The first gig I had the pleasure of seeing in the #TPau25 Tour was Harpenden Public Hall on 04/05/13. I was very excited because not only was this the first time I had seen Carol perform in 8 years (the last full set Carol did was at The Robin 2 in July 2005, not long after she participated in Hit Me Baby One More Time in which she won her heat and performed in the final), but the line-up included Ron, and to have the 2 co-founders and co-writers of T'Pau on stage to celebrate 25 years since Bridge of Spies went quadruple platinum was something for T'Pau fans to celebrate and be excited about!!
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| "I'm here!!" |
The combination of his very distinctive vocals and seemingly 'effortless' knack of playing acoustic guitar to such a high standard made me realise this is one recording artist we will be hearing a lot more of in the future - sooner rather than later. His vocals did remind me of the very talented James Blunt and Matt cardle
He has been writing music for over twenty years and has performed all over the world as a touring musician.
Chris has recently signed to London/Nashville based publishing company Southern Crossroads Music, and looking at his credentials of people he has worked with and produced music by, including Ronnie Wood, The Quireboys, Joe Elliott (Def Leppord) and Tracie Hunter, I am not surprised at all after seeing his performance.
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| Chris performing at Harpenden |
The enthusiasm in the crowd at Harpenden Civic Hall towards Chris didn't go un-noticed and he certainly had a great reception. I think this is great as a lot of support acts, no matter how good they are, can sometimes go un-noticed because all the crowd are waiting for is the main act to come on.
www.chriscorneymisic.co.uk
#TPau25 Harpenden
Looking around the venue after Chris had done his set, and before Carol and the band appeared, I could sense people's excitement and eagerness for the main act to start!
I, myself, have seen Carol perform many times; in the original lineup of T'Pau, various solo gigs, T'Pau 2 when she toured with the fourth album Red, but to me this was something special. What with reading all of the press coverage, and believe me there has been a lot (Take a look at the page titled 'Publicity'), seeing the reviews there have been (Take a look at the page titled 'Reviews'), which couldn't praise the gig's enough and seeing so many positive comments on the T'Pau25 Official FaceBook Page by fans, (Take a look at the page 'Quotes from fans'), this was one event I was not going to miss out on!!
The 'Classical' opening sequence to 'Island' started to play and the band appeared, but where was Ms Decker!? The beginning of 'Island' cleverly changed to 'Sex Talk' and Carol appeared ready for the vocals. I must say Carol looked fantastic! The 'big' red hair, which has been her trademark for over 25 years, high length/high heeled boots, tight black trousers and the stunning black leather jacket Carol had made especially for the tour. Carol looked every bit the 'icon' she is.
The cheer Carol got when she appeared summed it up really, and this was before she started to sing!
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| Carol looking every bit the rock/pop sensation that she most certainly is!! |
Carol then started to sing the first few lines to 'Sex Talk', and all I can say is "Wow!" Her vocals have seemed to have grown stronger than ever! This actually gave me goosebumps. Carol was doing what she did best-rocking the place out!
The first few songs were her 'trade mark' 'rockers' including 'Monkey House' and a song which has always been a firm favourite by fans-'Thank You For Goodbye'. This was sung as per the demo version-the version that appears on 'The Story Behind The Tracks' and also a B-Side to 'I Will Be With You' titled Thank You For Goodbye Rides Again'. This version has always been preferred by Carol and Ron and the fans.
Carol had the audiences full attention, something she does and has always done so well. She owned that stage!! She is so good at her craft, you can't help but be captivated and pulled in to the moment.
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| Carol & Ron back on stage together for this celebratory tour. |
Carol did invite fans to get up and dance, and at the same time made us realise our ages, which was quite funny, as we are not the teenagers we once were!!
This didn't stop a few people to the front of the hall dancing away and I noticed people at the back 'hidden away' even dancing!!
The middle of the set changed direction completely with going from the rockiest of the tracks, to the beautifulness of the ballads. Carol has always had this knack of being able to rock the place out one minute to changing the tone to the 'power ballads' which T'Pau have had plenty of. This was one quality why so many people over the years have warmed to Carol and T'Pau-the diversity in the music. 'Heart & Soul' had over-lapping rap vocals, 'Sex Talk' & 'Monkey House', to name a few, were the real rockers and 'China In Your Hand', 'Valentine', 'I Will Be With You' & 'Only The Lonely' were the much loved 'power ballads'. You've got a mix of everything!!
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| Carol singing one of her much loved ballads. |
'I Will Be With You' was sung as beautiful as it could be, one of my favourite T'Pau tracks, and also one of Carol's too!
