Quintessential

I had 2 brushes with professional rock musicianship in my days in Adelaide in the early '70s and I failed in both.  I look back and I'm not unhappy and I can understand.  The character demands of rock/pop are very different from those of jazz and it's jazz that I discovered then through ABC Music to Midnight and it's the path I chose.  Nonetheless, I can admire good rock and popular music and Cold Chisel were it.  This was my first CC gig and they are now a mature, hugely experienced band and their commitment, chops, musicality and toughly-expressed but sometimes heart-rendering stories remain clearly on show.  This was their 50th anniversary tour and the show at Stage88 and it was a sell-out with a quite mature audience.  Supports started at ~5.45 with Karen Lee Andrews, then a longer and louder set with The Cruel Sea.  CC came on at 7.45 and ended after 2 encores of several songs each at 9.45.  That's two solid hours mostly with tracks running into each other and just a few short interludes, for Jimmy Barnes to say very few words, then once for a slightly longer chat.  This was intense.  Sweat they name is rock and this was where it's at.  They worked hard.  Ian Moss sang a surprising number of tunes and harmonies came from guitar and drums, perhaps keys.  He was on a few strats throughout.  Don Walker was primarily played a Yamaha portable grand piano (not sure of the model) and I think Nord for organ and keys.  Pretty sure bassist Phil Small played a Fender JB.  Not that I could see well from the distance.  Bass was simple and solid; drums similar if sometimes more expansive.  Nothing unexpected: this is high rock competence and perfectly apt.  Guitar took the key solo role and this was thrilling, all fast bluesy runs and screaming high notes and bends and bars and wonderfully tasteful and capable in the style.  A stunner and hugely pleasurable to hear.  Keys were foundational, busy with occasional short solos and some essential and famed entries.  There were several support players, on bari/alto sax and later on blues harp.  But ultimately voice was the core message, raspy and direct from Jimmy and clear and high from Ian, and some harmonies including occasionally from a trio of women, I think.  A review of the Melbourne gig by Craig Eriksson at Australian Musician lists 18 songs then 3 and 2 in two encores and a 2-hour gig.  Much the same here.  Flame trees then Khe Sanh announced the end and driving rocker Goodbye (Astrid) marked the final tune of the second encore and the arrival of Hit the road, Jack (don't you come back no more) just confirmed it.  Amusing all that.  I was entranced by this show.  Some songs were blissfully purposeful in a hard shell; others perhaps just rockers.  But the standouts are classics of the era.  Congrats to the band.  Some real stars, as performers and also as composers.  Truly quintessential Australian rock music.

Cold Chisel performed on their 50th anniversary tour at Stage88.  Current members of CC comprise Jimmy Barnes (vocals), Ian Moss (guitar, vocals), Don Walker (piano, keys), Phil Small (bass) and Charley Drayton (drums). Three female singers, a saxist (baritone, alto) and a blues harpist also performed.