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   Review: Elio Pace – The Lowry, Salford
Reviewer: Dave Cunningham
The Public Reviews Rating: Three out of Five. Elio Pace opens his concert with a mission statement set to music. ‘Oh So Tight’, as well as paying tribute to his rock’n’roll heroes, welcomes the audience and sets out his objective of delivering the maximum entertainment possible. If the final goal is only partly achieved it is because it is hard to determine the target audience for the show. The set list combines Pace’s own compositions with covers of songs by artists he admires. His voice is clear and precise – no attempt is made to hide shortcomings by slurring. Although Pace has a tendency to drift into a mid-Atlantic accent especially when performing covers. He seems more confident with the superficial songs – delivering a fine version of Billy Joel’s ‘Right First Time’ but lacking the vulnerability Willie Nelson brought to ‘ Funny How Time Slips Away’. Pace’s limitations as a songwriter become apparent as lyrics slide from the memory without leaving trace. His songs, whilst musically excellent, lack lyrical originality featuring such staples as twinkling eyes and pain-filled love. This doesn’t matter so much with rock songs- rock’n’roll is full of dumb lyrics from Little Richard to the Ramones- but it spoils the slower songs especially the ballads. However, with his expert band Pace is able to paper over the cracks by delivering a rousing and varied set spoilt only by his habit of interrupting the momentum with lengthy anecdotes. There is no doubt that Pace loves his work throwing himself into the music with passion and pounding his piano with spiky precision. The audience at the Lowry is appreciative but sparse. It may be because it is hard to decide the type of people who might want to attend a concert by Elio Pace. He achieved nationwide recognition through his appearances on ‘Weekend Wogan’. The audience for that programme is, however, unlikely to attend live gigs. Regular concertgoers on the other hand may prefer their rock’n’roll to be rougher than Pace’s lively but smooth gigs. Elio Pace needs to consider how to attract an audience who can appreciate his obvious talents. Set List : Oh So Tight, Every Last Memory, Take You Home, Don’t Spoil the Silence, Get It Right First Time, Still Want You, Two Bottles of Wine, Can Your Grandpa, Sober Siri, Got the Bug Back, Katy Likes House, Bossa Nova Baby, Funny How Time Slips Away, On the Verge, The Glory Days , You Loved Me Too, Addicted to the Phone, Can’t Get Down, Talk About the Good Times, I Remember You , Late in the Evening.
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