Melbourne 9.3.05
Well, I'd have to say the adventure started when we first heard the news that Keith and the guys were coming back to OZ and our excitement was then topped off when we managed to get front row tickets - purely by luck mind you.
We had to buy our tickets directly off the internet and although I was stressing out about my ISP connection not working just when I needed it to most (that's usually how my luck goes!), thankfully all went well and I logged into the ticket website without a hassle. As soon as the clock struck 9.00am I clicked on the 'Buy Tickets' button and requested three seats - to my amazement three seats showed up in Row A. I actually stared at the screen for a few seconds wondering if I was reading correctly! Even after I completed the transaction AND a few weeks later when our tickets arrived, I still kept telling myself there was no way we could have front row tickets - maybe there were some AA, AAA and AAAA rows in front of us somehow - LOL!
Anyway, we still had a few months to wait for the big day so the tickets were put on the fridge where I could make sure they didn't disappear anywhere - as I had fears of putting them away somewhere safe and then forgetting where I'd put them (and yes, I have done that sort of thing before! Aaarrggghhh!!!).
Before we knew it the weather had warmed up, Christmas and New Year had flown by and suddenly it was only a few weeks from tour time. I managed to get a great deal on an apartment in Melbourne for two nights, took a few days annual leave from work (mind you, any excuse to get time off work is a good one!!!) and before we knew it Wednesday the 9th of March had arrived and we were on the road doing the two hour drive from Bendigo to Melbourne!
My brother Tony and his wife Renee were coming to the show with me and my Mum Ruth also joined us for the few days in Melbourne (as far as she's concerned, any break away from the housework is a good one!!!). We checked into our apartment around 2.00pm - had a wander around the premises (we were definitely going to have to check out the pool and gym later) and then managed to quell our excitement long enough to have a bite to eat.
Although the venue wasn't that far from where we were staying we still decided to take a taxi. What a big mistake! I think we would have been much better walking! We ended up stuck in peak hour traffic with the trip to the venue taking nearly 25 minutes with the fare being just over $18. As a comparison, the taxi back at the end of the night took about 8 minutes and cost $6. Crazy!
Not long after we arrived at the venue, the doors opened and we made our way to the front row (and no, there thankfully wasn't any AA, AAA or AAAA rows! LOL!). And to make it even better we were just to one side of Keith's microphone - talk about a bonus! We had a nice security guard come over and say hi and have a chat to us. He had a seat just to the right of us (in between the stage and the barrier we were standing at) and although he was lovely, I was stressing out about my camera and any films getting confiscated. Of course I HAD to get some photos for Cer and TroobTalk so I had my fingers crossed! Then just before the show started, the security guys were moved to the far end of the stage and my nerves ceased just a little! As it was, there were plenty of people taking photos and I think security were really only concerned about large 'professional' looking cameras - thank goodness. Although that meant poor Keith had to put up with me taking 1000 photos of him! Well, it wasn't quite 1000 but e was lovely, I was stressing out about my camera and any films getting confiscated. Of co"urse I HAD to get some photos
Firstly we were treated to a short set by our first Australian Idol runner up Shannon Noll. I must admit that although he seems a good guy, I wasn't overly impressed with his voice during the TV show. But I am perfectly happy to eat my words as he put on a great show and sounded fantastic. It was obvious that he was enjoying supporting Bryan and was in fact a fan of BA's himself.
After Shannon bid farewell to the crowd, the stage was all action getting ready for the main show. It was around 9.15pm when the lights finally dimmed, the usual roar erupted and our guys hit the stage!
The show started with a couple of songs from the new album and then it was a fantastic trip down memory lane with songs from across the years and albums. For an oldie like me it was a real blast!
