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07/02/04 - JAWAHARLAL
NEHRU STADIUM, DELHI Review by Akshyat Bhatia: I reached the concert area at 5:00 PM and found the queue stretching nearly a mile…. me and my friends smartly jumped the crowd and after an hour of pushing and jostling I found myself at the front of the crowd….I was right at the stage and was to shake hands with Bryan later during the concert….read on. For more than an hour, up till 6 30, we waited and finally got the supporting act of the night. The supporting IndiPop group is called Aasma (means sky) and they started off with their popular song…. but were not good enough to get the crowd going….and everybody was frantic for Bryan and his band. Aasma performed for nearly half an hour. It was followed by the technicians and the sound check which carried on till nearly 7 30. Here I Am. Bryan Adams made a soft entry as he along with his band walked on stage; all of them dressed casually in black sweatshirts and denim jeans. And without saying a word started off with the 1st song of the night – One Night Love Affair – Though he never said nothing’ about it. It seemed a perfect start and the crowd was soon going crazy as he walked across the stage and began his next track – House Arrest (Waking up the neighbors)…. it was just mind blowing… 18 till I die – the night was just starting as Bryan suddenly broke off into the start of 18 till I die…. and got the crowd going along with him…. after the song he told the crowd how cool it was to be at New Delhi…and mentioned that he had just come back from a quick trip to the Taj Mahal (photography, I guess)…he joked that nobody in Agra told him that ‘ he had a concert 2nite’. Bryan and Keith then changed their guitars and began the next track – Lets Make A Night 2 Remember – its was amazing, especially the fact that it was the original version and not with the Blues Jam versions iv downloaded via Bootlegs…. After lets make a night…BA cam 2wards the crowd and gave an exclusive introduction for the irreplaceable Keith Scott…he then told the crowd about his first duet – Its Only Love (with Tina Turner) – and then looked backstage and cheekily exclaimed ‘ and she is …….not here ‘. He had just finished exclaiming that that suddenly Keith Scott broke off into the most perfect rendition I’ve ever heard. In between…. Bryan Moved back to allow Keith to complete his solo part…and the crowd went crazy for him. The song, like couple more to come during the night…. was slightly elongated…. but who cares. BA then pointed towards Keith and asked us ‘ would ya like to take him home ‘! He then told us about Unplugged and a song he had written on that album – Back To You – and enthralled the audience to the limits….he let the crowd sing the main lines…and towards the end , went back , brought his base guitar back and the 5 piece bans started off with Cant Stop This Thing We Started….
Then came the moment I have been waiting all my life long for. Bryan got his acoustic guitar, flashed a smile, and then Keith and he started out with the chords of SUMMER OF 69’. If anything, this was the least expected song at that moment (all had been hoping that it would be towards the end). Over the 1st paragraph, I could barely hear the performer as the crowd chanted the lyrics and got ecstatic when Mickey Curey started the drums when Bryan sang Those were the best days of my life. It was the pure unplugged version that they did and BA ended it in the same manner by bringing his acoustic down thrice with the drums. Then as softly as he had initially appeared…. he rendered to the crowd his greatest all time hit….Everything I Do..