Blondie & Cyndi Lauper w/- the Clouds - Kings Park, 12th April 2017
Words: Karen Lowe
For the last A Day on the Green show for the season, April handed those present a spectacular day - the perfect weather for keeping everyone cool, as the acts that were about to appear on stage would raise the temperature of the park by several degrees.
Melbourne singer/songwriter Alex Lahey was first on stage. Unfortunately, she was a tad early so a lot of people missed the first few songs of her set. What this reviewer saw though was a brilliant performance by a very talented singer. Tracks played included Wes Anderson, You Don't Think You Like People Like Me and Perth Traumatic Stress Disorder, a song “about being dumped in Perth.” Those that were there loved her set. She is a bit pop, a bit rock and one to keep an eye out on as she will be a force to be reckoned with before long.
As Lahey’s set drew to a close, a few people had arrived with their tragically 80's outfits and the finding the best spot to watch the stage from was getting more and more difficult by the minute as people streamed through the doors.
The Clouds, a band from Sydney that formed in 1989, were next. They started their set with Fear the Moon, Bower of Bliss and Say It. It’s been a long time between drinks for the band, breaking up in 1997 and only playing a handful of shows since reforming in 2011. Their Zaffre EP is their first new music in 20 years and they played all three tracks to a warm response. They were fun to watch and many people there were excited to see them for the first time. They ended their set with glorious harmonies of Hieronymus and Boy of Air. “Thanks so much! We've just had the best time on this tour! Thanks to everyone involved!”
Melbourne singer/songwriter Alex Lahey was first on stage. Unfortunately, she was a tad early so a lot of people missed the first few songs of her set. What this reviewer saw though was a brilliant performance by a very talented singer. Tracks played included Wes Anderson, You Don't Think You Like People Like Me and Perth Traumatic Stress Disorder, a song “about being dumped in Perth.” Those that were there loved her set. She is a bit pop, a bit rock and one to keep an eye out on as she will be a force to be reckoned with before long.
As Lahey’s set drew to a close, a few people had arrived with their tragically 80's outfits and the finding the best spot to watch the stage from was getting more and more difficult by the minute as people streamed through the doors.
The Clouds, a band from Sydney that formed in 1989, were next. They started their set with Fear the Moon, Bower of Bliss and Say It. It’s been a long time between drinks for the band, breaking up in 1997 and only playing a handful of shows since reforming in 2011. Their Zaffre EP is their first new music in 20 years and they played all three tracks to a warm response. They were fun to watch and many people there were excited to see them for the first time. They ended their set with glorious harmonies of Hieronymus and Boy of Air. “Thanks so much! We've just had the best time on this tour! Thanks to everyone involved!”
The main two acts had alternated times each night across the two week national tour and for Perth, Blondie was up first. They were not taking any prisoners as they opened straight up with One Way or Another, Hanging on the Telephone, new track Fun and Call Me. The dance floor was crowded and people were standing all over Kings Park dancing in their spots. “What a beautiful location! What a beautiful park.” Debbie Harry told the audience.
She may be 71 but she showed everyone there that she still has it and more. Their performance was on point and Harry owned the stage with Rapture and a killer version of The Beastie Boys (You Gotta Fight) For Your Right (To Party).
They also played two new songs from their upcoming album, Pollinator - Fragments and Long Time. Harry told the crowd that they will be donating some of the profits from the sale of the album to “saving the bees all over the world – the least I could do since I use honey in my tea.” before playing one more new one, Gravity.
They finished their set with Heart of Glass before leaving the stage. “Thank you all so very, very much!” Harry said when they came back on for their encore. “We've got Cyndi Lauper coming up but we're not finished with you yet!” as they ended with Too Much and Dreaming. While it was just a tad bit disappointing that they didn't play The Tide Is High they wowed the audience and left everyone in high spirits.
Cyndi Lauper walked out on stage carrying her suitcase of memories and danced around with it for Funnel of Love, She Bop and I Drove All Night and just dominated Kings Park with her energy and personality. She was extremely chatty and charismatic. It was just so
She may be 71 but she showed everyone there that she still has it and more. Their performance was on point and Harry owned the stage with Rapture and a killer version of The Beastie Boys (You Gotta Fight) For Your Right (To Party).
