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.