SET LIST:

Driving Me Wild.

Hide Your Heart.

Have You Ever Seen The Rain?

Against The Wind.

Save Up All Your Tears.

To Love Somebody.

Accoustic Section:

Lost In France.

It's A Heartache.

Straight From The Heart.

Notes From America.

Bitterblue.

Keyboard Solo.

Total Eclipse Of The Heart.

Faster Than The Speed Of Night.

Encores: Turtle Blues.

Holding Out For A Hero.

Plymouth......what can I say about Plymouth? It was the place where Drake played bowls whilst waiting for the Spanish Armada to attack England. It has a huge naval base and it is a city that does not know what to make of itself. The city centre is littered with ugly concrete structures while close by there are beautiful old buildings surrounding a picturesque harbour. Not exactly the most beautiful city in the world but certainly not the ugliest. Bonnie conncetion? David Aspden, Bonnies long term manager was born here. However enough of all that, tonight, for one night only, BONNIE TYLER is in town for one of her all to rare UK shows.

Plymouth Soundwaves was a free festival spread over three days and nights. The turn around in bands was slick and quick, thanks to the three stages that were used. Bonnie played on the biggest of the three, closing the festival on a warm Summer Sunday evening.

The first thing that hit you when you saw the stage was that the roof of the stage was hung with huge psychadelic, luminous fish, that twirled and shone earily as the stage lights were dimmed.

The crowd grew and grew to, between 4 - 6,000 by the time Bonnie hit the stage. The band lead as ever by Bonnie's lead guitarist and MC, Alan Darby and had only one new addition in the bass player (who's name I didn't catch) but who was standing in for Bonnies usual bassist who was sick. This might have accounted for the sluggish start to the show.

As with Bonnies last concert in the UK (discounting the dinner dance concert at the Natural History Museum earlier this year) at the Swansea Music Festival in 1995, the show opened with DRIVING ME WILD and then went straight into HIDE YOUR HEART. Bonnie looked incredible, dressed in black trousers and a black top with a lacy see through jacket and a leather belt creeping around her waist with a huge silver buckle. Her hair, much longer than we are used to, a bright california blonde. Bonnie prowled the stage, sweeping back and forth and almost falling over during HIDE YOUR HEART when the microphone lead wrapped itself around her legs. But as good as the opening songs were played they did drag a little and I was afraid we were in for a below par show. How wrong could I be?

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN THE RAIN? The band blew the song apart!! The keyboard arrangement was slightly different to the recording and added new life to what has always been an incredible song.

Bonnie tore the song to shreds! What a performance! This live version MUST be released in some format in the future. (a future B side or part of a future, long overdue live album!!!).

You HAVE to hear it.

Next up was the first of two surprises of the night, AGAINST THE WIND. Bonnie introduced it as "a song you won't know but was a big hit in the rest of Europe".

Now I've never really like this song finding it a bit to syrupy for my taste, but live!!! The reaction the song got was incredible! There were people dancing, kissing, crying, you had to be there to see it and all along to a song that was never even released in the UK (with the exception of the single "Where Were You", no singles were released in the UK from the albums "Bitterblue", "Angel Heart" or "Silhouette In Red" - and neither were the albums).

SAVE UP ALL YOUR TEARS was next. A blistering version which finally put Chers to rest. Bonnie was working the crowd SO hard, she had won everyone over. Now there was no stopping.

"Save Up..." was swiftly followed by the old Bee Gees chestnut, TO LOVE SOMEBODY and then moved into the accoustic section.

Accompanied on the acoustic guitar by Alan Darby (who's solo in Straight From The Heart was just incredible) Bonnie breathed new life into LOST IN FRANCE and IT'S A HEARTACHE.

These songs have never been amongst my favourites in Bonnies back catalogue but live with just an accoustic guitar to back her, the songs worked magnificantly.

( In fact so good was this part of the show that I wish it had been extended maybe to include LOVERS AGAIN and the "lost" gem TOO GOOD TO LAST - a future crowd pleaser if ever I've hear one).

Back to R-O-C-K.

STRAIGHT FROM THE HEART Bonnie seemed so proud that Bryan Adams wrote this song especially for her that she tells the crowd at every gig (Bryan also wrote "No Way To Treat A Lady" though there is some doubt over who was offered the song first Bonnie Tyler or Bonnie Rait). But "Straight From The Heart" probably came just that way!!. A staggering version of NOTES FROM AMERICA - one of THE songs that got away, swiftly followed.

