I’ve never seen so man sailor’s hats on dry land, never seen so many smiling faces in one room and never see an audience so completely and utterly caught up in the moment as tonight at Yachtley Crew’s first landing in Australia. Perth’s Astor Theatre was treated tonight to the ultimate guilty pleasure – two solid hours of soft rock anthems with an energy level set to ‘max’ and a crowd ready to take the plunge. Seriously, if you’re anywhere near eyeing up that fence to see if it looks comfortable enough, then forget about it. This is a party on another level. So much energy and so much fun you’ll think you’ve died and gone to that golden marina in the sky.
Just watching the line into the Astor tonight it was clear that the audience had seriously bought into the whole vibe of the tour. I’ve never seen so many sailor’s hats so far from water and the array of nautical attire ranged from just the headwear to the full nautical garb. Inside of course an impressive array of merchandise meant not only could you take some Yachtley home on clear blue vinyl, you could also grab a spare captain’s hat if you’d left yours back on the yacht…
With no support act it was time to strap yourself in for a non-stop high energy party of soft rock bangers that just never stopped. Emerging from the wings the seven piece were dressed to a tee and after a piped into of ‘Afternoon Delight’ they sailed straight into ‘Rode Like the Wind’ Christoper Cross’ evergreen classic and proceeded to lay down the format for the night – formation grooves, plenty of moves and musicianship of the very highest order.
The beauty of a night like this is of course many times that of seeing a straight tribute act – and some of these songs I have certainly never heard played live given that some of them emanate from decades old one-hit wonders. So to see it all brought together in a set, that as far as I’m concerned covers the whole gamut of Yacht Rock – from the silky-smooth ballads like Air Supply and Lionel Ritchie to the real Rockers and party stompers of Box Scaggs and Steely Dan is something to behold.
It’s a night to remember, and everyone in the room is loving it, whether sat back in your seat singing along, dancing up front (or later slow dancing at the back with your significant other) or just partying with your crew. There’s plenty of highlights too, ad not a song that doesn’t elicit a cheer.
The big word to remember is ‘fun’ and that’s happening both on and off the stage. The musicians up there are consummate professionals, and whilst a few jams and set-pieces enhance the set the renditions are spot on. Everyone gets a set piece too, and to be fair the sax and guitars are huge scene stealers, but I’m mesmerised by the chops of the drummer and the antics of the keyboardists.
The beauty of the night is that with a setlist like this you can’t go wrong, from the funky ‘Break My Stride’ to the well-represented selection of Hall & Oates bangers. There’s plenty of crowd participation too, and Philly is the frontman that knows that the music does the talking and just adds enough to welcome us all to the party. Early on Pauly takes his sax into the pit, and later through the crowd but the crowning glory of the night for me is ‘Baker Street’ where he plays the opening sax break from the stage only to appear on the balcony for the second break and reemerge down in the stalls for the third! It’s one of the greatest set-pieces you will see all year and pure Yacht Rock heaven!
But before we get there it’s a case of try and pick your favourite, Perth clearly loves Hall and Oates, and ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ is an early winner. The coats some off after the mid-set blast of ‘Danger Zone’, and Steely Dan’s ‘Reelin in the Years’ is one of the real rockers that ups the ante, sporting some sublime harmonies and synchronised stage moves.
All of the band is very active onstage, and all have their signature moves, but it’s all high energy and the group jumping and set pieces just raise the show to another level. This really is a spectacle you’ll want to see. ‘Escape (The Pina Colada Song)’ sees even the seated swaying along and Redbone’s ‘Come and Get Your Love’ is made for crowd participation.
Heck, there’s even Bee-Gees! ‘How deep is your love’ sees slow dancing couples emerge from the shadows. And man those backing vocals, and Philly’s high notes! We’re now in full party mode! There’s more Hall and Oates in the shape of ‘Rich Girl’ and the crowd loves it, singing along like you’ve never heard. And after a portable keyboard solo, we’re ether – the unmistakable into to ‘Baker Street’ which blows the roof off. That alone is worth the price of admission!
As this is Yachtley Crew’s first night Downunder we get some Air Supply and then bust into some classic ELO with drummer Sailor Hawkins taking lead vocals. There are certainly no bases left uncovered! This is how concerts should be -no support act and banger after banger!
And just when you think they may have forgotten one of the real masters of the genre it comes – ‘Rosanna’ by Toto, a band who only just wrapped up an eastern states tour. It’s hard to imagine the original band sounding better. We go out the first time with the band going crazy running around the stage and still managing to hit every note of ‘Still Standing’. I have never seen so much dancing!
The band reemerges for encores with a heartfelt thanks to Perth and the customary selfies. Though the Astor wasn’t quite full tonight, Melbourne is already sold out and the rest of the tour going well. If you’re on the fence take the plunge – this is something, you’ll be telling all your friends about. I imagine the next time these guys sail back our way we’ll need a much bigger boat!
The first encore ‘Africa’ is a singalong of epic proportions replete with arm waving, and there are keys and drums spotlights before Bozz Scaggs unmistakable ‘Lido Shuffle’ has us all hitting the right notes – there’s more guitar and all of the band make a line along the front of the stage. The final word, the last chance to slow dance goes to Lionel Richie and ‘All Night Long’ that sees the people of Perth dancing long into the night…
Almost certainly the most fun you will have in a sailors hat on dry land all year…
