by Gary Acers, West Chester, PA

I had the privilege to work in Sydney in the late 1980’s to the early 1990’s: a great place to meet and befriend numerous Aussies and an occasional Kiwi. One of those Kiwis, Andrew, invited my wife and I to a New Year’s Eve concert at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. The line-up read: Hunters and Collectors, Crowded House, and Split Enz. We told Andrew we knew about Crowded House, but knew little about H&C and Split Enz. Andrew quickly spun us up on the history of the bands, especially the connections between CH and Split Enz through Neil and Tim Finn, and he said Split Enz were the headliners that everyone, mostly Kiwis, were there to see.

We eventually made it to the concert after a few pints (go figure) at a pub across the street from the centre. What an experience; 20,000 crazy Aussies and Kiwis bouncing up and down like pogo sticks and singing at the top of their lungs. The music was great and the rapport the bands had with the fans was almost magical. A great night and a great experience, one we’ll never forget. That night we became ardent fans of Aussie and Kiwi music.

As a side note, we recently saw Crowded House at the Mann and were delighted to see the magic was still there.