Cocker ensures fans were feelin' all right

Joe Cocker rocked a crowd of about 6000 fans on Sunday in a concert at Alana Estate Vineyard that packed cafes, bars and weekend accommodation throughout the district.
The concert was part of a three-date Day on The Green tour for the legend from Sheffield that also took in Waipara and Auckland wineries in a transtasman first for New Zealand.
Cocker brought fans to their feet alongside his eight-piece backing band the moment they made the stage, from where he poured out a string of classics like Hitchcock Railway, With A Little Help From My Friends, You Are So Beautiful, Feelin' All Right, The Letter and Come Together.
The set list was balanced with a few tracks from his 2007 album, Hymn For My Soul, as pinot hit the pallet and the occasional curl of cannabis smoke decorated the air.
Leave Your Hat On, and the duet Up Where We Belong beside vocalist Nichelle Tillman, brought couples in the crowd closer together while Delta Lady and She Came in Through the Bathroom Window drew salutes, smiles and screams from the greying yet still decidedly groovy who dotted the throng.
Cath Hopkin, Alana Estate chief executive and former Toast Martinborough organiser, said the concert also featured Kiwi musicians Hammond Gamble and Midge Marsden in support and brought similar dividends to the district as the Toast Martinborough event.
"It was very much like Toast Martinborough. All the cafes were full, the hotels were full, and the whole town was booked out," she said.
"I was so impressed. The sound was fantastic and security and police reported that people were relaxed and cruisy and remarkable well controlled. Cocker's management even commented that the people here were nicer than at Waipara."
Ms Hopkin said the winery was very satisfied with the amount of wine sold at the event, especially the pinot noir.
"A lot of pinot was enjoyed. It was a red wine evening for sure."
Ms Hopkin said alcohol was served at the concert under an onsite duty manager with bar staff trained in identifying intoxicated and underage customers.
"I saw some people asleep that the wine could have got the better of, but there was nothing untoward that I saw at all. It was all good," she said.
Police reported no arrests at the concert although there was one man escorted from the venue by security before Cocker performed and reports of police escorting another man from the site later in the night.
Kiwi songbirds Brooke Fraser and Hayley Westenra are also to play dates at the Martinborough vineyard next month.
Fraser is to play alongside Anika Moa and Goldenhorse on February 10, with tickets costing $60 for the concert.
Westenra is to play at Alana Estate alongside Dave Dobbyn with an In Tune With Nature concert from 5-8pm on February 23.
The gates will open at 3pm for Westenra and Dobbyn and tickets are $65 for adults with children aged 12 and under admitted free if accompanied by a paying adult.
Food and alcohol will be available at the concert with food and sealed water able to be brought onsite, although glass containers and BYO alcohol are banned.
Tickets for both concerts are available through Ticketek on 0800 842 538 or www.ticketek.co.nz (service fees may apply).