Chris Rea & Paul Casey Live at The Olympia, Dublin

To the disappointment of some in the audience there was little room in the set for the likes of the mega smash, ‘I Can Hear Your Heartbeat ‘ or the smoochy ballad, ‘Fool If You Think It’s Over’. And, given the time of year, there was a snowball’s chance in hell of hearing, ‘Driving Home For Christmas’.
On the other hand, he couldn’t get away without disinteering at least a handful of his impressive roster of chart-toppers. They included an extended version of ‘Josephine’ and an atmospheric, ‘On The Beach’, both given the full slide guitar treatment.
Not unexpectedly, pride of place went to ‘Road To Hell’ his ode to motorway gridlock with that familiar growling guitar solo though ‘Stainsby Girls’ came a close second in the popularity stakes. If he spoke one word to the audience over two hours, I certainly didn’t hear it, though the grin on his face said volumes as he tossed his plectrum into the front rows after the encore - an extended version of an ’80s hit, ‘Let’s Dance’.
Earlier, the crowds were warmed up with an excellent, if all too brief set from Derry singer-songwriter Paul Casey, who had them eating out of his hands.