ROGER TAYLOR + COLIN MACLEOD – DE LA WARR PAVILION, BEXHILL-ON-SEA 17.10.21
Roger Taylor did not announce a Brighton concert on this tour, so we headed off to the iconic De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea for a night of music to remember.
Support this evening comes from Colin Macleod, a super-talented singer-songwriter hailing from the Isle of Lewis in Scotland. His envious double-life means that when he’s not tending to his croft and doing farming duties alongside his father, he can be found collaborating with the likes of Sheryl Crow. An established and still rising singer songwriter, Colin’s easy manner and soaring vocals at once win the crowd over. It’s true acoustic Americana at its best…a less-grungy Nirvana unplugged.
Find out about Colin’s ‘Hold Fast’ album HERE and HERE.
This is Roger Taylor’s biggest solo tour to date supporting his new Album ‘Outsider’ which was released by Universal on 1st October. Grab your copy HERE.
He may be 72 now, but the power of his voice is undeniable, demonstrating a superbly wide range and driven by an energy that belies his age. What his years have taught him is the ability to be comfortable on a stage in front of any size audience, and he also looked the part –the very definition of debonair, dressed in a brocade jacket, shades and sporting finely manicured steely white hair.
What we were treated to was a carefully curated set showing off tracks from the new album – but as ever, pepper potted with Queen favourites. ‘Under Pressure’, ‘It’s A Kind Of Magic’. and ‘Radio Ga-Ga’ (which ends the main set) all have the crowd up out of their seats and singing and clapping along.
The band are an accomplished set of musicians in their own right – Spike Edney on keyboards, Neil Fairclough on bass, Christian Mendoza on guitar, Tyler Warren on drums and multi-instrumentalist singers Tina Keys and Tyler Warren playing keyboards, violin, and drums. Together they create a formidable, saturated orchestra of sound and complex harmonies, topped off with Roger Taylor’s passionate vocals.
Standout songs from the new album include ‘Outsider’ – a number about being bullied, and ‘Surrender’ (with the beautiful vocals of Tina Keys), which challenges domestic violence.
‘More Kicks’ is an instrumental which really shows off the band’s skills and includes a beautiful violin part.
…and the battle of the drums between Tyler Warren and Roger Taylor makes full use of both kits and really raises the roof at DLWP.
The show comes to an end with a couple of all time classic covers from Led Zeppelin and Bowie.
Overall it’s an uplifting experience and real demonstration of the skills of some seriously talented musicians. There is a slight sense of it sitting somewhere between a top-of-the-range Queen tribute act and a finely polished and adeptly scored West End musical without a plot, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Roger Taylor setlist:
Intro tape: (‘Hoppipolla’ by Sigur Ros)
‘Strange Frontier’
‘Tenement Funster’ (Queen song)
‘We’re All Just Trying To Get By’
‘A Nation Of Haircuts’
‘These Are The Days Of Our Lives’ (Queen song)
‘Up’
‘Gangsters Are Running This World’
‘A Kind Of Magic’ (Queen song)
‘Absolutely Anything’
‘Surrender’
‘Man On Fire’
‘Rock It (Prime Jive)’ (Queen song)
‘Under Pressure’ (Queen and David Bowie song)
‘Say It’s Not True’ (Queen + Paul Rodgers song)
‘I’m In Love With My Car’ (Queen song)
‘Outsider’
‘More Kicks (Long Day’s Journey into Night… Life)’
‘Drum Battle’
‘Foreign Sand’
‘Radio Ga Ga’ (Queen song)
(encore)
‘Rock And Roll’ (Led Zeppelin cover)
‘”Heroes”’ (David Bowie cover)
