As Dara has already given you an account of Bowie's performance I'll tell you about the other groups that played the main stage, and some other observations. First off, the gates were due to open at 2pm but did not open until approx. 3:30pm which somewhat delayed the schedule of the night.
The event kicked off with a Belgian guy called Arno. Probably in his 50s, this guy had to be seen to be believed. He stalked around the stage like a caged animal all the while shaking his hands furiously as if hoping they would fall off. Of the support bands that played I actually thought his music to be more varied and more interesting which surprised me. His voice wasn't really my cup of tea, a mixture between Ozzy Osbourne, Zucchero, and Joe Cocker on speed, but the evening had been given a promising and suitably quirky start.
Next on were Placebo. On the strength of their terrific debut album I had been looking forward to hearing them live but I have to say I was somewhat disappointed. They had a wonderful roaring sound but this in itself was the crux of the problem as Brian was often drowned out by the music. Brian introduced Nancy Boy by saying it was Bowie's favourite track on their album.
Placebo were followed by Paul Personne. This was to have been Midnight Oil's slot but there was a last minute cancellation and they were replaced by the Frenchman. He was popular with the crowd playing a mixture of blues and rock but after a while it all got a bit samey.
Roll on Sheryl Crow... I'm afraid she was a bit cutsie for me and the constant references to Eric Clapton were somewhat pathetic. Reeves Gabrels and Mike Garson came out to watch for a while, and I saw Bowie watching for a few minutes from the cover of the tunnel entrance unobserved by the crowd. Sheryl also confessed that she couldn't wait to hear Bowie play and managed to substitute one of her lyrics "coffee and nicotine" for "coffee and Marlboro lights", but after all her name dropping this came off as a tad nauseating. Roll off Sheryl Crow...
The Californian, Ben Harper, then took the stage. From my wanderings through FNAC (big French music/book/media chain) I discovered that Harper's album is top of the charts in France and consequently, he received a warm welcome from the crowd. Mike Garson and Zachery Alford strolled out to watch the beginning of his set. I have to say that his music sounded more varied/innovative when I listened to it in FNAC than its simplified live version. He seems to have a Jimi Hendrix meets Lenny Kravitz approach, but I'd say he has far more depth than the latter. He moved the crowd with his version of I Will Rise, a magnificent, heartfelt end to his set.
Bowie came on at 10:55pm. The crowd appreciated his entrance tout seul and sparklers were waved around the stadium to the strains of Quicksand which brought a smile to the old codger's face! Although we had been treated to a rich array of sounds throughout the day, they just coudn't touch Bowie and his merry band - pure premier league.
One song segued more or less into another with Bowie barely pausing to take a breath. As Dara pointed out, this was due to the 12:30am curfew. All the band were on top form and Reeves gave a superb rendition of Stay. White Light White Heat, usually not one of my favourites, was tremendous, the best live version I've heard him do ever. I didn't think Scary Monsters was as powerful in Paris as it was in Dublin, but that may have something to do with audience participation which I'll get to in a moment.
The multimedia element of the performance was interesting and sometimes provocative. I particularly enjoyed the footage during I'm Afarid of Americans. However, I must admit I was slightly perplexed by the footage used during Fashion. I always have admired Bowie for his ability to blur the line between subtlety and provocation, but I never thought cheap titillation to be his style. I can see that the images went hand in hand with the line "it's loud and it's tasteless". But wasn't that all too obvious?
That said aside, it was a stunning performance right until 12:40am when the band left the stage. The crowd were cheering for an encore which we didn't get due to the tight French laws on noise pollution. This now leads me to contemplate the nature of audiences at concerts.
I found that the French were very well behaved largely due to the lack of alcohol which is far more prevalent at Irish and British gigs. However, it has to be said that audience participation does not seem to be their style. When prompted to clap/wave their hands by Bowie they responded, but on the whole the crowd seemed quite lifeless despite the stormer of a gig that was going on around them. If anything they seemed to respond more to the newer material than the older stuff, which was a refreshing change. I questioned a French friend about this restrained audience behaviour later and she confirmed that this is the norm in France, so my frustration was eased somewhat.
Anyway those are my thoughts on the event. Catch the show if you can, it's well worth it! Im looking forward to Dublin in August.....if it happens.....