Online Review by WDR 2 - October 7, 2002
by Thomas Steinberg translation by Tina Märkert"It's wonderful to be in Dortmund again!"
WDR2 presented Chris de Burgh on 26.9. live at the Dortmunder Westfalenhalle When worldstar Chris de Burgh comes to Germany, one can nearly call it a home play. So many times the Irish pop bard already toured the country. And Dortmund including the Westfalenhalle he knows so well he can easily name the local beer preferences ("You drink Brinkhoff's, don't you?") That he's not particularly nervous before the concert, de Burgh, whose real name is Christopher John Davidson, admits to WDR2 reporter Thomas Steinberg before the show. To play in Dortmund is for him "more like going to your favourite cinema to watch a film you already know and like very much". The Argentina born son of a British diplomat seems to be all calmness. Just 15 Minutes before the show, the well read graduate of Trinity-College in Dublin is still engrossed in his current reading (Johnny Acton: "The Man Who Touched the Sky"). 7.500 Dortmund inhabitants (particularly female Dortmund inhabitants) went on the pilgrimage to the Westfalenhalle to see the 53 year old romantic bard live. As de Burgh gave away during the WDR2 interview, his stage show consists of 3 parts: he starts strong, some solo parts in the middle and then continues even stronger. This tour concept he already tested at the first concerts in his home country Ireland (Wexford and Belfast) and in Austria (Vienna). Said, played: the first part of the show were merely ballads (Lady in Red, Missing you, ...) which were greeted enthusiastically by the audience. And so Chris de Burgh's dramaturgy went very well: Spontaneous he added some songs to the solo in the middle, even some he didn't play live before ("Sailor"), before in the last third he went on to the more rocky songs. In this part of the show, which de Burgh calls "Dance-Party", with songs like "Ferryman" really nobody is on their seats anymore. The hall is roaring, de Burgh jumps like a 'Derwisch' (translater's note ;-) russian dancer?) and everyone is happy. About 3 hours(!) the show lasted until de Burgh said goodbye with "Hey Jude" from the Beatles.