There were plenty of highlights of the night. There was a long deliberation when it came to Bryan selecting his "When You're Gone" girl! There were plenty of girls offering to help him out and he finally chose Kelly from Mont Albert (although I think Bryan kept saying Mount Albert!). He asked her what she did for a living, and after saying she worked in payroll, she didn't seem keen to elaborate! But Bryan wasn't going to leave it there and finally after plenty of prodding, we found out she worked for Bunnings Hardware! Kelly may not have had the greatest of voices but she certainly had fun bumping and grinding with Bryan on stage! I was just about to say, who wouldn't have fun on stage with Bryan - but I have to admit if I ended up on stage I'd probably stand there completely frozen to the spot and make a complete fool of myself! Aaarrggghhh - not for me I think! LOL!
Bryan mentioned early in the night that there was going to be a couple of surprises for the last show and he didn't disappoint. Bryan surprised as all by inviting Brian McFadden onto the stage and they did a fantastic version of "I'm Ready". Then a few songs later Bryan invited Shannon Noll back onto the stage and they sang Please Forgive Me together. Bryan seemed pretty impressed with Shannon and as mentioned, it was obvious that Shannon was rapt to be supporting Bryan.
Another highlight during "Best of Me" was Bryan jumping down into the gap between the stage and the barrier to say hi to the fans, shake hands and even stop to take a photo with a fan's camera - I'm sure she'll be hanging on to that photo! It was funny seeing them bring a ladder out so Bryan could get back on stage afterwards though! LOL!
I have to say that our guy was fantastic, although I also need to admit that I'm completely biased! I don't know where he gets his energy from when he's on stage! He was actually quite well behaved at our show but I did hear stories about underwear and g-strings being thrown around the stage at other OZ shows! I can see I'm going to have to save up and try and get to more than one show next time K-man tours down under!
Bryan finished off the night with a few acoustic songs on his own. The whole crowd sang along which sounded great - although as far as I was concerned, that was an extra four songs without the K-man! Bummer! LOL!
The set list for the show was:
Room Service
Open Road
18 Til I Die
Lets Make a Night to Remember
Can't Stop This Thing We Started
Kids Wanna Rock
Back To You
Summer of 69
Everything I Do
Cuts Like a Knife
When You're Gone
Nowhere Fast
Heaven
I'm Ready (w/Brian McFadden)
SomebodyThe Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You
Cloud Number 9
Run To You
Best Of Me
Please Forgive Me (w/Shannon Noll)
Flying*
All For Love*
Straight From The Heart*
Room Service*
* All acoustic with only Bryan
So before we knew it another show had come to an end - and all I can say is that one show was definitely not enough!
Our adventure wasn't quite over though. Tony, Renee and I met up with fan club members Lorri and Lucy backstage and spent some time chatting to Keith. He was as usual a wonderful host! One of the highlights was definitely when the laptop came out and we got to see some gorgeous photos of Noa and Wyatt. I'm sure Noa has learnt her mischievous ways from Dad!
It was also great to hear that Keith's album is pretty much finished. It's great news for all us Troobies and also for anyone else who's lucky enough to get their hands on it - as the track Keith played for us on his laptop sounded fantastic - even if it was through tiny little speakers!
We chatted to Keith for a little while longer - we all commented on Kelly Osbourne's singing (or lack thereof) at the MTV Australia Music Awards that the guys had attended. Talk about a scary performance! LOL! It seems Keith got the chance to enjoy some Aussie wines - which was fitting considering the guys performed at some wineries during this tour! We also warned Keith about his impending appearance on The Footy Show the following night. The show is supposed to be about Australian Rules Football but anything and everything else usually happens - hopefully they all survived! LOL!
Then all to soon it was time to say farewells. It was great to chat with Lucy and Lorri - hopefully we'll get to say hi again next time around.
And a very special thank you to Keith once again. I have no doubt your time is at a premium when you're on tour but you always seems to find the time to catch up and say hi. I know Tony and Renee were over the moon to see you, even though by the time we left the venue they were almost half asleep (that will teach them for getting up at 6.00am that morning because they were too excited to sleep!).
Take care, thanks for everything and hopefully it's not too long before we get to say g'day again.
Keep rockin'