Johannes Schult

Chris de Burgh? Again? Yes, indeed. The current tour features two old albums instead of a new one. The first set of the show consisted of the Moonfleet songs. “Moonfleet & Other Stories” is among de Burgh’s best albums. The first half of the concert featured the thirteen tracks that tell the story of the novel “Moonfleet” (from 1898). After the taped symphonic overture, the band began with a very pleasant volume level. The Beethoven-Saal in the Liederhalle was sold out. The audience cheered and was given a wild ride with smugglers, betrayal, storms, love, friendship etc. Of course, Chris de Burgh is not a wild performer. He’s a storyteller. A superb light show augmented the performance without distracting from the music. There were the rocking songs and the emphatic ballads. There was a shanty and a dramatic middle part. In short, there was everything that makes Chris de Burgh Chris de Burgh. I loved every minute of the set.

After the intermission it was time for another album set. “Into the Light” has sold more copies than any other album by de Burgh. “Borderline” was thrown in for good measure, right before the sequel “Say Goodbye to It All”. A few songs felt slightly too out of date. It’s not 1986 anymore. Still, the synth sounds and the relentless catchiness were thrilling. “The Ballroom of Romance” was particularly groovy. “The Lady in Red” was held back until after “The Leader” trilogy and a couple of solo songs. From then on, the audience stood on their feet. Everybody had a good time with all-time classics such as “Missing You”, “Don’t Pay the Ferryman” and “High on Emotion”. The long notes were sung a bit shorter than 30 years ago, but apart from that it was a flawless performance from start to finish. Lots of songs were played that hadn’t been on the setlist for quite some time (or ever). Sure, the encore was all ballads. Still, the audience got 2.5 hours of music. The applause was roaring by the time the band left the stage for good. Below is the setlist from Stuttgart (30th October 2019).

1. The Light on the Bay
2. Have a Care
3. Go Where Your Heart Believes
4. The Escape
5. The Days of Our Age
6. The Secret of the Locket
7. My Heart’s Surrender
8. Treasure and Betrayal
9. Moonfleet Bay
10. The Storm
11. Greater Love
12. The Moonfleet Finale
13. Last Night
14. Fire on the Water
15. The Ballroom of Romance
16. Borderline
17. Say Goodbye to It All
18. The Spirit of Man
19. Fatal Hesitation
20. One Word (Straight to the Heart)
21. For Rosanna
22. The Leader
23. The Vision
24. What About Me?
25. There Goes My Heart Again
26. Where Peaceful Waters Flow
27. The Lady in Red
28. Africa
29. Missing You
30. Don’t Pay the Ferryman
31. High on Emotion
32. The Snows of New York
33. The Moonfleet Finale