Gary dazzles with his latest incarnation
Gary Barlow, Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff
HE’S been teenage songwriter Gary. He’s been boyband Gary. He’s been solo Gary. He’s been out-of-the-limelight Gary.
Then he’s been back as boyband Gary, solo Gary, musical-writer Gary, and back-on-the-Open-Road Gary. He’s been a whole load of different things while essentially staying the same – a pop prince crooner with an ear for a catchy lovelorn lyric. That’s why he’s still selling out arenas – and if the ear-splitting adulation that greeted him in Cardiff is anything to go by he will be for some time yet.
There are still elements of boyband Gary, like his extravagant dance routine during Pray, but it’s done with a winking self-awareness that while much remains nice overhaul but some of the heaviest the same plenty has also changed. He’s hitters – a big-sounding Patience, a Back changed it up for The Theatre Tour too – For Good right out of the Top of the Pops his musical-writing sojourn (evidenced appearance drawer, and a Rule the by numbers from Finding Neverland and World that was all huge notes and even a catchy tune from Calendar Girls) lends huger shrieks – are left as they are in a a much grander air to proceedings, turning scripted performance that bounces songs in several cases from pop hits along neatly and has a semi-autobiographical into Broadway-worthy show tunes. air. For a man who has written
The “Original Thatters”, as they’re several musicals there’s at least a shadow billed by the man himself, more than get of a sense that this in some ways is their fix among a smattering of solo stuff his own, with him as the star and a highly with everything from a thumping, percussive talented backing band as his cast. early rendition of Greatest Day to This latest tour clearly won’t be the bluesy brass-led reworkings of Everything final curtain – there are more incarnations Changes and Could It Be Magic. A of Gary to come. solo piano version of Shine is another ■ Ciaran Jones
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