(I Do It For You) and had everyone swaying and moving to the tunes. Lighters and match were not allowed in the concert area and it was majestic to see people switching on their cell phone lights and moving them as they listened….i saw a view on the huge screen in front and it was awesome. BA then searched the crowd and asked for somebody pretty out there…. girls out there started jumping frantically as Bryan looked around…. he finally ended up selecting Priya , an engineer , and called her up to the stage. He sang ‘here she comes…walking down the street’ as the lucky girl made her way to the stage and hugged and kissed BA before he asked her if she knew the lyrics of When Ur Gone…. he then handed her the lyrics and both of them sang (though her voice was not up to it). I got to admit, he could have easily got somebody better onto stage. Then all of a sudden, after accompanying priya back, he shouted Cuts Like A Knife, and the drums came on….it was fantastic….and we were all chanting na na na nana nana na na by the end of it. After that came his only non film chart topper – Please Forgive Me – Bryan played it to the crowd as he sang Please Forgive Me Delhi (he’s had to skip Delhi twice on his previous visits and this was his first concert here). This track was short than the original as BA cut it only after singing the 1st part of it….and then the drums started as Keith and Bryan came up with The Only Thing That Looks Good On Me….Is You. By the end , it went that we said Is You and he said No, Its You…..this last part went on for nearly a minute. This was followed up with 2 more unplugged song versions – I’m Ready and Heaven – We were ready to be in heaven by the end of it. Then came somebody and I hadn’t heard it live so it was pretty cool. After Somebody, BA called up his band, introductions followed and the 5 of them said goodbye and went off. The crowd started chanting We Want Bryan and true to it, they got it, BA appeared and they then played Cloud #9.it was the remixed version and was enough to get us going again. Then came the familiar guitar strains and out came Run To You….which was certainly my favorite for the evening. Then he shouted U GOT IT and started off with The Best Of ME. During this song Bryan left the stage and his guitar and came down to the crowd and shook hands with almost everyone who was standing up front (this included me) and I finally got to shake hands with the man himself. He went back up and at the end called up his band again, and they bowed and went off stage. A minute late , back came Bryan all alone, acoustic guitar in hand and told us about his first hit, his first written love song at the age of 18 and then said that that’s the age you get all those things – Straight From The Heart – it was beautiful and everybody was chanting along with him. He finally ended and with a heavy heart, we saw him say goodbye to Delhi and he left the stage….I hung around for 15 minutes before finally realizing he wasn’t to come again….end of the concert and goodnight. All I can say is THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER TONIGHT. I was also disappointed as Bryan did not play Here I Am , Have You Ever Really Ever Loved A Woman….but he did perform songs from all his albums save Into The Fire. Thank You Akshyat. ********************************* Times Of India review: Bryan arrives with tonnes of music! ********************************* By Nishirj a. Baruah: ********************************* Sold out on Bryan Adams? Flaunt his spirit with
a cool T-shirt statement ********************************* Nishiraj A. Baruah Women screamed for help, some fainted, others wept. One of them, in fact, fell off a wooden platform from trying to take a dekko and broke her arm. The mass of humanity inched forward towards the entrance. Still, even if you had a ticket, it turned out, it was no guarantee that you would gain entry. “I have a Rs 750 ticket. Yet they are not allowing me in,” said an angry Anita Bose, a call centre executive. Of course, DNA-organised shows are infamous for such mishaps. In the last BA concert at Mumbai, there was no drinking water at the venue and people were noticed begging for a drop from the lucky few who had mineral water bottles. The organisers claimed that there would be F & B outlets inside, but one could spot none.
