We've been waiting so long.
Last night was Todd's first visit to Bristol since playing at the Colston Hall on the Ra tour and I was pleased that I held back on RFH tickets, on the offchance that a date in my neck of the woods would be added. There were a lot of positives about this show that have been aired on this thread. The turnout was much better than I expected and the crowd were really supportive. Great to see him in a stand up venue. The sound was excelent. The set design is, in true Todd fashion, very innovative. Todd himeself looks great and his voice is in fantastic shape.
However, after more than 25 years away from the U.K. provinces I'd hoped we'd get a far stronger set. The band are defintely capable of delivering. If anything, they're tighter than Utopia were the last time they visited these shores. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't looking for a greatest hits set, although I suspect quite a few of the audience were, judging by the conversations in the pub after the show.
My difficulty with the material is that it's so forgettable. Todd has a huge back catalogue of strong (and even obscure material) to draw upon so why deliver a set that would have been more suited to a Vegas casino?
The cover versions - terrible. Why bother? Neil Innes' "Cheese and Onions" would have been a better choice than "Green Onions" and WMGGW.
Want of a Nail and Hello It's Me were good but by then I'd pretty much lost interest.
Just One Victory was just that - shame it was a pyrrhic one.
It's extremely unlikely that we'll get Todd down these parts again which is a damn shame.
A hugely wasted opportunity for Todd.