They also played two new songs from their upcoming album, Pollinator - Fragments and Long Time. Harry told the crowd that they will be donating some of the profits from the sale of the album to “saving the bees all over the world – the least I could do since I use honey in my tea.” before playing one more new one, Gravity.
They finished their set with Heart of Glass before leaving the stage. “Thank you all so very, very much!” Harry said when they came back on for their encore. “We've got Cyndi Lauper coming up but we're not finished with you yet!” as they ended with Too Much and Dreaming. While it was just a tad bit disappointing that they didn't play The Tide Is High they wowed the audience and left everyone in high spirits.
Cyndi Lauper walked out on stage carrying her suitcase of memories and danced around with it for Funnel of Love, She Bop and I Drove All Night and just dominated Kings Park with her energy and personality. She was extremely chatty and charismatic. It was just so
captivating listening to her speak and tell her stories in her strong New York accent about Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline and the Dalai Lama. While most could have sat there listening to her talk all night, someone down the front must have heckled her as she told us she would “make a long story short; oops, fucking sorry!” (clearly not sorry of course but no one minded at all).
She also played Witness, Rain On Me and crowd favourite, The Goonies 'R' Good Enough (which so many there recalled such fond memories of one of the defining movies of their generation). For her last song, Money Changes Everything, she said to her band “let's try this arrangement.” To the crowd, “Hey there's a lot of different arrangements! What do you wanna do?” showing us that sass that everyone fell in love with in the beginning and ended the show with a bang.
For her encore, she came back on and told us another story about the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Award (Wangari Maathai), only to finish the story with how a gorgeous African man had told her that “I lost my virginity” to the next song. “Listen! Who's gonna talk to you like this?” she ended with her voice croaky throughout and making you wonder just how she would sound. It wasn’t an issue however, as she sung Time After Time perfectly, the whole crowd singing along and this reviewer may or may not have shed a tear, along with many others there.
For Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, she got the crowd to participate, “Kinda like Row, Row, Row Your Boat.” Again, the whole crowd was singing and the dance floor was crowded as everyone sung at the top of their voices. “I love you guys!” as she walked off once more.
Of course, she wasn't going to leave without singing True Colors - another goosebump inducing performance and more shed tears. “Good night, I love you! I'll see you next time Perth!”
There is something so special about seeing these iconic acts performing on stage. The night was all about memories of childhood; first songs; first crushes and there is nothing quite like that feeling of seeing your memories brought back to life by these oh so powerful women. The smiles on everyone's faces and the warmth in their hearts said it all. What a way to finish the summer season!
She also played Witness, Rain On Me and crowd favourite, The Goonies 'R' Good Enough (which so many there recalled such fond memories of one of the defining movies of their generation). For her last song, Money Changes Everything, she said to her band “let's try this arrangement.” To the crowd, “Hey there's a lot of different arrangements! What do you wanna do?” showing us that sass that everyone fell in love with in the beginning and ended the show with a bang.
For her encore, she came back on and told us another story about the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Award (Wangari Maathai), only to finish the story with how a gorgeous African man had told her that “I lost my virginity” to the next song. “Listen! Who's gonna talk to you like this?” she ended with her voice croaky throughout and making you wonder just how she would sound. It wasn’t an issue however, as she sung Time After Time perfectly, the whole crowd singing along and this reviewer may or may not have shed a tear, along with many others there.
For Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, she got the crowd to participate, “Kinda like Row, Row, Row Your Boat.” Again, the whole crowd was singing and the dance floor was crowded as everyone sung at the top of their voices. “I love you guys!” as she walked off once more.
Of course, she wasn't going to leave without singing True Colors - another goosebump inducing performance and more shed tears. “Good night, I love you! I'll see you next time Perth!”
There is something so special about seeing these iconic acts performing on stage. The night was all about memories of childhood; first songs; first crushes and there is nothing quite like that feeling of seeing your memories brought back to life by these oh so powerful women. The smiles on everyone's faces and the warmth in their hearts said it all. What a way to finish the summer season!