Saturday, July 7, 2012

Leo Sayer Live - Olympia Theatre Dublin - July 5th 2012 - Why we still need Leo.....

Leo Sayer has not played a live solo show in these islands for a long time, too long. He is one of the truly great stars of pop music, a man small in stature but a giant in terms of talent and artistry. His early success followed by a string of hits around the world in the 1970s and early 80s have left a legacy of pop songs which few solo male artists have managed to equal in terms of quality. His Dublin concert on July 5th at the historic Olympia Theatre was preceded by an appearance the previous weekend on prime time television in Dublin. During the interview with top broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan, Leo talked about his life in music and his new life in Australia where he now lives. He also sang one of his classics, ‘When I Need You’ to a rapturous reception from the studio audience. Nothing however could have prepared Leo for the frenzy of adoration he met from his Irish fans at the Olympia concert. The sell out show was a triumphant return to live performance for one of the UKs greatest ever pop stars. The fans had the time of their lives as for Leo , he summed it up best when he said, “We lived in amazing times guys”. A reference no doubt to his 1970s & 80s heyday when he ruled the pop charts on both sides of the Atlantic. It is a tragedy that we have been effectively deprived of this man’s astounding talent by a pop music industry that has in recent years lost its way, preferring to promote karaoke cover artists with short lived music careers instead of developing and nurturing long term music talent. Leo was indeed fortunate to have made his debut in the 1970s when the music scene was diverse and eclectic. Lets hope Leo will come back more often to the UK and Ireland as he has lost none of his power as a live artist. His Dublin concert showcased some of his biggest hits and the band were clearly having a ball on stage playing the songs which have matured into some of pop’s most impressive classics. From the early recordings ‘One Man Band, Train and The Show Must Go On’, mega hits ‘You Make Me Feel Like Dancing and When I Need You to later more introspective tracks like the haunting ‘Orchard Road’, all the hits were there and more. The man has lost virtually none of his vocal ability nor has his zany on stage persona diminished. I first saw Leo live in front of 20,000 fans in Cork in his 1970s heyday and tonight in Dublin on July 5th 2012 almost 35 years on Leo Sayer is still a star with one big difference, he has become a LEGEND. Leo Sayer returns to the UK and Ireland in late 2012 in the ‘Once in a Lifetime Arena Tour’ with pop icons Hot Chocolate and David Cassidy. Don’t miss it.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Steps - The Ultimate Tour - O2 Arena Dublin - 3 April 2012

The Return of a truly great British Pop Group

I have been to many pop concerts over the years. I even recall seeing a previous Steps concert back in their 1990s heyday and to enjoying every minute of it at the time. Of all the pure pop concerts I have seen over the years however nothing prepared me for what amounts to one of the most spectacular live concert comebacks in UK pop history. Steps new show ‘the Ultimate tour’ is quite simply one of the best produced most professionally performed pop shows I have ever seen. Mixing Vegas production values with competent often soaring vocals and a well chosen selection of pulsating pop music, the result is a triumph and puts the former pop superstars firmly back in the limelight. The capacity crowd at Dublin’s biggest indoor arena the O2 were enraptured by the show from start to finish. Opening the previous night in Belfast and working its way around the UK to a sold out 2 night run at London’s O2 later in the tour, the newly reformed Steps comeback show is truly a spectacular nights entertainment.

From the outset the new show grabs and holds the attention with intricate 3D graphic backdrops, innovative set designs and a brilliant troupe of dancers who mix eroticism with amazing performance technique. At the centre of it all the triumphant live return of one of the best British pop acts of all time. Unsurprisingly the greatest hits feature heavily throughout from the innocent debut single ‘5.6.7,8’ to the sophisticated slick pop sound of later hits like ‘Deeper Shade of Blue’ and ‘Summer of Love’. So too do ‘Steptacular’ solo interpretations by band members of more recent pop classics such as Maroon 5s ‘Moves Like Jagger’ remixed with Rhinanna’s S&M, Jennifer Hudson‘s smash One Night Only to a surreal rendition of the Celine Dion power ballad ‘I Surrender’ performed by Claire Richards, always the strongest singer in the group but in her own right one of the best female pop voices of her era. The show rarely stumbles nor does it stray too far into nostalgia preferring instead to reposition the classic Steps material in a new more confident and mature setting. The finale, lasting almost twenty minutes and ending with the inevitable ‘Tragedy’ (their biggest hit) is one of the most frenzied pop set pieces ever staged working the audience into a true pure pop music high in every way as intense as any opera or rock performance.

Often derided in the 1990s simply for being a pop act in an era when pop itself was seen as deeply uncool by elements of the British music press, they were in many senses the sole occupants of the pure pop space. This was something at which the British had so excelled in the past but which the music establishment became deeply uncomfortable with in the era of Britpop, a misnomer if ever there was one. Bands like Blur, Pulp and others were not Pop bands at all. They were indie inspired rock bands. Therein lay the difficulty for bands like Steps who found their often brilliant pop music dismissed by a music establishment who simply could not or would not recognise the validity of a great ‘Pop’ band. This despite their huge commercial success and a slew of truly great hit records probably eventually led to the band‘s early break up depriving British pop prematurely of one of its few great acts. Rock and Pop are not the same thing, they are distinct musical genres and need to be recognised as such. The failure to appreciate this has led to the now fractured nature of popular music in general and to a decline in live music performances and thus a music industry in crisis. Co-existing rather than mutual intolerance could lead to a new era of great distinct rock and pop acts emerging rather than the consistent demonisation of fun escapist pop by a jaded narrow elitist music press. Steps suffered the same fate as their idols ABBA in the 1970s. It is often now forgotten that ABBA while massively successful were, at their peak, also deeply derided by the music press. Like ABBA it is only many years later that a true impartial assessment of their discography shows us just what a great pop band Steps were and still are.

It is interesting that despite a recent number 1 UK chart placing for their greatest hits collection, the band seem to be having difficulty getting a release date for their new material. Lets hope that the rumoured deal with Universal leads to a new second era of Steps original pop music introducing a whole new generation to the art form that is fun escapist pop music. Welcome back Steps, a great pop band. The new concert tour is quite simply their best to date. If over cautious record companies allow, Steps could easily be poised to produce a whole new cluster of modern pop hits as the energy of the band and the enthusiasm of the fans seems undiminished.

Steps the ultimate tour continues around the UK until end of May 2012 with special appearances later in 2012 at various festival venues.

Daniel Lindon April 2012