Air Supply – Sands Macau June 6-8

06/08/08 Update – Just got back from the Air Supply concert at the Sands Macau. It was really great if you like Air Supply (and I do!). They did a couple covers including “Can’t Live Without You” and “The Power of Love”. Their piano player did a great solo piano Etude and the drummer was very entertaining.

Graham Russell performed a solo guitar/vocal piece from their upcoming album (first CD release in since 2003) that I think was called “The River and Me”. It was very moving and was really the point in the show where the audience got pulled in and connected.

Air Supply is all about sappy love songs and they had me hook, line and sinker. I didn’t actually cry, but was very moved by some of the performances. Their vocals are still in good shape and I was amazed at both Graham Russell’s intact velvety smooth voice, as well as Russell Hitchcock’s ability to hit so many high power notes during the show.

We were in the balcony so maybe heard a different mix than the main room – but there were some issues with either the front of house mix or the monitor mixes. The acoustic guitar was overpowering on some songs – and vocals buried in many spots. I was sitting with two audio engineers so maybe that made us a little more picky about the mix. But I loved the concert and hope you get a chance to see Air Supply live!

After the show we went to the VIP lounge at the Sands and ran into Graham Russell up there – that was a nice bonus. And there’s more to that story – but I won’t talk about it on my blog. (That’ll get you wondering – won’t it!).

Air Supply leaves for Manila on June 9, 2008 to perform 10 shows there.

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Air Supply will perform at the Sands Auditorium in Macau (SAR) China on June 6, 7 and 8, 2008. A group of us from Cirque will be there on the Sunday show and really looking forward to it! On band breaks I’ve been playing tuba polka arrangements of “All Out of Love” for a couple weeks now – much to the enjoyment and utter delight of my fellow bandmates (they show their joy by throwing things at me).

“Here I am….the one that you love….” – Now c’mon – who can sing along with that song and not start to tear up a bit?

Air Supply Concert Info in Chinese

自从七十至八十年代初，两个轻摇滚乐手Graham及Russell令Air Supply这个名字红遍全球，他们创作的歌曲专集更常常高踞榜首。稍为分别后，二人在九十年代初重聚，制作更多动人专辑，巡回演唱令全球忠实歌迷再为Air Supply疯狂！
继2007座无虚席年的演唱会，这乐坛传奇组合於2008年重现金沙，为观众带来更多难忘演出。
金沙演奏厅
星期五至日, 6月6至8日 晚上8时30分
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ABOUT AIR SUPPLY

Air Supply is a soft rock duo who had a succession of hits worldwide through the late 1970s and early 1980s. It consists of British guitarist and vocalist Graham Russell (born Graham Cyril Russell, 11 June 1950, Sherwood, Nottingham, England, UK) and Australian lead vocalist Russell Hitchcock (born Russell Charles Hitchcock, 15 June 1949, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia).

FORMATION

The two met in May 1975 while performing in the Australian production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical, Jesus Christ Superstar. Later that year, the duo, along with Chrissie Hammond and two others, formed Air Supply as a five-man group. Hammond left the band and was replaced by Jeremy Paul in time for the group’s first Australian hit single, “Love and Other Bruises.” It was followed by a self titled debut album that reached gold in Australia, which featured keyboardist/arranger Adrian Scott, drummer Jeff Browne, and guitarist Mark McEntee. Singles during this period included “Empty Pages” and “Do What You Do.” The group was invited to open for Rod Stewart during his tour of Australia; he was so impressed with their performance that he invited them to be the opening act during his tour of the United States. During this tour, Jeremy Paul left the band. (He later played with the original lineup of the Divinyls, led by Chrissie Amphlett and Mark McEntee.)

Eager to prove that they could still succeed as a duo, the group released the album Love & Other Bruises, which included re-recordings of many of their earlier hits. Although their music met with some success, Graham Russell on the 1995 DVD recalls that he and Hitchcock were so poor that they were reduced to checking the backs of hotel sofas for change so that they could buy bread to make toast.

Hitchcock and Russell started out fresh again in 1978, and the band that was to record almost all of the hit records was formed. It featured Frank Esler-Smith (arranger and keyboardist), David Moyse, and Rex Goh (guitars) as well as the rhythm section of David Green (bass) and Ralph Cooper (drums).

In 1979, the band released Life Support, a concept album that included a picture disc on its first printing. Produced by Charles Fisher, it was recorded in the tiny Trafalgar Studios in Sydney, Australia where, as Graham recalls on the 2005 DVD, he had half an inch between the end of his guitar and the studio wall. It was on this album that a five-and-a-half minute version of “Lost in Love” was introduced to Australian audiences. Written by Russell in fifteen minutes, the song caught the attention of music mogul Clive Davis, and his record label, Arista, remixed the song and released it as a single in the United States.