Cool Palmer: 1989 Singapore Concert Review

Publié le par olivier

Robert Palmer, the doyen of the cool school of smart-suited rockers, demonstrated his hip ability to hold an audience without resorting to kinetic frenzy at Top Ten in Singapore last Wednesday night. 

For nearly two hours, Palmer and his crack seven-piece groove crew, including chanteuse B.J. Nelson who provided most of the backing vocals, kept the sybaritic crowd on their feet with 28 songs that spanned almost every phase of his solo career. And despite the overpowering sonic assault (Top Ten is a dance club that lacks the acoustic advantages of a major concert venue), Palmer was at his expressive best, singing with soulful verve throughout.

The Top Ten dance club at Orchad Towers in Singapore (1980s)

The Top Ten dance club at Orchad Towers in Singapore (1980s)

The show began with a brief mood-setting instrumental that segued into a scorching version of Some Like It Hot. The man himself came on stage and charged into the tune with inspired ebullience. Palmer has reached such a level of excellence in his live performances now that his pitching and inflection are almost always spot-on. And the eclecticism of his craft is such that he can move from a funk or rock beat to a bossa nova or reggae rhythm with natural ease.

Things slowed down with the Johnny Burke-Jimmy Van Heusen standard It Could Happen To You, rendered in a smoky, sinuous fashion. After leaving the spotlight to B.J. Nelson for a song from her debut album, he returned to do more songs from Heavy Nova, climaxing and concluding the set with a power-packed rendition of Simply Irresistible.

The audience refused to budge, and after a concerted chorus of "We Want More", Palmer came back to do a five-song encore. A smooth version of All Shook Up, done in doo-wop style, had the crowd jiving, and by the time he launched into his last number, Addicted To Love, the whole joint was jumping.

(The New Straits Times - March 1989)

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