from=July 1st, 1998
Reviewed by Andy McKenzie, 'Corrs To The Core' Officer
I can count on one hand the number of times I've heard the Corrs played
on Southern California radio stations. I can count on my other hand the
number of people I know here who know their music. Those numbers don't
add up to much, so I was a little worried and very curious about how
many people would show up at the Troubadour club last night in West
Hollywood for The Corrs' first headlining show in L.A.
Well, word of mouth, the internet and talk on corners all helped draw
about three hundred people to a club that comfortably fits about two
hundred. Everyone managed to squeeze into the Troubadour and gain a
good vantage point for the show which started at about 8:30. The
opening act, Catie Curtis, was o.k., but no match for the Corrs who
finally took the stage at 9:50 for an energetic, inspired 18 song, 80
minute set.
The crowd sounded 1,000 strong throughout the concert beginning with the
opening chords of "When He's Not Around." Jim, Andrea, Caroline and
Sharon all looked relaxed, happy and fit, played with great confidence,
and sounded very, very strong and sharp. After the first song the
applause and cheering were so loud and enthusiastic that Andrea and
Sharon exchanged looks of genuine surprise. The crowd support would be
equally strong throughout the evening and the band (along with their
supporting guitarist and bassist) seemed to feed off of that energy to
deliver a truly outstanding performance.
After Andrea greeted us someone requested "Closer." "Closer?"
she asked
with a smile, "Aren't you close enough?" They then played "No Good
For
Me," "Love To Love You," and "Forgiven, Not Forgotten" before
breaking
for their first intrumental of the evening: "Joy of Life." Someone
handed Andrea a small stack of assorted chocolate bars during one of
these songs. She placed them safely aside and said thanks. Next came
"Intimacy," "What Can I Do," and "This Is The Right Time."
A poetic moment and real surge in the concert followed when The Corrs
then launched into "Queen of Hollywood." The song had finally come home
and sounded fantastic. Sensing that they had just raised the energy
level with "Queen," the band pushed it even higher with "Dreams."
Sharon's beautiful solo on "Haste To The Wedding" followed that along
with an extended instrumental medley that was really rousing. Andrea
returned to vocals with "Runaway." This was followed by "Only When I
Sleep" which sounds more and more like the perfect James Bond movie song
every time I hear it, but especially the way it was played live. The
main set was brought to a close with "Hopelessly Addicted" and "I Never
Loved You Anyway," which rocked considerably more than on 'Talk On
Corners.' We all cheered the Corrs back to the stage for an encore and
they obliged with "So Young" and "Toss The Feathers." Wow!
What a
show!
What I took away from the concert, besides my ringing ears, my ticket
stub, my tour t-shirt, Sharon's set-list and one of Caroline's
drumsticks, was the realization that The Corrs are ready to break big
here in the U.S. if they're given the chance. Their professionalism,
showmanship and vitality are all top-level. I could easily see,
standing five feet from the stage last night, how their show can play
effectively in much larger venues. I know that they have much more
support in Europe and Australia and play to larger audiences there.
That can happen here too with more air-play and more exposure. I hope
this tour has helped to begin the conquest of America. What I really
hope is that somewhere in the crowd last night were a few local record
industry bigwigs and concert promoters. If they had any questions or
doubts about the band yesterday, they shouldn't today after that show.
Now THAT would be a Hollywood story for you!
Incidentally, just to prove my point about the Corrs' appeal, I took a
friend of mine to the show who had only heard a few of their songs when
he happened to have been riding around in my car over the past year. He
thoroughly enjoyed himself, said it was the best concert he has seen in
some time and would like to hear more of their music. Oh yeah, and he's
got a bit of a crush on Caroline now too:)
Cheers,
A.M.
If you would like to add your personal review of a Corrs concert, simply send it to: Peter Shevlin