Burg beneath the Mountain

I remember dancing along to Lady in Red, and other Chris de Burg hits, when I was a lot younger, but have not followed his career since then. I was surprised to see just how popular he still is in South Africa: his latest album has just gone gold here! The gardens were packed, with stewards trying to make space for late arrivals and a fair crowd picnicking on the lawns outside the arena, just to listen to the music. I lived in Ireland for many years (where he lives with his family in a castle), and although I saw him interviewed on the occasional TV show, it seemed to me that he is more appreciated here than there. Chris is clearly no stranger to our shores, and no stranger to our vineyards, reeling off a long list of our some of our great wines that he enjoys.

I was really impressed by the show. He comes across as a sweet, charming, gentle man, who seems to love performing, and appreciates his audience. As mentioned earlier, the show went on for three hours - impressive energy for a guy who has been around a good few years. He performed the first portion of the show with the band, then several gentler numbers where he was alone on stage with just a piano or a resonant twelve-string guitar. Then, for the last part of the show, the band returned to build the performance into a crescendo. The crowd was more laid back and a bit older than most I have seen at Kirstenbosch, with everyone staying seated for the first half of the show. That was at least until Lady in Red, when Chris wandered into the crowd, hugging and dancing with ladies, especially those dressed in red. After this the crowd were on their feet, and stayed standing and dancing till after the encore. At the end he again wandered into the crowd to meet his fans - brave man.

The supporting band was super, all first-class musicians who were flexible and versatile with their instruments. They gave the impression that they have been playing together for some time. The stage was bigger than the usual Kirstenbosch stage, with custom lighting effects. There were also two big screens, one either side of the stage, providing live video coverage of the show. All in all it was a really professional performance, which I thoroughly enjoyed.