Moo stays true to his words
Eric Moo Chii Yuan obviously did not have a lot of money to spend on production and fancy stage sets for his debut concerts at the Hong Kong Coliseum, but he made up for it with an energetic performance and a night of friendly warmth.
The band, a mix of Singaporean and Hong Kong musicians, hustled up a lively opening before Moo started off the night with his rousing You Are In the Wind.
The song, from a recent television commercial, got the audience in the right mood for what was to come.
Although the Malaysian-born singer had promised three nights of music and song, he gave the audience much more.
It was a night of many laughs, too, as the songwriter showed himself to be a potential stand-up comedian with his one-liners, straight-faced jokes and affectionate put-downs of his guests - Angus Tung, Phil Chang and Maria Cordero. The guests gave back as good as they got and insults were traded good-naturedly, dissolving the audience into roaring laughter.
Chang was especially playful and came out in Moo's opening outfit, a tight-fitting bright red jacket and leather gloves.
Moo did not recognise the gear until Chang started imitating him, making him collapse into laughter. He did not even let up when Moo was singing, pretending to be a sexy backup dancer.
It was also a touching night which had some of the audience surreptitiously wiping away tears, especially when he launched into an emotional A Love So Strong, which he dedicated to a fan who was killed two years ago while going out to buy Moo's latest CD to give to his girlfriend.
Moo had to struggle through a wobbly start to control his own tears.
But by the end of the evening, one could tell that everyone was waiting breathlessly for him to sing his signature songs Too Silly and A Sour Love Song, which he performed to round off the night.
And Moo did prove true to his words. It was a night of great music.
Eric Moo In Concert, Hong Kong Coliseum, October 12
