Toyah

The Brook, Southampton

Toyah Wilcox-singer, actress, TV personality. Just for tonight though it will be singer. Southampton’s Brook is playing host tonight as we take a trip down memory lane with the 30th Anniversary Tour, rather aptly named “from sheep farming to Anthem”. Toyah is in fine form and good voice from the off tonight. Earlier she was signing autographs & smiling for camera shots but its the songs we’re here for.

She opens with ‘Good Morning Universe’ to great applause then takes a trip through the back catalogue. Strangely we get 3 covers tonight,the first of which is the rather good ‘Echo Beach’. Others come later but “Thunder in the Mountains” stays in familiar territory. First costume change before the aptly titled “Popstar” and more searing vocals on “Jungles of Jupiter”. A rather disappointing and overly keys-heavy “It’s a Mystery” is followed by the strange in the shape of Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”. The vocals & accompanying music are fine-her Billy fist-shaking moves however are not!

Gallery: 1–2–3–4–5

She returns to the history and ends with the song she “wrote in a boring maths class age 12”; (her words), the brilliant “I Wanna Be Free”.

The whole band take a bow before returning for 3 encores, the highlights being “Demolition Men” and the anthemic “We Are”, the lowlight the frankly comedic “These Boots Were Made For Walking”. A three quarters full Brook sends them away with generous applause. Tonight was all about the 3’s, three costumes, 3 covers, and 3 encores! Not bad for a (her words again) 53 year old!

Set List
Good Morning Universe
War Boys
Bird in Flight
Echo Beach
Thunder in the Mountains
Popstar
Jungles of Jupiter
Its a Mystery
Rebel Yell
Race Through Space
Neon Womb
Embryo
Danced
I Wanna be Free

These Boots are Made for Walking
We Are
Demolition Men

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