Adams, on his part, tried his best to make up for the chaos. From Everything I Do, to Cuts Like A Knife, to Summer of 69, he belted out one classic after another and made the crowd sing with him. He also announced that he would like to invite one of the women on the stage. To this, a thousand hands went up. Finally, picking up someone called Priya from the front row, he made her sing with him and went on to kiss and hug her. Dressed in a black T, Adams played both the electric and acoustic guitars. “Music gives me a chance to come from across the globe and be with you. It breaks all barriers,” he announced. The audience went hysterical. The show was opened by Channel V groomed band Aasma, but the less said about it is better. An Adams fan shouted: “Get lost, we are not here to see you.” ********************************* Bryan Adams gives Delhi a night to remember New Delhi (IANS) Thousands of music lovers danced, sang and screamed for more under a starry sky late Saturday when Canadian crooner Bryan Adams performed his maiden concert in the Indian capital. Young and old alike stood under a full moon and on a grassy lawn at the open-air "warm up" area of the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium and lapped up the music of Adams, dressed in a black sweatshirt and blue jeans. The "18 Till I Die" man sung "Heaven", "Lets Make A Night To Remember", "Cuts Like A Knife", "Everything I Do, I Do It For You", "Run To You", "Summer of 69" and promised Delhi that he was "Coming Back to You"? In the middle of the concert, he got a girl from the audience onto stage and sung a duet with her, "Baby When You’re Gone". Engineering student Priya was evidently delighted at being the temporary censure of all eyes and alternated between jumping around stage and hugging Adams. He then gave away T-shirts to the girl and those she’d come with. The popular singer, who has visited India in 1994 and 2001, and often expressed his desire to croon for this city, finally managed to keep his date, despite glitches over an earlier venue. Even the tickets for the show had a map of the first venue, making finding parking extremely difficult for those who weren’t familiar with the place. Hours before the concert, hundreds began arriving at the area. Serpentine queues stretched for miles from the stadium. Soon after the concert started, those who were still standing outside slowly lost patience with the many policemen who were restricting entry and made a mad dash towards the barriers. There was a stampede as hundreds tried to push their way through, leaving the policemen with no choice but to move out of the way and not even check people’s tickets. In fact, there were even groundnut vendors sauntering around in the enclosure for those who bought tickets for Rs.750, instead of Rs.500. But Delhiites, known more for their love of energetic Punjabi music than appreciation for soft rock and pop, gave Adams an animated response. They kept shouting for encores, swaying to the music with their hands in the air and trying to dance in the packed venue. Some adventurous women got on to their male companions’ shoulders for a bird’s eye view. Adams was at his charming best, complimenting the audience and talking about the wonder of being a singer because it gave him chances to visit places ordinary people could only dream of. The singer also mentioned that he’d gone to the Taj Mahal in Agra on Saturday before performing. Towards the end of the concert, Adams descended from stage and was promptly surrounded by anxious policemen who kept excited spectators from mobbing the eclectic singer who was won multiple Grammy awards. Said fashion college graduate Niren Saldana: "The music was great but the acoustics could have been better. What was surprising was the large response Adams managed to generate. "And once he got on stage, none of us wanted him to leave. We could have gone on all night if he stayed!" The Channel V band pop stars "Aasma" had the unenviable task of taking to the stage before the star of the evening came on. They performed a few compositions in front of an impatient audience and then retreated. Delhiites, starved of live music performances by
international stars, kept shouting to Adams to extend the two-hour
long concert. But he just reaffirmed his love for the audience and
slipped away into the night, bringing to an end exciting hours of
light, sound and chaos. Spare a thought for Indian girls On the eve of the big match, the Indians, put up at the Nehru Stadium, would have loved to sleep early and not be subjected to the noise pollution from the high-wattage Bryan Adams show. And had the IWHF loosened the purse strings, the Indians could have been moved to a hotel after they made the final. This is India, where officials get five star comfort and the federation cares two hoots for the players. Having come this far, there is nothing to lose for the Indians. They will attempt to go flat out against Japan, who coach MK Kaushik says is a tough side. The biggest worry for the Indians was the fitness of stylish striker Jyoti Sunita Kullu, who has a thigh muscle injury. The final decision, whether to keep Kullu in the 16 or not will be made only Sunday morning. "Jyoti is very important for us and even if we can use her even in spells, it will be fine," said Kaushik. The Indians have improved steadily and will strive to check the Japanese attack where Sachimi Iwao and Sakae Morimoto are dangerous. India lost to Japan twice at the Busan Asian Games and the stakes here are high. The winners here will get a direct entry into the 2006 World Cup. “The girls are in good spirit, we'll do our best," promised coach Kaushik ********************************* |
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© 2004 18 Til I Die.co.uk. All
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Gig pictures by Sebastian John
BA slams his strat to the delight of the 30,000 strong Delhi crowd
Finally BA gets to play Delhi
BA arrives at the airport
India is just goin BA crazy! |
