Every memorable gig has a defining moment and at Live on the Lawn on a gloomy Sunday afternoon in Werribee, it came through Pete Murray performing one of his more sombre hits in what we can only assume was a C Cup bra and floppy gardening hat.
On loan from an eager front row, it could have been an awkward moment for the hundreds of families in attendance if it hadn’t come on the tail end of a truly master class performance. But by then, Murray could do as he pleased.
It wasn’t lost on Murray either, who admitted he’d forgotten the last verse of Better Days in all the excitement.
If Werribee Park has seen better days from a musical point of view, it must have been a hell of a show because Murray’s high energy set had everything: emotional highs and lows, a selection of hats donated by front row fans, and the famous bra via some over-excited woman, amongst a bevvy of over-excited women.
Set in the regal surroundings of Werribee Park and featuring some of the country’s most respected musicians in Murray, Bernard Fanning, Josh Pyke and Clare Bowditch, it was left to the former Powderfinger frontman to sing its final praises for the afternoon: “This is an awesome set up,” he said. “We should do this every Sunday, hey?”
The weather threatened to turn sour all afternoon for the thousands who turned up; luckily the rain held off until the closing minutes of Fanning’s set, but by then he was halfway through a rousing rendition of Wish You Well and nobody seemed to care.
Earlier, accomplished songwriter Pyke proved he’s equally unflappable on stage, not letting a poorly tuned guitar kill the good time vibes.
“My fault, I’m responsible, I didn’t tune it properly before the show,” he joked as the offending instrument was put away. “But I’m the kind of man who admits his mistakes… and has a whiskey about it instead.”
After draining the contents of his glass to an approving crowd, one over excited female fan screamed for Middle of the Hill, one of Pyke’s best known numbers.
“I don’t play the hits, I’m an artist,” he quipped. “The next song, ironically, is Don’t Wanna Let You Down…”
Live on the Lawn, formerly Legends on the Lawn at Werribee Park, represents a gradual shift to a more “relaxed style of music”, according to its website.
But it seems Pete Murray didn’t get the memo, positively thieving the show from under the noses of his contemporaries.
Bearing those famous cannons in navy blue tank top, Murray upped the swoon factor immediately, with a little bit of help from lanky lead guitarist, Pete Williamson.
While Murray is best known for his more naval gazing numbers, the show cranked up a notch or three through the likes of Class A. Then Williamson stole the show right off Murray on Passing Time, given free reign to indulge his skills.
It seemed fitting that Murray closed the set by wandering out amongst the revellers, tailed by security . To stop people bear hugging him to death, we can only assume.
It was always going to be a hard show to follow, even for the uber talented former Powderfinger frontman Fanning, and he took a more sombre approach, covering Gordon Lightfoot on acoustic guitar.
“I’m the anti Pete Murray,” he joked. “Although my biceps are massive under this jacket though.”
Closing with George Harrison’s What Is Life, with a little help from Bowditch on backing vocals, only those hard of heart, or ear, would have walked away from Werribee Park feeling shortchanged.
Live on the Lawn was magical in every sense.
