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22/01/00 - SKYREACH PLACE,
KELOWNA, BC Review
by David Marsden (The Daily Courier): Bryan says wave your hands in the air. And they did, almost 6,000 of them as they celebrated the superstar's sold-out concert Saturday at Skyreach Place. Bryan Adams put on a top-notch concert on his triumphant return to the city, his first since playing Flashbacks cabaret two decades ago. In the meantime, he has sold more than 55 million albums and carved himself a reputation as one of rock music's best talents. Joined by guitarist Keith Scott and drummer Mickey Curry, Adams played for more than two hours, including two encores. There was no disappearing while the drummer banged on the pots, no turning over the show to another vocalist while he disappeared for a break. Adams sang and sang and sang, with a passion unequalled. The concert started at 8:20 p.m. but the entertainment really began 10 minutes later. Strumming the immediately recognized chords of Summer of '69, Adams got everyone in the room singing, and he basked in the adulation few other performers could have enjoyed. The crowd, pulled as they were from throughout the region, knew every word of the touchstone piece and readily joined in when he turned the microphone toward the cavernous room. If Kelowna crowds have a reputation for being silent, they put that rumour to rest Saturday night. Never in the short-lived history of the building has the crowd roared so loud. At one point Adams searched for a female voice to provide backup vocals. A 13-year-old girl from Penticton joined him on stage, jumping in as though she'd been part of the cross-country jaunt that will see Adams in Vancouver tomorrow. Adams was genuinely impressed with the young girl's talent, suggesting she "kiss some ass" in Penticton, where she had been shortshrifted by a radio station. It seems she has written a song in honour of JFK Jr., and the radio station played only a portion of the piece when it was broadcast. Adams enjoys tremendous popularity, and, as a result, his music is overexposed. But titles that sometimes seem trite on the radio are played with conviction in concert; proof of his mastery and love of the art. The song 18 Til I Die comes across as a vulgar attempt to woo young fans when it's heard on the radio. Live, the song is an anthem, an anthem that brought Saturday's crowd to its feet, once again, to participate in the best rock concert to visit Kelowna in recent memory. You don't become, and stay, a rock superstar by playing mediocre music. Adams proved himself as an entertainer, and one with a bright future as well as a past. His latest songs are solid tunes that will join classics like Heaven and Cuts Like A Knife as staples of rock music. Earlier in the day Adams signed 250 autographs during a one-hour CD and book signing at Chapters. In two hours Saturday night, Bryan Adams won a place in the hearts of 6,000 fans. | |||
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Bryan opens the show in Kelowna
Bryan having fun onstage |
