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2019 visit
Ferry And Friends Serve Up Super Concert
by Jeremy Ruane
A touch over thirty years since his first solo visit to New Zealand, Bryan Ferry graced our shores in March 2019 with a show every bit as slick as all those he has produced here previously - and this writer's been to all six of his Auckland shows over the years!
His latest was at Spark Arena on 7 March 2019, another stop on a world tour which has already seen him sweep through South Africa and Australia, with Japan next on the agenda prior to a brief break before Europe, the UK and North America are treated to the songs and sounds of a man who always does things with a fine sense of style.
And so it was in this concert. From the first beats of opening song "The Main Thing", Bryan and his band were right on song, slickly and smoothly slipping through the gears as hits such as "Slave To Love" and "Don't Stop The Dance" cascaded around the arena, the latter introducing us to the sexy saxophone work of Jorja Chalmers.
A trip back in time to some vintage Roxy Music tracks, "Ladytron" and "Out Of The Blue", was next on the setlist, with Marina Moore's violin solo as exquisite on the latter as Chalmers' haunting oboe introduction was to the former.
"Oh Yeah" was a very popular Roxy Music hit in New Zealand in 1980, and was very well received by this Kiwi audience nearly four decades later, as was "Tokyo Joe", which pre-dates its predecessor in this setlist by three years.
A change of mood followed, "A Waste Land" morphing into the sultry rock-samba of "Windswept", for this writer one of Ferry's finest songs ever - and there are plenty of contenders on that front!
Chalmers was to the fore once more with her saxophone work - she was a scene stealer throughout the evening, while the guitar solos throughout the concert of Chris Spedding, a long-time contributor to Ferry's music, showcased his skills splendidly as he effortlessly switched from lead to rhythm to Spanish guitar as each song required.
"Bete Noire" was brilliantly delivered, the drumming of Luke Bullen intertwining with the percussion work of backing vocalists Hannah Khemoh and Aleysha Lei before Ferry's atmospheric vocals, Spedding's Spanish guitar work and Moore's violin playing on "Zamba" gave the song a live edge which one struggles to imagine when listening to the album version.
A surprise - and a genuine highlight of the concert - was a hidden gem from the Roxy Music catalogue in the form of "Stronger Through The Years", with Jerry Meehan's bass work highly prominent.
Another swiftly followed, with keyboardist Richard Cardwell and a solitary spotlight the lone accompaniments to Ferry as he stunned the audience into awe-struck silence with a scorching harmonica-enhanced rendition of Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright".
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The thunderous applause and roars of approval which met the final note of this song were genuine acknowledgement of a master craftsman at work, and he was joined by his band members again for a barrage of Roxy Music classics, each rendition tastefully performed.
The magical "My Only Love", the always-enthralling "In Every Dream Home A Heartache", "If There Is Something" - Jorja's stunning horn work again a highlight … the hits kept on coming.
Cue two of the biggest of them all, "More Than This" and "Avalon", both of which were well received by the audience, a fair few of whom are only familiar with the handful of Ferry's songs which are afforded regular airplay on New Zealand's radio stations.
Proof of this was witnessed fairly early on in proceedings, when one patron yelled out "Play something that we (expletive deleted) know!", a cry which Bryan rightly treated with the contempt it deserved.
Never for him a concert of his greatest hits alone. His broad and deep catalogue of creativity is such that he could play for six hours at least and still have us yearning for more.
This concert-goer loved this one, as it's not often you go to a performance these days and, in this attendee's case, know all the words to all the songs. "Love Is The Drug" went down a storm with all-comers, while the pulse was maintained with "Remake / Remodel", complete with its catchy "CPL5938" chant and solo spots for all the band to exploit.
Yet another Roxy classic was unleashed next, with "Editions Of You" thundering along to the pounding beat of Bullen's powerhouse drumming, before the rhythm was toned down - but not the audience's delight.
The opening chords of "Jealous Guy" were as well received as the guitar and saxophone solos within it, and we all cheered Bryan's whistling solo before he briefly left the stage, swiftly returning for the final number of the night, another long-time Kiwi favourite in "Let's Stick Together", with Ferry's harmonica-playing and Spedding's guitar solo intertwining superbly throughout.
And with that, Bryan Ferry and his brilliantly tight band were gone once more from these shores, perhaps never to return again. Since his first solo visit in October 1988, he has visited NZ just four times more - in January / February 2004, December 2007, with Roxy Music in March 2011, and now on this world tour in what is his 74th year.
Cue some "Remake/Remodel" lyrics which fit the circumstances perfectly:
"Next time is the best time, we all know. But if there is no next time, where to go?"
Avalon, perhaps. "Now the party's over …"
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