Rockers roll back the years for Mission crowd

Simply Red had the crowd on their feet. Photo / Duncan Brown

A modest Mission Concert crowd by previous years' standards was not disappointed after an energetic performance by international group Simply Red.

The first Sunday Mission Concert and the first one since 2014, held at Mission Estate Winery in Napier, was judged to be a success by fans who attended.

After the ditching of a concert last year, promoters relaunched this year initially as a Saturday-Sunday double, with Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals originally booked for a concert today.

But their tour has been postponed and they will now play The Mission on December 3.

But this did not seem to bother concert-goers, who lined up in the scorching heat to get a good spot. A number of men donning their best Hucknallesque suits stood among a sea of middle aged fans hankering for a homage to the defining decade,

David Gamet from Napier had been eagerly awaiting the band's arrival since the announcement. "It was a no brainer for me. Simply Red was the album of my childhood. I can't wait to be transported back to the eighties," he said before the show. Simply Red, led by lead singer Mick Hucknall, did not disappoint as they fired on all cylinders, proving why they have been in the business for 30 years

After the show, Ursula Meeks said all expectations were met and more. "Simply brilliant," she said.

Kerry Holestead summed the evening up with a single adjective -"spectacular".

Opening for the pop sensations was local lass Lisa Crawley. Crawley's retro vibe and edgy darkness brought the crowd to their feet. The 29-year-old multi-instrumentalist had the largely older audience bopping to her hypnotic and heavenly harmonies. The proud Kiwi girl dropped a number of tracks from her latest album.

Crawley admitted to missing her morning marmite sandwiches while making music with some of the world's most notable artists in Los Angeles, including John Mayer.