Bonnie Tyler is holding out for Taupo
Bonnie Tyler looks forward to every live performance but she is especially keen to wow Taupo. After all, she is a Taupo ratepayer.
While the singer of Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding out for a Hero fame lives in Portugal, she purchased a little slice of Taupo about 12 years ago.
Tyler owns a farm, which is currently leased out, as well as a small shop in town, but she has trouble remembering exactly where it is.
‘‘Taupo is a beautiful place,’’ Tyler said.
‘‘The farm is special with lots of lovely trees. It’s an investment for when I eventually retire. I hope to go visit.’’
Tyler has just finished a powerful performance in Queenstown as part of the Summer Concert Tour.
It is the third time Tyler has visited New Zealand and said the crowds here are amazing.
‘‘They were all singing along with me and they knew all the words,’’ she said.
‘‘It was a fantastic reception in Queenstown.’’
Tyler said she has enjoyed being part of the Summer Concert Series so far and got a kick out of seeing the crowd getting into her old songs.
‘‘Everybody loves to hear the old hits and I’m not one of the those artists that get bored of their older hits,’’ she said.
‘‘I love them and I’m proud of them.’’
In Taupo, Tyler will perform a 90-minute set with band and she says that is plenty of time to go through the old classics as well as some of her newer work from her latest album Rocks and Honey.
One song Tyler is looking forward to singing is Under one Sky as it was written by New Zealand songwriter Paul Fitzgerald.
‘‘I’m hoping we can get him to come to the concert,’’ Tyler said.
‘‘It has beautiful lyrics all about getting on together and loving as one.’’
Tyler will be performing alongside other heavy-hitting acts Icehouse and the Alan Parsons Live Project.
It is the first time Icehouse has headlined a show in New Zealand for 20 years and the Summer Concert Series is part of their 40th anniversary tour.
Last year’s Taupo Summer Concert featured Huey Lewis and the News, REO Speedwagon and Melissa Etheridge with other year’s line ups having included the likes of Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo, Foreigner, Heart, and Lynyrd Skynyrd.