins

Following the sassy historian, Bettany through some of my favourite places in Italy and France was a great treat. She is great at retelling history and explaining it all, you just want to be her friend. This was just sublime.

Great Music Cities

This was a great documentary series on great music cities, New York, LA, London, Manchester, Detroit, Nashville, Melbourne etc. It is really well done, detailed and features a LOT of great musicians from these places talking about their music and why that particular city shaped it. I was in music heaven, it is a really great series

Hard Quiz

We love this show, we love Tom Gleeson. It is your basic quiz show with a twist, but even then the twist (Tom's hard-arse character) is pretty endearing and not that much of a twist. I love the quirky people who bring their quirky subjects to the quiz. Loads of fun, and a good test on the brain.

OSCARS

See the links for movies, the show, and everything else.

Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields

This was a great 2 part documentary, produced by Brooke herself. It delves into her life as a child star/model, and a popular culture icon. Absolutely fascinating to see her dissect her life via the media (that dissected her at the time). It includes her relationship with her mother, ex husband, Andrew Agassi, ex beaus like Michael Jackson, John Travolta, and JFK Jnr. Her acting career, her modelling, her study. It also delves into the darker sides of her life. Totally worth a watch.

Bono and The Edge: a sort of homecoming with Dave Letterman

I loved this documentary, it is such a treat. I must say U2 had really jumped the shark in the past 10-20 years. Once the biggest and best band in the world, and my absolute heroes, they became a cardboard cut-out of themselves. SO the break was needed, and jumping back in via this doco was perfect. The doco follows Bono and The Edge back home in Ireland re-recording some of their best tunes, all stripped back with some musician friends. Letterman joins them to interview them about the music, the process, the doco, and their friends. The film feels like a huge hug, and renewed my love of U2.

Keeping the Score

I really enjoyed this documentary about Simone Young, the conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. It follows the trajectory of her career, and the controversy of being a female conductor! Quelle horreur! She is amazing, and trail blazer. This is accompanied by the most lovely classical soundtrack...of course!

50 Years of Mr Men and Little Miss

Matt Lucas hosted this great little doco on these hilarious children's books. It was a lot of fun and he got dressed up as a few characters which was great watching and comedy.

What I Have Been Listening To

Art Life and the other thing

This is a great 6-part podcast about Brett Whiteley. Each episode is named for and based around 6 of his more interesting painting, eg Alchemy, Heroin Clock, Balcony 2 etc. Contemporaries and those that knew him, Barry Pearce and Wendy Whiteley, are interviewed and discuss his work and how it holds up today. They discuss landscapes, portraits, addiction, women, his significance today, and his legacy. A lovely and different approach to his work.

I'm Breathless: music from and inspired by Dick Tracy by Madonna

Sometimes you need saucy, retro Madonna, and I had this fabulous soundtrack on repeat for some time

Suzanne Vega and Solitude Standing by Suzanne Vega

Just a lovely 1/2 from Suzanne. I haven't listened to these albums in a long time, and they both hold up very well. Laid back and chill musically but packing a punch lyrically.

Celebrity Skin - Hole

Simply a great rocking album. I love this album a lot and it always feels fresh when I play it.

Reservoir Dogs

This is one of my favourite film soundtracks, with a mix of great songs, and the radio DJ pieces cut within. I recently got a copy on vinyl, so have been spinning it at Club Cathy.

TIM ROGERS AND THE TWIN SET

Tim Rogers is one of my favourite Australians. His music and lyrics are simply spectacular, but in the most underrated way. I listen to his songs, especially his solo stuff, and I just go weak at the knees. He is a born storyteller. 

I do love his band, You Am I, but I have a real special place for his solo work. And most especially, What Rhymes with Cars and Girls, his debut solo album. Released in 1999, I was right in the middle of an awful break-up, and this was my soundtrack. I don't mind saying, I think this album saved my life. It was an album full of truth and heartbreak itself, and it went straight to the core of my being. I love this album so very much and it is easily in my Top 5 all-time favourite albums.

It is a little bit pop, a little bit rock, and quite heavily country influenced. It is melancholy and sad and also very uplifting. The vibe is Timmy has opened up his heart and soul and just laid it all bare for you. So much so, he only toured the album briefly and rarely plays these songs in solo gigs. He says the time was not a good one for him and to play the songs was too upsetting. 

I was lucky enough to hear him play a couple of the more uplifting songs when he did an intimate gig at The Edwards some years back. The joy they brought, I cannot begin to say.

So, during lockdown he decided to revisit that album and rewrite those songs, 20 something years later. The album, Tines of Stars Unfurled, takes the subject matter of the original songs and updates them, what are those characters or places up to now. It has the same vibe.

And he regrouped The Twin Set, his backing band to make it and them tour both albums. 

This is the gig we saw a Lizotte's, and it was magnificent.

It is easily the best I have seen him perform too, the band were magnificent and he obviously loves working with them and whilst playing tight they appeared relaxed and at ease with each other, which really makes a difference, a lot of laughs were to be had.

Tim told stories about the band and the songs in between songs and was a sheer delight. Jen Anderson, from Weddings, Parties, Anything, was the yin to his yang. They had a close musicality that shone through, she added the cherry on top to an already remarkable set. 

They opened to the Fawlty Towers tune and Tim praised Brian and his team at Lizotte's. The new songs, which were not as familiar as the old ones, felt familiar. He explained the updated versions. The old tunes were divine and the band looked happy returning to them after all these years.

It was the kind of night you didn't want to end. There were a couple of well chosen covers towards the end, unexpected but fun.

We walked out on air.

The setlist was as follows:

Bushell and a Peck

Been So Good, Been So Far

A Quiet Anniversary

22

Arse Kickin' Lady From the North West

Left My Heart in a Country Church Hall

Happy Anniversary

I Live Near a Train Station

Up-A-Ways

Get High, Support the Band

Hi, We're the Support Band

You Just Don't Do it for Me Friend

The Drink They Drained as I Drove Away

You've Been So Good To Me So Far

The Songs They Played as I Drove Away

Eight Days a Week - Beatles cover

Don't Cry No Tears - Neil Young Cover