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When the global health crisis rocked the world back in 2020, Keith Urban’s scheduled world tour was cancelled.
Fast forward 2 years and we’re (almost) back in full swing. With the tour rescheduled, and crowds around the world rearing and ready to go, the country superstar landed in England on Tuesday the 3rd of May 2022, bringing The Speed Of Now tour to the city of Manchester.
The O2 Apollo was Keith’s stage on this night, for an intimate yet powerful, moving night of grooves, country jams and plentiful hits.
Interweaving his tunes with tales of his musings about Manchester, it was a brilliant evening that brought the entire room together for a joyous night, and reminded everyone of what’s been missing the last couple of years.
Keith altering the lyrics to his hits to reflect on being back live and in person again was relatable and connected us all in the moment.
Hits from all of his most popular albums were played, with highlights including the energetic, reminiscent track Wasted Time, profound and uplifting single God Whispered Your Name, and the bluesy chart topper Blue Ain’t Your Color.
The performance of the night though, was the 2002 hit Somebody Like You, this song hasn’t lost a step in the 20 years since it was released, everyone was on their feet, clapping, singing and dancing along. It was a euphoric moment.
Aside from his own material, Keith also paid tribute to country icon Naomi Judd, who sadly took her own life the previous weekend, Urban treated everyone to a short yet sincere rendition of Love Can Build a Bridge. He also touched on guilty pleasure songs and performed The Lion Sleeps Tonight in a great segment of the show.
Around halfway through the gig, Urban took the spotlight off of himself, and let it shine on some buskers that he and his band heard on the streets of Manchester, the local reggae band Ruff Trade, this was a great display of paying it forward, allowing an up and coming group to showcase their talent and increase their exposure.
They are certainly a group of talented musicians and are more than worth checking out.
We’re counting down the days until Keith is back.
Purple Revolver rating: 4.5/5