Review: Bryan Adams @ Adelaide Entertainment Centre 07/02/25
Returning to South Australia for the first time in almost a decade, Bryan Adams ripped through a hit-laden set that left everybody in attendance believing they were in 'Heaven'.
Words by Tobias Handke
Bryan Adams w/James Arthur @ Adelaide Entertainment Centre 07/02/25
It’s been nearly a decade since Bryan Adams last performed in South Australia, so it’s no surprise his return to the City of Churches is almost sold out. Travelling the country as part of his So Happy It Hurts Tour, Adams has sleepy Adelaide up and about, with hundreds of punters gathering in the forecourt of the AEC Arena for a drink and a chinwag in anticipation of tonight’s entertainment.
Before the Canadian icon takes to the stage, English singer-songwriter James Arthur opens the evening with an enjoyable set of folk-infused pop ditties. For a bloke who got famous from winning a reality TV show (The X Factor in 2012), Arthur is a real surprise packet. He enchants with his rugged looks, soulful vocals and heartfelt tunes. He’s also got an attentive audience, with more than half of the arena filled with Adams-loving fans giving Arthur the respect he deserves.
He acts as a welcome icebreaker, performing songs from across his five album career, including fan favourites ‘Bitter Sweet Love’ and ‘Trainwreck’. He throws in an admirable cover of Christina Perri’s ‘A Thousand Years’ before closing with his #1 ARIA Single Chart hit, ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’.
After a short intermission, the lights go down and a video plays telling the story of creation and how God made the perfect rock star, Bryan Adams, who suddenly appears on stage with his band and melts faces with a ripping rendition of ‘Kick Ass’. This energy continues with the next three songs, a triple threat of rock and roll barnburners that gets the seated crowd up on their feet dancing and singing from the get-go.
‘Somebody’ features the first of many big guitar solos from Keith Scott, one of the most underrated axemen in rock. ‘18 Til I Die’ sees Adams rushing across the stage performing to all sides of the arena. ‘Can’t Stop This Thing We Started’ is quintessential ‘90s Adams. In other words, it’s a tune. It’s five songs in until he slows the tempo. Bathed in blue light at the front of the stage, the first notes of ‘Please Forgive Me’ echo around the arena as camera phones are held aloft and the first momentous singalong occurs.
A silver inflatable boxing glove floats above the audience as Adams introduces ‘Roll With The Punches’, his brand new song that dropped today. As the title implies, it’s a punchy, riff-heavy dose of ‘90s rock that would have been a chart-topper if released during the commercial heydays of Adams’ career.
It’s almost half an hour before Adams finally addresses the crowd. “Hi, my name is Bryan,” he proclaims with a huge smile on his dial. A true showman, Adams keeps the chat to a minimum throughout the night, running a tight ship where everyone in the band knows their role. When he does speak, it’s often to share an insight behind a song – ‘Shine a Light’ is a tribute to his deceased father and ‘Here I Am’ was written for the movie Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron – or tell a funny story, like the local on his last Adelaide trip who commented on the hat Adams was wearing and asked if he could have it. When Adams declined, the man told him to “fuck off then.” Classic Adelaide.
The Tina Turner duet ‘It’s Only Love’ interlopes the choruses of ‘Simply the Best’ and ‘What’s Love Got To Do With It?’, Adams busts out the harmonica during ‘Go Down Rockin’’, and ‘Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman?’ features Scott on the Spanish guitar as Adams serenades the front rows with the chorus, “So tell me have you ever really; really, really ever loved an Australian woman?”
Everyone is urged to dance during ‘You Belong To Me’, with Adams quick to point out several male members of the audience at his Melbourne show the night before whipped off their tops and swung them over their heads. Adelaide crowd: hold my beer… Within seconds an elderly gent in the bleachers is shown on the big screen with his shirt off. This is followed by several more lads showing chest, including a portly gent close to the stage who seductively whips his shirt off, causing even Adams to break out in laughter.
The Canadian hit machine is the star of the show, commanding the stage like a bonafide rockstar, but mention must be made of this three-piece backing band. Scott, who’s been playing with Adams since the early ‘80s, is an absolute beast on the guitar. His solos add texture to Adams’ compositions and are beefed up by skilled drummer Pat Steward's workman-like performance. Rounding out the band is Gary Breit on keys, who gets his time to shine with a ripping solo on ‘Back To You’.
The hits keep on coming. ‘Heaven’, ‘The Only Thing That Looks Good On You’ and ‘Run To You’ all get a feverish response from the crowd. ‘(Everything I Do) I Do It For You’ results in the biggest singalong of the night, but it almost ends in fisticuffs when several women get into it about singing too loudly. Common sense prevails and everyone settles down and enjoys one of the great ‘90s ballads.
‘Summer of ‘69’ is a true rock and roll anthem even casual fans know, as evidenced by the lad in the Rob Zombie t-shirt nodding along. ‘Cuts Like a Knife’ slows things down ever so slightly and is followed by a spectacular cover of Frankie Valli’s, ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’.
The band receives rapturous applause as they bid farewell and Adams is joined by opener James Arthur for a duet of ‘Rewrite the Stars’. He then makes his way through the crowd to a stage set up at the back of the arena for two final acoustic songs. Adams dedicates ‘Straight From the Heart’ to his 97-year-old mum before asking everyone to “turn on your torches and light this place up” during ‘All for Love’, originally a tune featuring Sting and Rod Stewart.
Two hours. 26 songs. No encore. All killer, no filler. Bryan Adams knows how to put on a rock concert with the best of them. Early contender for gig of the year.