Then the second surprise of the evening, BITTERBLUE. Again a song hardly anyone had heard in the UK. Bonnie introduced it by saying it was her grandmothers favourite and the song the drummer hated! Again the reception is incredible.

This was a big hit record ALL over Europe and could have repeated it's run in the UK but it was never released. Bonnies record company should be put up aginst the wall and shot!

(Why do so many of Bonnies records get away? Bring me the head of the PR guy who failed to push "The Best", "Save Up All Your Tears" and "To Love Somebody". And bring me the heads of the PR guy and his entire family who let a classic like "Making Love Out Of Nothing At All" fail to be a hit - Bonnie P-L-E-A-S-E put this song back in your live set - it was INCREDIBLE in Swansea).

But enough of this blood and mayham, lets get back to the show.....

Next we had the second "dissapointment" of the night - the keyboard solo.

Now, let's get this straight as a solo it was brilliant, a real crowd pleaser B U T it lead nowhere. When it started Bonnie and the rest of the band left the stage. When it finished they returned (Bonnie now in a beautiful white satin jacket) and the solo just stopped. The whole thing lacked drama. What would have really worked was if the solo had gone straight into the next number, started by the all to familiar keyboard into, TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE HEART.

Again what can you say about this song? You just KNOW it's going to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end; you just know you are going to fall in love with Bonnie all over again when she sings it; you just know you are going to remember it as one of THE greatest love songs ever recorded. The song is all this and more.

You see this is where Bonnie differes from the Celine Dion's of this world. Their vocals are slick, polished and prefect and ultimately stale and boring. Live you don't need to hit all the notes, you can miss words, make mistakes and Bonnie does all this but it really doesn't matter!! What matters is that the performance you see is THE BEST that performer can give. It matters that you are MOVED; it matters that you are entertained; that you are excited. That you watch someone working their balls off for you. And God does Bonnie work hard!!!!

There may be "technically" better singers with greater range but if you want passion, excitement, power?

Celine Dion may be the next Shirley Bassey. Bonnie has the capability to follow in the footsteps of Janis Joplin and Tina Turner. Bonnie has the voice and the emotion to become a legend. That's the difference!

FASTER THAN THE SPEED OF NIGHT destroyed Plymouth! What a band!!

This is NOT an easy song to sing or play (believe me I've tried it and failed dismally). There can be no doubt that Jim Steinman has given one of his BEST, EVER songs to Bonnie with "Faster...." and the version played and sang that night would have Jim beaming with pride!

A few bows, a standing ovation, shattered eardrums, 6,000 pairs of feet and hands demanding an encore..........................................

TURTLE BLUES. If you're reading this (as you must be!!) get your copy of HIDE YOUR HEART/NOTES FROM AMERICA out................................................................................................ ....................................................................................................................................... got it? Good. Now put it on and skip to TURTLE BLUES. This IS Bonnie Tyler at her best. This is the music Bonnie SHOULD be playing. This is where her heart is! And the way she tore every last once of emotion, every last scream, every bit of energy she had left and injected it into this song, made the song her own had the crowd baying for more!

This song no longer belongs to Janis Joplin Bonnie has made it her own. This song was worth the 6 hour drive to the concert. This one song re-confirmed EVERYTHING I love about Bonnie. This one song sums up why I am still a fan after 20 years. TURTLE BLUES IS BONNIE TYLER. BONNIE TYLER IS TURTLE BLUES!!

The concert ended with HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO. A song that now works better live and one of the songs the crowd had been shouting for from the start.

Bonnie and the band said their goodbyes, took their bows and left the stage.

The crowd dispursed and the boys went home to dream of Bonnie and the girls went home to dream of becoming Bonnie. I stood and looked at the empty stage and wondered why it was that Bonnie is largely forgotten in her home country. Why these 6,000 people who had hung on her every word for the past 90 minutes were not breaking down the doors to the record stores to buy her singles and albums. I don't know. I wish I did.

Then I should have wandered off back to my hotel to catch my dreams, but for once my dreams are about to come true. I walked to the Artists enclose, gave my name and was invited in.......after 20 years of idolising Bonnie I was about to meet her face to face for the first time for her first ever web interview..........................to be continued!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!