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“Welcome to the wettest gig in the world!”
Bryan Adams, who is no stranger to turbulent weather from his home country of Canada, proclaimed this statement to fans at his gig in Margate - but that didn’t stop him, or the crowd, from having a good time.
The Grammy Award-winning singer visited Dreamland as part of this year’s Margate Summer Series and, although the weather didn’t quite live up to expectations, the star of the show certainly did.
The evening kicked off with support act Cassyette, a singer-songwriter from Essex.
It was refreshing to have a healthy dose of modern rock from an up-and-coming female soloist and, although I wasn’t sure if the crowd would warm up to her at first, she ended her set with arms waving and people cheering, which is all you can really ask of an opening act.
People milled around the outdoor fairground, picking up drinks from the new self-service bar and trying to find a spot to shelter from the rain, for around 30 minutes before the Scenic Stage lit up and the rockstar strolled into view in his trademark leather jacket.
Now in his 60s, one might expect that Adams has slowed down from his glory days of the 1980s and 1990s, when he won numerous accolades and spent a record-breaking 16 weeks at No. 1.
But that didn’t seem to be the case as he rattled through three or four high energy numbers right off the bat, including Can't Stop This Thing We Started, Somebody and 18 Til I Die, before launching into the classic power ballad, Please Forgive Me.
We think of Bryan Adams as a solo artist but, after seeing him live, it turns out that couldn’t be further from the truth.
His performance was a full-band affair, with his guitarist taking on the role of a secondary frontman, stepping into centre stage and interacting with the crowd almost as much as the main man himself.
The rain continued to pour, so much so that the singer had to ask for a towel to wipe down his guitar, but he and the crowd powered on, even having a little dance - or the “Margate twerk”, as Adams called it - to songs like You Belong to Me and Kids Wanna Rock.
We were also treated to a touching medley of Tina Turner hits in tribute to the late, great Queen of Rock 'n' Roll, with whom Adams had recorded the single It’s Only Love.
The most tender moment of the night, however, was when the performer raised a drink, shouted “Cheers!” and launched into his huge hit single, (Everything I Do) I Do It for You.
The phones all came out to record the moment, as is the way with gigs in this day and age, and fans sang along at the top of their voices to the chart-topping tune, which was sung with pitch-perfect vocals, even 33 years after its release.
The sun went down behind the stage as the night ended with a string of crowd-pleasers, including Run to You, the Only Thing That Looks Good on Me is You, Back to You and, of course, the epic Summer of ‘69.
Despite the drizzle, nothing could put a damper on one of the biggest gigs of Kent’s ‘summer’ season - and, hey, at least Bryan Adams got the chance to see what a day out at the British seaside is really like.
You can find a full list of Dreamland’s upcoming summer concerts here and, if you are seeing any live music at the venue over the coming months, you can find our guide to parking, train timetables and more here.
You can also find ticket and venue information on the Dreamland website.