The Hollies - Concert Review

Brighton, Theatre Royal, 8^th October 2000 - by Robert Bird

Just a quick note to say that I was at the opening night of the tour at Brighton last night and it was......superb!

I wasn't sure what it would be like without Allan as the front man but it only took a couple of songs before I realised that Carl is a good singer in his own right and the harmonising between him, Tony and Alan (and Ray at times) was as good as I have heard from them when performing live.

It was a fairly recognisable set - they threw in an acoustic version of Bus Stop, and Tony got to play a mock-Sitar type thing as they did The Baby - sounded good. They ended the first half with Blowing In The Wind.

The second half flew by - my favourite song being Blackbird, not only because of the vocal aspect, but also for the opportunity to watch Tony motor around the fret board...which he then went on to do once more when they played Stop Stop Stop.

A couple of Move songs punctuated the play list - Flowers In The Rain and Blackberry Way...well received by one and all...especially the guy in the seat behind me who would have no problem securing the Bass part in a barbershop quartet!

Air came and went - sounded OK - and then they launched into the well-known medley, the only thing sounding funny was LCW, missing the third guitar part on the intro, but they carried it off well.

At the end of the medley Carl 'coolly' asked if they'd missed out one song in particular. He got the response I think he was expecting!

At this point he paid tribute to Allan for his outstanding contribution to the band over the years and also wished Jen the best - it was very sincere and very well received by all...the audience applauding him and the Clarke's for quite some time.

When the clapping had stopped, Carl pulled a harmonica from his pocket and we were off once more. A great version of He Ain't Heavy to finish off the set and to generally bring the house down.

At the end, everyone took a bow (including Ian and Bobby - yes they were there!) and Carl received a few pats on the back from his colleagues.

All I can say is, that although Allan has gone, and things will inevitably sound different, I thought it was superb. A cracking night - and considering the amount that Carl has had to learn and take on board........

I wasn't sure about whether they had made the right decision to carry on. I now know.

They have.

If you're going to see them, enjoy. I certainly did!

Robert Bird

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