Colin Hay: Man at Work

April 24 / Alexandria, Virginia

Recommended Beverage to go with this show:

Water. No need for alcohol; you'll be plenty entertained.

Colin Hay puts on a phenomenal show. On Monday night at the Birchmere, that show turned out to be part acoustic concert, part comedy routine and it was charming and impressive all at once. After a long wait due to technical issues, Hay finally appeared on stage before the roaring crowd. Immediately, the Scottish-born, Aussie-raised Hay began joking about how his 80s fame had fizzled over the subsequent two decades. Someone recently had told him that he must be glad about the revival of 80s music, he said, as if he's been sitting around doing nothing for the past 20 years. Although, he admits, those Men at Work hits kept paying the bills.

Hay's voice remains the powerhouse it was more than two decades ago. His soul-piercing vocals sent chills through me, particularly when he effortlessly nailed the high register. Hay has recorded several solo albums since his days as frontman of Men at Work, but his name was officially resurrected in 2004 when his ballad, "I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You" appeared on the Garden State soundtrack. He recounted that while remodeling his kitchen a few years ago, he was trying to decide between granite counters or something cheaper. Then, that song went platinum and the choice was easy: granite.

Throughout the night, he repeatedly mocked his post-Men at Work anonymity. Before singing a slow, soulful version of the band's hit "Who Can it Be Now?" he recounted a conversation he had in an elevator in Atlantic City in the late '90s en route to a Men at Work reunion show. The gentleman in the elevator said there couldn't be a Men at Work concert there because the lead singer was dead.

And before singing his mega-hit "Land Down Under," he recounted meeting a lady at a gas station who said she'd always wanted to visit the Land Down Under. He mentioned he'd written and recorded that song but, she said, that was impossible, because he looked nothing like Sting.

Hay even had the crowd laughing during songs. Introducing his own favorite Men at Work song, "Overkill," he said a fan once ran up to him on stage begging to hear the song about the goats. The fan had said, "yeah, ya know, goats appear and fade away." The crowd roared. Then, each time he came to the actual line in the song, "ghosts appear and fade away," the crowd laughed and they probably will never hear that song the same way again.

In between storytelling and performing the hits, Hay also performed several lesser-known, if at all known, songs from his solo career including the title track to the album, "Looking for Jack," which he wrote after a brief encounter with actor Jack Nicholson in Los Angeles, where the singer resides.

The opening act, Schuyler Fisk, also came by way of Los Angeles. The Virginia native was accompanied by another LA musician on guitar and her mom on backing vocals . Most notable about the brief set were the exceptional harmonies.

Hay primarily relied on his rich vocals and guitar during his long set but, occasionally, he played around with reverb and other sound effects. He had pedals for recording his riffs with playback while he played a new riff on top of it, which sounded like multiple guitars, a style that singer Howie Day has popularized in concert.

The Birchmere is an intimate venue, perfect for good storytelling, with great acoustics, perfect for a good musical performance. Hay provided both in a set that did not suggest a hint of "overkill" for even a moment.