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Stiltskin Special - Tourdates 2006 / 2007 - Guest Reviews 2006 - Interview
"Der Club" Heiligenhaus 19th July .2006 - by Thomas Reick
Forrest Wilson, or What Would You Do If You Had Not Become A Musician
Imagine 200 people in a not so large room with a low ceiling, a well-attuned
band in high spirits, a mixed audience in similarly high spirits, a temperature
of some 38°C/100°F outside and a temperature beyond the scale
indoors. If you can imagine that then you have got a first impression
of the atmosphere in which Ray Wilson and his band played at Der Club
in Heiligenhaus. The gig begins right on time with a Genesis hattrick
of Calling All Stations, The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway and a
very rocky Land Of Confusion. After helloes and the question
where he actually was (“is it Hilligenhaus or Heiligenhaus”)
he deftly moves to the balladesque songs of the Change persuasion, i.e.
Ghost, Goodbye Baby Blue and, of course, Change. The
latter song was introduced by a little story.
So now we know that, had he not become a musician, would mow the lawns
of Edinburgh. Just like Forrest Gump, dear me… good thing he became
a musician. Ray surprises with a magic trick from the Genesis repertoire.
Entangled and the womanizing song Follow You Follow Me
provided some romance and led to applause from the older parts of the
audience. But there was much more to come. After a brief intermezzo of
Sarah and Along The Way Ray once more went way down Memory
Lane. Irvin Duguid was most impressive with his solid instrumental performance
for Ripples, the last song before the well-earned break.
Out out, air and a drink of water, more water, still more water. Afterwards
relieving oneself of the same. Then chat, some shoptalk, comparisons of
the real temperature and the perceived heat, relief at the difference,
and back inside for the second part.
The second half of the evening is introduced by The Actor and
Alone. This leads to offers for spontaneous sex the reviewer
opts to decline, thank you very much Ray. Another surprise is the performance
of Peter Gabriel’s Games Without Frontiers. Ray has integrated
this song so well into his setlist that even die-hard Gabriel fans are
impressed. What worked with Biko in 2004 works in 2006 too. Not About
Us leads into the six song Stiltskin part of the evening. It’s
where Ray Wilson shows that he’s able and likes to do things the
hard(rock) way. Not just a little bit but Stiltskin at full blast: Lemon
Yellow Sun, She, Sunshine And Butterflies, Wake Up Your Mind and
Footsteps finally culminate in Inside and finally the audience
are headbanging. A terrific Turn It On Again during which the
musicians are introduced brings the official set to a close before Ray
and the guys kick off the encores with Taking Time.
I Can’t Dance seems to be the inevitable encore. This rendition
is much rockier than the original and it’s good fun to hear. Funky
dialogues between Lawrie Macmillian and Irvin Duguid, who wears a cap
even at temperatures like these, also serve to make the song more lively.
A very good song to follow the Stiltskin material. It is almost half past
eleven when Ray ends the evening with an audience request, The Carpet
Crawlers.
What remains beside memories of a (literally) hot night of great music?
Ray has accomplished the feat of presenting an evening full of music ranging
from the Dark And Distant Times to the nineties and a self-confident Ray
Wilson who can incorporate all styles of music into his show. Deep kudos
to his line-up who have been a perfect support at all times. A little
more Ray Wilson, a little less Genesis will help sharpen the profile of
a fine singer who is always introduced as ex-this and ex-that. He surely
does not need that anymore.