By now you might realise that this won’t be a standard concert review. However, while Saturday’s Sting concert wasn’t what any of us wanted and expected, we still received an afternoon filled with great music so I decided it was important to write about what I did experience.
When you buy tickets to an outdoor show, you never know quite what you’re going to get. The weather in late summer can be fickle. While I was in pants earlier in the week, the mercury hovered somewhere around 40 degrees in the Hunter Valley on Saturday. Shout-out to my dad, the real MVP, who drove Mum and I to the Hunter for a nice lunch, then some wine-tasting in air-conditioned cellars until the show was nearly about to begin. With our AAMI Lucky Club membership we were ushered through our special line without queuing and quickly found our seats. No lines at the exclusive AAMI Lucky Club bar either. No, this isn’t a paid promotion, but those perks make sticking with my insurance provider so worthwhile. Mum told me the seats were much better than they were last time she saw Sting, even though we didn’t splurge on close to the top tier.
I didn’t have high expectations for Joe Sumner, assuming he just got the gig because his dad was the headliner, but I really enjoyed his set. He reminded me a lot of his father vocally, although his top register was a little weaker. But he has some really solid pop-rock songs. He’s definitely got the goods as a singer-songwriter, and he’s super charismatic. One of the things I really love about these Day on the Green shows is you can often be pleasantly surprised by an artist who you wouldn’t ordinarily have seen. Rest assured, I’ll be checking out his back catalogue.
Unlike Joe, I knew exactly what I was getting with James Reyne. He’s one of Australia’s most dependable musicians, with one of the country’s most impressive back catalogues. When you can throw “Reckless” into the middle of your set, because you know there is plenty more people want to hear, you know you’ve got the goods. He has us all singing along, even if we were probably wrong with most of the words. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen James, but it’s always a thrill.
Sting is another one of those artists who has so many hits that he doesn’t need to save them for an encore. He walked out without fanfare, just a man with his guitar ready to put on a great show. “Message in a Bottle,” bam, “Englishman in New York,” bam, “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic,” bam. Sounding just as good as he ever has, with so much charm. With a triple-treat of hits so early, we didn’t even mind when he apologised for playing a couple of new songs. They were less familiar but still superb songs, and they gave us all a chance to catch our breath and take our seats for a bit. We were back to the hits for “If I Ever Lose My Faith in You,” a song made a bit more pleasant as the breeze picked up. We had been so hot that the wind was a welcome relief. I was honestly shocked when security ushered Sting off the stage. He said he’d be back if he could, and we were sure he would be. I called my dad, who was already on the way to pick us up, and told him the show might take a little longer as we were on a break waiting for the high winds to pass. He turned around to go home, and almost got there when I called him back to say we were being evacuated. We were a bit shocked really. It wasn’t raining, and I’ve been in some pretty heavy rain for Day on the Green shows, but I guess the wind and forecast lightning was the deciding factor.
I’ve attended countless Day on the Green shows and never had an experience like that. So perhaps it’s not a surprise that I felt the venue staff were ill-prepared for the turn of events. My mum and I were told to leave our seats, but we had no where to go, with my Dad around 50 minutes away. And then the rain started. Another shout-out to the amazing couple who let us take shelter in their car, insisting that they wouldn’t be moving for ages (they were right). Would we have been waiting in the conditions that were deemed too unsafe for a concert if they weren’t willing to help?
Now we’re left wondering what happens next. The team behind A Day on the Green say they’ll be in touch in the next day or so, suggesting there’ll be some kind of compensation. A reschedule seems unlikely given Sting’s busy schedule. Some people online have suggested we don’t deserve any sort of compensation, because we saw all three acts we paid for. However, if you’d asked me to pay $200 to see Sting sing seven songs, I’d have told you where to go. It’s the sort of experience that makes you wonder whether you should buy tickets to the shows at the safe, if somewhat sterile, indoor venues instead of the wineries. So I’m glad to hear A Day on the Green are looking to make up for our disappointment. It certainly wasn’t the show we hoped for, even if there was plenty to smile about early on.
Image source: own photos
Thankfully there was plenty more talent on the bill. While my formative years were spent perving on Mr Ryder, my mum’s were spent drooling over Daryl Braithwaite. She was transformed back into a 16-year-old as he took the stage and delivered hit after hit. Dazza’s another of those blokes who seems to lose nothing over the years. He hits those high notes with ease and always puts on such an amazing show. Singing out “The Horses” and “Higher than Hope” with the crowd was magic.
Next up was one of our favourites, Mr Richard Clapton. Oh how we love Richard. Having said that though, after such an incredible set from Daryl, Richard’s seemed to lack a little sparkle. I knew the majority of the songs from seeing him countless times in the past, but they seemed to leave a lot of people scratching their heads. “Girls on the Avenue” went down a treat though. Even when he’s not incredible, Richard’s still bloody good.
Incredible was what we got with another my of mum’s crushes, Ian Moss. The consummate professional, adored by the masses, he delivered a stellar set packed with the hits and a few surprised. As someone who remembers buying Matchbook on cassette (my first album bought with my own money if I’m ever on RocKWiz!), I was thrilled to hear him perform “Mr Rain.” The only thing better than Mossy solo is Mossy with Jimmy. We got a little Cold Chisel reunion during “When the War is Over” which was something I’ll never forget.
Next up were The Angels, the band with the biggest question mark for me. I was well aware of the split, and had wondered just how this incarnation would feel without Doc Neeson up front. I shouldn’t have worried. Rather than feeling like a pale imitation of the original, this Dave Gleeson-fronted outfit has a new lease on life. I might be a bit biased here. I’m Newcastle-bred, and many of the first pub gigs I ever attended were Screaming Jets shows. But he is the perfect frontman for this band he clearly loves so much. He brought real energy to the hits and won over the crowd from the get go. I’ve got to tell you though, the only thing weirder than seeing your parents chanting “that bit” in “Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again?” is watching your American husband’s reaction to it all. The poor boy was caught completely unawares. I love that despite eight years here, every now and again Aussie culture can throw him a curveball.
Jimmy Barnes teased us with his appearance during Mossy’s set. We were so ready for him, and he delivered. Jimmy was actually the first musician I ever saw live, way back in the Soul Deeper days, and I’ve been a massive fan ever since. It was a wonderful set which spanned his entire career. He rocked hard and we loved it. I found myself on my feet more often than not, and I screamed myself hoarse. God knows how he keeps up those vocals. Mossy came back to play a few Chisel numbers and it was every bit as special as that first appearance. This time I put my camera down and just soaked it in though. Wow. Being amongst that crowd singing out “Working Class Man” and “Khe Sahn” was out of this world.