We were then treated to a few 'acoustic' songs. 'Only The Lonely' had been re-arranged and was pure perfection and sent shivers down my spine. The vocals were 'pitch perfect', no surprise there!! This song was quite a talking point by the fans and the number of fans that said "Is it going to be released on iTunes as an acoustic version?" Next up was the gorgeous 'Love Song'
from the fourth album 'Red'. The audience were in their element! The next song was another of my favourites 'Strange Place' from the third album 'The Promise'. My god, we were being treated! The guitar solo at the end of the song was executed perfectly, and Carol introduced the lead guitarist, James Ashby, not forgetting to mention he was only 23, and wasn't even born when T'Pau first appeared on the scene!! carol said she liked her band members younger than her!!
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| Carol and James. "I have coats older than James" admitted Carol!! |
The talent on the stage was enormous! Each band member knew their craft so well and were also singing backing vocals.
It was announced that favourite album tracks were to be sung and 'Road To Our Dream' didn't disappoint. It is so nice to see older songs given a new lease of life. Another goosebump moment!
When Carol introduced what I would class as one of the rockiest songs have ever produced, 'Let It All Fall', we were reminded of our ages again when she said "Some of you will need to hold onto your toupee's!!" The sheer power in the band's capabilities and Carol's vocals, yet again did not let us down.
The opening bars to 'Heart & Soul' generated such a great reaction and I noticed a lot of people were holding up their phones during this song. This is where it all started for Carol & Ron, something we didn't need reminding, and we all have such fond memories of where it all began.
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| Ron clearly having fun on stage. |
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If you haven't yet got a copy of this limited edition package, you can still get it by going to Carol's own record label Gnatfish Records :
www.gnatfishrecords.com
Carol said goodnight, but something was telling me the show wasn't quite over yet....One of those 'get your lighters at the ready' moments!!
The opening chords of 'China' started to play and Carol appeared. The crowd went wild!! It was just Carol and the keyboard player on stage at first-the other band members all started to make their appearance back on stage when they were needed for the song.
The audience were all singing along and started joining in with the oh so familiar 'China' wave, whilst belting their lungs out!! The audience never tires of this song and Carol never fails to give it her all.
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| Carol and the fans doing the 'China In Your Hand' wave. |
Carol, Ron and the band were given a very well deserved standing ovation, and Carol said "We will see you again" and thanked us all for coming.
Afterwards Carol & Ron met the fans at the merchandise table, something they have done throughout the tour, and there was a long queue of people patiently waiting to purchase items, to have their photo taken with Carol and for signings, and Carol & Ron were, and have always have been warm and welcoming to their followers.
The #TPau25 Tour went even better than Carol and Ron could ever have hoped for and they are very touched by all the support they received. All I can say is that after seeing the gig at Harpenden, they had every reason to be happy!!
#TPau25 Robin2 Bilston
I had the privilege of seeing a second #TPau25 gig, this time it was at The Robin 2 in Bilston, Wolverhampton.
This gig was the penultimate gig of the tour, and it was a standing venue. There had been a couple of other standing venues during the tour, but this was the biggest, obviously not including The Isle Of Wight Festival!! Its capacity was 700, and it was packed to the rafters!!
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| The flyer promoting the gig at The Robin 2 |
Nearing the end of his set, one of his guitar strings just happened to snap, and it was only the G-String!! He was quick in making a joke out of it, but the lack of a string didn't falter his performance at all!!
Because of the type of venue it was-having more of a night club feel to it-Carol and co didn't come on until much later than the other shows, but the wait was most definitely worth it!
It was only the day before that the band had 'killed it' at the Isle Of Wight Festival, to a packed-out audience, and I would imagine they were still on a high from it!!
Carol looked as proud as punch being on that stage and she had every reason to be. The crowd loved her and the fans were singing along to all of the songs.
Carol was wearing her exclusive leather jacket, which finished her off looking every bit the rock/pop icon that she most definitely is! It was so hot in there, but that jacket stayed on until the encore-All in the name of rock 'n' roll!!
This has to be one of the best T'Pau gigs I have had the privilege of being present at; from the acoustics, the crowd reaction, the performance and audience participation!
One of the songs of the night, for me, was 'Strange Place', it was pure perfection, and the guitar solo at the end by James Ashby was second to none. A fan captured it on their phone, and it is a fantastic copy!
T'Pau 'Strange Place' Robin 2 Bilston 15/06/13
The #TPau25 Tour has most definitely gone down a storm, not just by the reviews in the papers and online, but by the fans comments on T'Pau25 Official FaceBook Page!
I kept saying this is one tour not to be missed, and of course I was right!! It has created new T'Pau fans even, and made people even more excited about the prospect of the next album!!
Watch this space....!!
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