Opening the show was Whanganui songwriter Anthony Tonon, who delivered an unexpected, but very creative and quirky solo set.
I didn’t mind it, though it did take me a couple of songs to figure him out.
When Dobbyn took the stage, the audience erupted in cheers.
It was a full house; the audience was buzzing yet completely silent and it felt like we were witnessing history.
On stage, Dobbyn was accompanied by an incredibly talented seven-piece band.
Behind them, a large image of the Twist album cover filled the backdrop, setting the visual tone for the evening.
The stage setting was simple, but the lighting and the new theatre space did a great job in creating an incredible atmosphere.
At 69, and living with Parkinson’s, Dobbyn’s performance is nothing short of remarkable.
I know voices can lose range with age, but his hasn’t lost a thing.
Control, tone, power – it’s all there.
More than that, there’s warmth, generosity and a quiet authority that only comes from decades of writing songs that matter.
Dobbyn played big fan favourites but also a few surprises.
A highlight for me was You Outta Be In Love, because I’ve never heard this song live before, so it was a real surprise and a genuine treat.
Dobbyn dedicated it to all the couples in the room, and everyone sang along.
There was strong representation from the album Twist, including It Dawned on Me, as well as tracks from Lament for the Numb like Maybe The Rain, and a welcome surprise in Be Mine Tonight and Language.
Slice of Heaven and Welcome Home turned the room into a single voice, as everyone sang and danced along.
Notable omissions were Loyal, Whaling and Bliss, but their absence wasn’t felt too deeply because he performed so many other great songs.
I could tell the Hamilton performance meant a lot to Dobbyn.
On several occasions, he admitted to feeling nervous, perhaps due to the weight of expectation for the brand-new theatre, but also because it was a special family moment.
His son Eli Dobbyn shared the stage with him, playing percussion in the band, while his wife, sister and brother-in-law, who travelled from the US, were in the audience.
He dedicated his performance of Beside You for them, which felt quite special.
Between songs, Dobbyn was relaxed and engaging with the audience, joking about expecting cowbells from the crowd – a warm nod to the Chiefs.
He showed himself to be every bit the good man New Zealand has long believed him to be.
The night ended with the crowd demanding he and his band to return to the stage not once, but twice – and they delivered the encores magnificently.
Following a performance by Teeks on Friday, Dobbyn was the second big artist to perform at the BNZ Theatre.
I think there is something beautifully fitting about him being such a big part of the theatre’s opening weekend: one of New Zealand’s greatest songwriters who helped form the idea of what it means to be a Kiwi, contributes to the launch of a new cultural home for Waikato, a space that will define us into the future.
Blair Dowling is the Hits Waikato 10-3 day show host. He is also a long-time musician and the drummer of local band Jesse and the O’Brien’s.
