It’s a Tuesday evening, the work week is still far from over but that doesn’t seem to make any difference to the jam-packed Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne, Australia. Everybody is buzzing with anticipation for Rob Thomas to hit the stage to showcase his latest album, Chipped Tooth Smile.
Thomas’ well rehearsed and well meshed band takes the stage and if the opening song ‘I Love It’ which is also a track of the new album hasn’t been specifically tailored for the Arenas, it certainly deserves that status. As Abe Fogle who has been playing with Rob Thomas since 2005 unleashes his loud drums into the new song, the crowd erupts and Thomas makes an enthusiastic appearance matching the high voltage atmosphere of the crowd. He is fittingly wearing a Chipped Tooth Smile tour shirt and a denim jacket with wings on the back.
As hands clap to the catchy ‘I Love It’ and everybody bounces in sync to the beat, the vibe is set. Everybody is in for a treat.
Thomas follows with a Matchbox 20 staple hit ‘Real World’. His fans are, of course, much obliged.
As the seasoned performer he is, Rob Thomas knows how to take his public into the journey he planned for them. The shows continues with ‘Lonely No More’ and ‘Her Diamonds’ with an energetic Thomas taking advantage of every corner of the stage to engage with his audience.
He changes pace for his next song ‘If You’re Gone’, another crowd favourite. He explains the story behind it: ‘Once I fell in love with this girl, then she realised she was dating a guy in a band. As you know girls are much smarter than us. She broke up with me. I made this song to get her back. And it worked.’ – he adds with a smile.
For the next song Thomas brings out his guitar to play ‘Getting Late’, a song that addresses Death. Still he won’t allow the mood to sullen as he puts it lightly ‘This is a happy song’, then smiles ‘About Death’ as he starts strumming the first notes. What follows is the new song ‘Can’t Help Me Now’ followed by ‘Streetcorner Symphony’.
What comes next is a powerful anthem celebrating life and stating that getting older is ok, with ‘One Less Day (Dying Young)’, the first hit of his new album, Rob Thomas message is delivered in an honest, candid way as fans join him to sing ‘I’m not afraid of getting older, I’m one less day from dying young’. The connection between Thomas and his public is undeniable and quite moving.
As lights dim an upright piano is brought onstage. Thomas starts introducing the next song saying he was asked to write a song to a Disney movie. It came together on one particular night after a sold out concert. He says ‘I realized I had made it – I am the vocalist of the greatest rock band, I am a rock god – at least in my opinion’ – he jokes ‘and later that day I had to take my dog Tyler out for a poop in the rain, so one minute I’m right at the top and the next I’m carrying a poop bag. I thought ‘man I hate this I want to be up there, not here’. And then I look at my dog and I realise he was so ridiculously happy to be there with me, like that was the best moment of his life and then it hit me, my dog knows something I don’t, and that’s how ‘Little Wonders’ came to life, thinking about all those little things in life we take for granted. Now that Tyler is gone, I’d give everything to have that moment back.’ Thomas’ speech has set the tone and when he delivers a flawless, heartfelt rendition of ‘Little Wonders’ all you can hear is his melodic voice and the silence of an enthralled crowd.
The stride is once again upped with the booming performance of ‘Fire On The Mountain’ followed by David Bowie’s ‘Let’s Dance’ that has everyone on their feet. Rob Thomas takes a very short (and only) break leaving his public in the very competent hands of the amazing guitarist Frank Romano, drummer Abe Fogle, bass player Al Carty, guitarist and saxophone player Korel Tunador, keyboardist Matt Beck and the soulful backing vocals and sassy moves of Meloney Burns and Ayo Awosika.
They carry the crowd through until Thomas returns with a t-shirt that reads ‘Feminist’ and talks about writing the next song when he was in Melbourne and how some of our lowest moments can turn into blessings. That gives way to ‘Early In The Morning’ followed by ‘3AM’ with Thomas adding ‘This is the first song that I wrote that I didn’t mind sharing with other people’.
What comes next is a surreal moment when the energy of the crowd and performer amalgamate and as Thomas delivers a beautiful rendition of ‘Ever The Same’ the whole venue have their phone torches on in a sea of light that makes the place come alive in a unique shared moment. The atmosphere is still mellow as Thomas gives way to ‘Someday’.
As the night comes to an end Thomas performs another loud, powerful song ‘I Am An Illusion’.
Singer and band exit the stage as the crowd waits for the encore. They return with ‘Something To Be’, followed by Thomas singing how he’s not crazy, he’s just a little ‘Unwell’. All voices join in unison.
But it seems Rob Thomas left the best for last as everybody stands up to move to the Latin feel of ‘Smooth’, still so powerful even after 20 years since its release. He talks about his friendship with Santana and how Santana would always ask him the same thing ‘Rob, did you bring your gratitude in today?’ – he continues ‘And the answer is yes Melbourne, how can I be anything but grateful for this?’ – he says praising his public.
The last song of the evening is the much anticipated ‘This Is How A Heart Breaks’ and the show ends on a high with the crowd loudly vocalizing the chorus.
Rob Thomas solidifies his status as the ultimate performer. His lyrics are relevant and relatable. His music and persona captivating. His energy is contagious. His voice is faultless. His band, the perfect addition.
He set out to take us on a journey and he did. Smoothly.
PHOTO GALLERY
Photos by Monica Doyle
