Leaping into the air, electric guitar in hand, Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland looked like he was having the time of his life at Aberdeen’s Beach Ballroom last night.
A world away from his day job as a film and TV star – famed for playing Ace Merrill in the 1980s film Stand By Me and Jack Bauer in hit US thriller series 24 – the 55-year-old brought a taste of the wild west to the Granite City’s iconic ballroom with his rock-inspired country music.
“Most people don’t know this about me but for 10 years during the nineties, I was a rodeo in Canada and the United States and it was one of the nicest times in my life,” Sutherland tells the 700-strong crowd before launching into Reckless and Me, a proper cowboy, country-esque song about a man and his horse (cue the slide guitar).
Hollywood to rockstar
With the sprung ballroom floor bouncing beneath my feet, it was palpable that the predominantly older – and slightly more reserved – crowd were liking what they were hearing.
Sleeves of his navy blue shirt rolled up, Sutherland, backed by an incredible five-piece band – three guitarists, a keyboard player and an amazing drummer – proved that this wasn’t his first rodeo as his distinctively gravelly sounding voice and brilliant guitar riffs filled the venue.
Easing the crowd into the show, Sutherland, sporting a cowboy-style necktie, launched into catchy country-style ballads such as Can’t Stay Away and Going Down.
Taking the time to have some banter with the crowd in between songs, Sutherland came across as a genuinely nice bloke who doesn’t take himself too seriously.
Raspy raconteur
Self-deprecating throughout, Sutherland laughed as he told the crowd the story behind his song Going Home.
“After about 30 years of hanging out in bars, I was sitting alone in a bar in Los Angeles at about 1am and for those of you who don’t know the bars in Los Angeles shut at 2am,” Sutherland told the ballroom crowd.
“I was looking at the door as if something was going to happen and absolutely nothing happens at 1am.
“And then it dawned on me that I didn’t have to stay until 2am each night as I wasn’t at someone’s house, I hadn’t been invited and it wouldn’t be rude if I left early.
“The thought made me laugh so hard that I actually slipped off the bar stool, paid my bill and I went home and wrote Going Home.”
Down to earth
Quite the raconteur, Sutherland shared hilarious anecdotes throughout the gig but also took a poignant moment to acknowledge the devastating impact the pandemic has had on people’s lives and how grateful he is for the health of his family prompting whoops, claps and whistles around the ballroom.
After a slow burner of a first half, the latter part of the gig was much more lively as Sutherland, who clearly loves an air grab ( I counted at least six), unleashed his inner rockstar with the Johnny Cash style sounding This Is How It’s Done and the grittier Down In A Hole.
Asking for the lights to be dimmed, Sutherland performed a beautiful rendition of Bloor Street, the title song of this third and latest album which was released earlier this year.
Leaving the stage and thanking the crowd from “bottom of his heart”, it wasn’t long before the deafening cheers filling the ballroom got him and his amazing band back out on stage for an encore.
In true Jack Bauer style, Sutherland went out with a bang as he wrapped up the show with one of his new songs Friday Night and the pulsating Agave which has a South American feel to it and lyrics like “she’s like agave to my tequila” to match.
If I had a Stetson hat I would certainly raise it to Sutherland as that was a rodeo to remember.
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