Sunday 5th June finally arrived and fans from all over rocked to the sounds of Rod in the Pittodrie bar all afternoon, until not long before the concert started.
Pittodrie stadium was awash with fans wearing tartan scarves and Celtic shirts, waving Lion Rampant’s, Saltire’s and many wearing Rod Stewart wigs!
Must admit to being extremely disappointed with my fan club seats (A1 row F, when usually front block) as I was so far away from stage (realise no fault of fan club) more the greedy promoters!
Thankfully the rain stayed away (but the bars ran out of alcohol!!!) and at just before 8pm Rod bounded onto the stage in Aberdeen to a mix of Loch Lomond and The Stripper Theme to a screaming and delighted crowd.
Dressed in his gold lame jacket Rod received a standing ovation and launched into his high tempo Love Train which had those lucky enough to be in the front row forming a train and dancing along the front of the stage.
The early songs were hampered by poor sound quality, and Rod’s voice at times was lost in the whirling North East wind. By the time Rod sang You Wear It Well the sound quality was back to perfect!
The band were on great form as always, and backing singers Bridget, Di and newcomer Kimberly donning white fur jackets to keep out the cold but still looking and sounding great.
Rod now in his purple suit gave perfect performances of Tonight’s the Night and Do Ya Think I’m Sexy before telling the crowd “I love singalongs, so come along and join in” as he launched into The First Cut Is The Deepest.
As the grey clouds hovered over Pittodrie, the crowd sang along, many being repeatedly told by security to get down off of their seats (jobsworths) or even to sit down!!!! Admittedly the Aberdeen crowd were very reserved (not our usual lively crowd) and I couldn’t help feeling that the only Scottish gig would have been better if it had been at Hampden.
Highlights for me were the emotional intensity of Handbags and Gladrags and the high energy Baby Jane, as Rod kicked and twisted his way across the entire length of the stage.
As darkness descended on Pittodrie, Rod now in a red tartan suit gave a great emotionally charged “I don’t want to talk about it” backed by the entire crowd which showed Rod at his rawest.
Now looking extremely hot in white trousers and shirt with a black and white striped blazer, an encore of Sailing brought the end of more than two hours of hits.
After more than 40 years at the top, Rod proved that he had lost none of his passion or voice as he left myself and the Aberdeen crowd wanting more.
Roll on 26th June at Hyde Park when we can do it all again!
