Bangalore Bryan-stormed!

Track Blazing

He came, he saw, he conquered! Well, he always does, everytime he is here. Cliches apart, Canadian rock singer-songwriter Bryan Adams struck that familiar chord yet again at the Palace Grounds on Sunday, his raspy voice finding it rather easy to charm the sea of humanity before him.

Like a wizard, he unleashed classics one after another, fresh they were, even a decade after they were composed. At the Micromax Bryan Adams Live in Concert India Tour, he was ready to spin magic for the fourth time.

The evening rolled out with an opening act by Shiamak Davar and troupe, but the crowd was getting impatient. ‘Bryan, Bryan’, they called on and on till Adams strolled on to the stage in his signature style, and the crowd erupted. He opened with There Will Never Be Another Tonight.

The night was still young and this was just the beginning. Two massive screens on either side of the stage and one behind him made him larger than life.

Out came I Need Somebody and with Here I Am, the crowd was eating out of his hands.
Sharing the limelight, along with the singer were his song-writing skills too. And when he continued ...There’s Nowhere Else on Earth I'd Rather Be, the fans couldn’t agree more.

Every once in a while, the balladeer entertained the crowd with banters. Pointing out to the crowd at the farthest end, he said, “I can see you, I can hear you” amidst cheers. “I am going nowhere, you got me!” he added.

With Can't Stop This Thing We Started, he was renewing his ties with the City. While the guitar notes were surreal, the crowd gave him competition, singing word for word. The teen anthem 18 Till I Die was surely to die for. At 51, the icon was only getting younger and so was his voice.

Making it amply clear that his tunes have passed the test of time was Summer of '69. He took a breather in between as the crowd ‘helped’ him out with the lyrics. But of course how could they do without an encore? Sure, he pacified them with the power ballad (Everything I Do) I Do It For You.

The track brought out a sense of deja vu, a highly welcome one though.

All too visible was the comfort he shared with his band members — drummer Mickey Curry, guitarist Keith Scott, keyboard player Gary Breit and bassist Norm Fisher. But Adams, who makes the guitar sing, did not forget to sing paeans for Keith Scott.

“He has the fastest fingers on the guitar,” he informed. Scott sure was too quick on the strings and unbelievably so!

There was much dramatics too. The mock guitar combats between Adams and Scott brought out much laughs. Meanwhile, pointing to a barricade in the arena, Adams wanted to know why the barricade was there.

“I have nothing to do with it,” he confessed.

He then floated through hits like Please Forgive Me and all the tracks the crowd was yearning for.

The young, old and those in between captured every fleeting moment.

And on that cool evening, there was no room for scepticism and none calling it ‘mush’.

Only pure music. Precisely, why they say he’s just getting better and better. And why he has strings attached to this part of the world!