https://www.cluas.com/indie-music RSS feeds for CLUAS Irish Indie Music 60 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/Home/ID/571/George-Michael-live-in-Dublin#Comments 0 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=36&ModuleID=728&ArticleID=571 https://www.cluas.com:443/indie-music/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=571&PortalID=0&TabID=36 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/Home/ID/571/George-Michael-live-in-Dublin Review Snapshot:  Having returned from a performing exile in 2006 to promote his back catalogue of hits, this time George Michael brings his Symphonica Orchestra to Dublin, and while it may not have been the first time he’s had a horn section behind him, he proved he can songs from a wide range or artists ranging from Tim Buckley to Rihanna. The Cluas Verdict: 8 out of 10 Full Review: Dressed immaculately  in a dark suit and tie (like he does for his court appearances), tonight George Michael alternated between standing front of stage for up-tempo numbers like 'My Baby Just Cares For Me', to sitting on a stool for ballads 'Cowboys And Angels', 'True Faith' and 'You have Been Loved'. What becomes evident in the first half of the show is boredom setting in amongst the audience, with the increase in chatting volume while George does his best to keep their attention with unknown covers from the likes of Rufus Wainwright and Terence Trent D'Arby. It’s not until the up-tempo Bowie cover 'Wild Is The Wind' that the audience come to life, while 'Brother Can You Spare A Dime' puts the spotlight on the Orchestra for the first time. After a 20-minute interval the ballads continue. 'John & Elvis Are Dead' features a backdrop of Lennon and Presley images while 'Love Is A Losing Game' plays tribute to the late Amy Winehouse on the big screen. With the show entering its finale, the classics begin to appear. 'A Different Corner', 'Kissing A Fool' and 'Praying For Time' are elegantly performed by the band, meeting audience approval, while 'Roxanne' (with its video featuring real-life prostitutes) goes down well with all the heterosexual males present. For the encore we get all the up-tempo numbers like 'Amazing', the Wham! classic 'I’m Your Man', and 'Freedom ’90' brings the whole place to their feet. A second encore of 'I Remember You' is probably unnecessary but it doesn’t take away from a great evenings’ entertainment.  Those that went to the gig expecting the hits were five years behind the times but after 30 years in the business, George has proved he still has the voice for any genre of music and to a Wham! fan like me, this was Fantastic. Mick Lynch   mick Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:03:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:571 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/Home/ID/565/Brian-Wilson-live-in-Dublin#Comments 0 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/RssComments.aspx?TabID=36&ModuleID=728&ArticleID=565 https://www.cluas.com:443/indie-music/DesktopModules/DnnForge%20-%20NewsArticles/Tracking/Trackback.aspx?ArticleID=565&PortalID=0&TabID=36 https://www.cluas.com/indie-music/Home/ID/565/Brian-Wilson-live-in-Dublin Brian Wilson (Grand Canal Theatre, 7 September 2011) Snapshot Review: The legendary Beach Boy performs the music of two of the world’s greatest composers - Gershwin and Wilson - and a draw is a fair result. The Cluas Verdict: 8 out of 10 Full Review:  “About two years ago, I was approached by the Gershwin family to work on some of his music and the result was Wilson does Gershwin, and we’d like to sing those 14 songs for you now” was how Brian Wilson greeted the audience on his return to Dublin. Over the next 45 minutes he sat almost motionless behind the keyboard while his 10-piece band, (and a five-piece orchestra of Irish artists) playing a lounge selection of beautiful composed and arranged Gershwin pieces including ‘Summertime’, ‘It Ain’t Necessarily So’, ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ and ‘Someone To Watch Over You’. The band were faultless throughout, with a mix of brass instruments, keyboards and xylophone playing in time with each other majestically After the interval he returned to the Grand Canal Theatre stage, sat at the keyboard and launched into ‘California Girls’, ‘Dance Dance Dance’ and ‘Catch A Wave’. He invited the crowd to join him in a sing-a-long of ‘Mary Had A Little Lamb’ in an effort to recognise if we could sing our not. He announced ‘The Little Girl I Once Knew’ as his “sequel to California Girls” and played keyboards for the first time of the evening on ‘Salt Lake City’. His guitarist Jeffrey took lead on ‘Don’t Worry Baby’ as Wilson obviously struggled with the high notes, and he performed it adequately. For the majority of songs, Wilson took lead vocals, but on numerous occasions I could see him reading the lyrics from the monitor placed in front of him. ‘Do It Again’, ‘Darlin’ ‘’I Get Around’ and ‘Sloop John B’ were mixed in with lesser known, but just as great tunes like ‘Sail On Sailor’ and ‘Pet Sounds’. As the show went into overdrive, Brian stood up and put on his bass for a few number, while we were treated to ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice, Heroes And Villains’ and Good Vibrations while I saw Paul Brady clapping along to every tune. “Paul McCartney once told me that this is his favourite song of mine” was how Wilson introduced ‘God Only Knows’ to which one of his band members jokingly replied “have you met Paul McCartney?”. For the encore we got the Chuck Berry classic ‘Johnny B Goode’, ‘Help Me Rhonda’, ‘Barbara Ann’ and ‘Surfin USA’ which had everyone in the venue on their feet singing along, and the final encore consisted of ‘All Summer Long’. While there’s no doubt that it’s the band around Wilson that are making this music sound so good, Brian’s presence is certainly required and if this is the last appearance by this icon here in Ireland, it was a great way to bow out and be remembered. Mick Lynch mick Sat, 10 Sep 2011 16:19:00 GMT f1397696-738c-4295-afcd-943feb885714:565