Richard Clapton at The Gov Friday February 2020
Richard Clapton made an entrance without his guitar and opened with four new songs, fitting in between them, the familiar Capricorn Dancer where he reached for his guitar and announced to long-time fans that he is celebrating 45 years in the business of rock and roll.
One new song Liberty Bell was dedicated to Donald Trump, why not! Another major highlight was Deepwater, as Clapton continued with jovial banter to the audience in between songs throughout the set. Successful singles as Ace of Hearts, I Am an Island and Distant Thunder were included in the 13 song set.
During the set Clapton exited briefly and returned to stage and then at the end of the set whilst waiting for the encore, there were reports that he had collapsed just after the final song whilst walking to the green room. There was a little confusion as to whether he would return for the encore but once the roadies started bumping out, that was it. On Clapton’s official Facebook stage, yes he did collapse and a nurse was called for. Richard Clapton made a statement ” My apologies for not making it through to the encore. I had major surgery recently and have been recovering well. I thought I was ready to go back on the road but unfortunately I thought wrong. However I loved the band, the audience and the Gov so despite my imploding at the end of the set I hope you all had as much fun as we did”
Included in the Encore were Best Years, his most famous song from 1975 Girls on the Avenue and Goodbye Tiger unfortunately the audience didn’t get to hear these A disappointing finish to a good gig. A great turnout given the competition which is around now with the Adelaide Festival opening the same night, so he has a lot of dedicated fans.
Review and photos by Damian Woodards.
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