20/01/01 - 5PM MATINEE SHOW, PLAYHOUSE THEATRE, EDINBURGH

Review by Aaron Scullion
"How much?". The guy in the queue has ended up with a spare ticket, but the unscrupulous chap in the green jacket isn't that interested. "Five pounds! It's worth six times that."

It's not that people aren't interested in the show. Adams is, after all, doing a matinee 'due to public demand' but it does illustrate how people feel about the Canadian rocker. Sure, if you've got a ticket, come along, but there's little chance of anyone appearing on the possibility of a spare ticket, and the touts know it.

Although, just for a couple of songs, when Adams and his cronies arrive, punching huge white balloons into the crowd (for no particular reason) to squeals of delight, that spare ticket seems like a horrible waste.

The whole package is kind of overwhelming, the charming way that the star continually refers to himself as Bryan, just Bryan, while peddling a stream of hits, everything from '18 Til I Die' to 'Summer of 69', in the first twenty minutes!

The clinical stage doesn't even seem peculiar, as each performer, dressed in sheer white, merges into a set decorated with white amps, a white backdrop, white fluorescent lighting strips, and even a white drumkit.

You even forget that Bryan is primarily responsible for keeping Mel C's career afloat, something for which he can surely never be forgiven.

When he chooses a completely random member of the audience to compensate for her absence, it's a reckless gamble that could turn out nastily (although, I suppose, if you've worked with Mel C, you're prepared for pretty much anything).

Luckily for us all, Lorraine from Stow, who can't be more than 15 years old, puts in a fine performance, seeming pretty nervous right up until Uncle Bryan puts a comforting arm around her shoulder. It's karaoke on a grand stage, and an utterly endearing moment.

It pretty much compensates for the likes of guitarist Keith Scott's 40-second high frequency solo at the end of 'It's Only Love', or even Adams' shameless admission that he was responsible for 'The Way You Make Me Feel', passed on to Ronan Keating because Bryan "wasn't sure about it" (read : didn't think it was good enough for him). Doesn't stop him drawing the evening to a close with the track though.

Ultimately, it's difficult to ignore just how personable Adams seems - people down at the front are touching his guitar, and he doesn't even seem to mind. Untroubled by cynicism or artistic ambition, Bryan Adams is the ultimate rock star. You just can't argue with a spectacle like this.

Setlist:
Back To You
18 Til I Die
Can't Stop This Thing We Started
Summer Of '69
She's Only Happy When She's Dancin'
It's Only Love
Everything I Do
Cuts Like A Knife
Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?
When You're Gone
Kids Wanna Rock
Into The Fire
I'm Ready
Heaven
Before The Night Is Over
Blues Jam
The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You
Cloud #9
Somebody
Run To You
The Best Of Me
The Way You Make Me Feel

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Thanks to Adrian for the setlist and pictures. Also to Paula and Gill for the pictures

"18 Til I Diiiiie!"

Bryan gets Adrian up onstage so Ade can show him his tattoo!

Bryan on bass