Australian Rock Collective
Thebarton Theatre
Sunday 15 May 2022
Words by Geoff Jenke (all I Me Mine)
Advertised as the 50th Anniversary Tour, it was actually the 52nd Anniversary of the Beatles album Let It Be release by the time the show hit Adelaide. Such is the world of today and the last two years.
Tonight, the Australian Rock Collective playing the show, consisted of Kram (Spiderbait), Darren Middleton (Powderfinger), Mark Wilson (Jet) and Davey Lane (You Am I), all self-confessed tragic Beatles fans.
Me? I am a massive Stones fan so sit nicely in the opposition camp. When I was a school, you either loved the Beatles or the Stones and I was with the Stones. However, that didn’t stop me sneaking down to the record shop to buy a few Beatle singles. I do love and appreciate the Beatles so hopefully all is forgiven, although Let It Be is probably my least favourite Beatle album. Could be in for an interesting night then.
Other than a couple at the famed Abbey Road roof top concert, the Beatles never played these songs live. I can say that this band of musical legends did the album proud. The album was played in track listing order with each member taking songs to sing (except Mark Wilson who stood back giving a solid bass backing). Davey Lane, looking more 1980’s Keith Richard than any of the Beatles, and Darren Middleton started with Two of Us and Davey then doing Dig a Pony. With a double drum sound, Kram along with Brett Wolfendon, Across the Universe has never sounded so powerful.
Kram ran through the audience, getting them to clap in time while Darren covered the vocals on I Me Mine. What an energizer bunny Kram is. He never stays still, running all over the stage, theatre, all the while waving his arms. Davey Lane’s guitar work turned Dig It into a full-fledged hard rock song. Kram enticed people to get the torches out for Let It Be while he was singing the song.
I Got a Feeling got the people up on their feet and Kram told us “You may as well keep standing as the next song is a rocker”, with the band launching into One After 909, sung by Brett Wolfendon, complete with Beatle wig and Ringo moustache and Ringo mannerism’s.
It was here than the band made a slight deviation on the track listing, putting in Don’t Let Me Down, originally the B-side to Get Back. A good decision as it is a wonderful song. Darren covered The Long and Winding Road and For You Blue, while Kram came to the front for the final track of the album Get Back. It rocked and rocked hard with Davey doing the Pete Townshend windmill action on guitar multiple times.
Rather than do a Beatles greatest hits second half, something they did at the Abbey Road show, the band had decided to cover the Beatle solo years. With Maybe I’m Amazed and Mind Games being followed by the Paul McCartney song Junk this sounded like a great idea. There is nowhere else you will hear the song Junk played live. Mother was sung by Kram with all the passion of Lennon’s original. Brett came out from the drum rise to sing Ringo’s Photograph displaying all of Ringo’s goofiness.
Kram played guitar, solo, on Working Class Hero, effectively shadowed by a single spot light. A spine-tingling moment. While Darren sang Imagine, Davey played drums. There is no end to the talent of these guys.
By this time, I had realized George Harrison had been totally over looked. It had been a John and Paul show, with one from Ringo. A travesty, as George probably wrote as many great songs after the end of The Beatles as John and Paul. Darren rectified this slightly with a lovely version of All Things must Pass, but that was it for George. Instead, we get more Paul with Jet/Venus and Mars and a really bad, way too long version of Mull of Kintyre to finish the show.
There was some redemption with a stirring Instant Karma to send us home.
The Australian Rock Collective won me over with their performance of the album Let It Be. I now need to reassess where this album stands in the Beatles arsenal of albums. You could not fault the musicianship of the artist involved.
The second part of the show, songs from solo Beatles was a brilliant idea. However, it had its highs and lows in song selection. More George would have been nice.
I’ve got a feeling many will disagree, but I will let it be at that. Dig it or dig a pony.
A bit of trivia; Let It Be may have been the final Beatles studio album released, but it was recorded before Abbey Road.
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