You know that the state borders are coming down and the country is starting to reopen when Jon Stevens comes to town. Tonight was the first of three-side shows Stevens had managed to arrange for music-hungry fans and even though this is very much a similar set-list as his last visit back in 2019, it is filled with some of Australia’s best loved rock songs that were clearly written to induce as much crowd participation as possible and you can never tire of a songbook like that.
Once again it was Melbourne singer-songwriter Taylor Sheridan who had the job of warming the crowd and he did that just brilliantly. With his charismatic delivery and crisp repertoire, Sheridan enchanted the crowd, who have been starved of interstate artists for over a year. For me, Taylor is a kind of Ed Sheeran crossed with David Gray with a dusting of James Blunt… only far better. His songs are catchy and extremely well performed and these are only enhanced by the individual short tales of how and why they are written. It can never be easy to stand front & centre and even more so when not supported by a live band backing you up but tonight Taylor Sheridan absolutely nailed it, especially with his stunning version of ABBA’s ‘SOS’.
Dressed in black jeans, black open necked shirt & black suit jacket Jon Stevens skipped onto the stage and immediately fired off one of his biggest hits in ‘Touch’. The response was instantaneous, as many in the room rose to their feet in unison. “Hang on! You’re allowed to dance here in WA? Wow, you guys are progressing well!” joked Stevens before keeping his foot well & truly on the pedal with the first of eight songs from the INXS songbook in ‘New Sensation’. And that’s how the set continued throughout the evening with alternating tracks from Noiseworks and INXS, which worked perfectly. ‘Devil Inside’ & ‘Love Somebody’ continued the barrage of hits, with the front of stage a mass of dancing bodies, which clearly the band & Stevens appreciated.
Backed once again by his super-tight band of incredible musicians including a rythmn section comprising of drummer Johnny Salerno (Suzi Quatro, Vanesa Amorosi) and bassist Chris Bekker, Stevens teased & toyed with the Mandurah audience as he powered through the set-list, encouraging the crowd to sing along at every opportunity. Jon is often dubbed ‘Rock Royalty’ here in the country he has made his home and it’s easy to see why – he seems to deliver the songs effortlessly but with such incredible emotion that you are hooked on every word & syllable. Songs like the anthemic ‘Never Tear Us Apart’ forced the whole room to sway & sing in unison before that saxophone solo from the wonderful Glenn Reither allowed everyone a moment to fill their lungs once again. Lead guitarist Sammy Vincent along with rythmn guitarist & lead backing vocalist Tony Kopa completed the line-up and all were allowed to shine throughout the seventeen-song set, especially when they were all introduced to the crowd one by one to show off their individual talents.
‘What Ya Need’, ‘No Lies’ & ‘Need You Tonight’ ensured the party atmosphere continued before another obvious favorite, ‘Hot Chili Woman’ threatened to take the roof off Mandurah Performing Arts Centre. ‘Don’t Change’ & ‘Take Me Back’ completed the set with Stevens & his entourage leaving the stage to rapturous applause. If they hadn’t returned, I’m sure the whole room wouldn’t of complained but return they did and started the encore with a real treat. ‘In My Youth’ is a track Jon admitted has not been played in a while and “we may mess it up”… but we didn’t care and even when Stevens had a slight vocal wobble, it was nothing a swig from his ‘magic’ cup couldn’t fix (“Vodka, the tea bag is a decoy” we were informed). The night ended as it started, in full swing, as INXS’s ‘Kick’ completed this stunning night of live music.
The second of the side shows will see Jon & his band head further south to Bunbury before joining a star-studded sold out Red Hot Summer Tour line-up at Sandalford’s Winery in the Swan Valley, before his final show at Freo.Social in Fremantle on Sunday. If you want a night of sing-a-long rock hits to take your mind off the worries of this troubling world, then this is one show you need to attend! Bravo JS & his band, Bravo!
Set List: Touch, New Sensation, Burning Feeling, Devil Inside, Love Somebody, Original Sin, Miles & Miles, Never Tear Us Apart, Voice of Reason, What Ya Need, No Lies, Need You Tonight, Hot Chili Woman, Don’t Change, Take Me Back
Encore: In My Youth, Kick
REMAINING WA DATES
Friday April 9 – Prince of Wales, Bunbury
Tix: https://www.moshtix.com.au
Saturday April 10 – Red Hot Summer Tour, Sandalford Winery, Swan Valley
Sunday April 11 – Freo.Social, Fremantle
Tix: https://www.moshtix.com.au
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Sharon Burgess Photography
