MUSIC
SIMPLE MINDS & B-52s ★★★½
Rochford Winery
February 4
Simple Minds and the B-52s in a so-called "double headline" bill was always an odd pairing, and that was all but confirmed on the day. Publicists stressed the B-52s were not "supporting" Simple Minds, just playing first, but it was clear which of them got short shrift.
![Still got it: Cindy Wilson (left) and Kate Pierson of the B-52s.](/web/20170205034518im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/5/r/j/r/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gu56g2.png/1486264991101.jpg)
B-52s fans endured the last searing rays of a hot day and were robbed an encore despite enthusiastic applause. Once the sun had set, Simple Minds got the whole shebang with a light show and extended encore.
The mood for each band couldn't have been more different. As soon as the B-52s appeared on stage punters poured from the bar at the top of the winery down to the stage. Everybody was moving – including a few who had commandeered the Disabled Viewing Area down the front for some energetic go-go dancing.
![Simple Minds at Rochford Winery, February 4, 2017.](/web/20170205034518im_/http://www.smh.com.au/content/dam/images/g/u/5/r/k/g/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gu56g2.png/1486264991101.jpg)
Singers Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson were resplendent in ostentatious red and black outfits; Pierson with red bouncing curls and Wilson a spectacular beehive.Pierson's voice carried them – it remains as strong and sharp in tone as it was nearly 30 years ago, and she can still knock those piercingly high notes right out of the vineyard.
Wilson's vocals have weakened; she was slightly flat on occasion and some harmonies had been simplified. Still, her sweet tone remains a perfect complement to Pierson.
Between sets, A Day on the Green wheeled out the same obnoxious DJ I saw the last time I was at Rochford, whose schtick is to dress up as space-pirate Bowie and proceed to butcher 20 of his most beloved songs into an excruciating medley.
After the B-52s closed with a (more) epic version of Rock Lobster the relatively serious mood of Simple Minds' opener Waterfront left many punters content just drinking and chatting with friends on their picnic rugs.
The band put in a solid, high-energy performance, with singer Jim Kerr striding back and forth across the stage. Behind him two slender, young female backing singers in short PVC dresses and fishnets danced on platforms, giving the impression they were chosen for their looks and not their vocal abilities. It was a little tacky.
Towards the end of the set came the moment everyone had been waiting for: (Don't You) Forget About Me. Kerr had fired up the crowd by now with some audience participation, and he positively beamed as the band milked the song for all it was worth. As soon as it ended half the audience packed up their camping chairs to beat the carpark jam.
The band had plenty more though. The ballad Let it All Come Down was followed by the upbeat Sanctify Yourself, and then a three-song encore with yet more extended soloing.
It would have felt wrong to have Simple Minds' stadium-style show first, yet I can't help but wonder if people would've stayed longer had the line-up been reversed.
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