ShareBananarama performing their Original Line Up Tour at The Royal Concert Hall Nottingham on Friday 24th November 2017.
Images and Review by Kevin Cooper
Last night at the Royal Concert Hall, Bananarama delivered the ultimate blast from the past as this 80s girl band toured as a trio for the first time since they formed in 1981.
With Siobhan Fahey having left the group in 1988, and going on to make artier pop with Shakespears Sister, years of rancour followed with her former band mates, Keren Woodward and Sara Dallin who toured as a duo. Now after slowly rebuilding their friendship, Bananarama are back riding high again.
And whilst most reunions are all about the money, this trio appear to have got back together for the sheer joy of it, as they approached this comeback like a girls night out. With their opener Nathan Jones having the crowd on their feet, they belted out one hit after another accompanied by a four piece band in the background that added a bit of muscle to their lighter songs.
Robert De Niro’s Waiting had everyone singing along and with hardly any fillers, just killer hits like Cruel Summer, Shy Boy and Really Saying Something it was a huge karaoke party. There were their formation twirls, wiggles and catwalk turns and on I Heard A Rumour from their Stock Aitken Waterman phase, they replicated the steps from their 1987 video which was on the screen behind them.
Then came the emotional high point; a cover of Shakespears Sister’s Stay with Woodward and Dallin singing the Marcella Detroit part before Fahey made a grand entrance to deliver her growling verses. They took a breather for the slower Cheers Then before restoring the high energy tempo with I Want You Back as well as a stupendous Venus
Finishing the main set with the sing along Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye, there wasn’t a single person still in their seats. And for the encore they remained standing and singing along to It Ain’t What You Do (It’s The Way That You Do It) which they recorded back in 1981 with The Fun Boy Three. Their enormous 1987 hit Love In The First Degree brought proceedings to a high end, with a packed crowd dancing and singing as they left to go home.
