Sir Dave Dobbyn 'in great voice' at the Wellington Opera House

No one has planted more songs more deeply in New Zealand's collective consciousness than Dave Dobbyn.

Last night, Wellingtonians had their first chance in a long time to hear those songs performed live and appreciate how well-structured they are.

On the opening night of Selected Songs -his first tour in several years - Dobbyn even made some light-hearted references to the physical challenges of Parkinson's disease, which he was diagnosed with in 2022.

Parkinson’s disease is a degenerative condition which affects a person's coordination, balance, and, ultimately, their voice.

But if there was any apprehension as to whether Sir Dave Dobbyn would be up to the task on Friday night, that was dispelled almost from the first chord.

Dobbyn was in great voice. Those sweeping high notes that so many of his songs demand were as powerful as ever. You could feel the audience willing him on, and it seemed to work.

When he hit that sustained falsetto in 'Oughta Be In Love' – the first in a cluster of his biggest hits that closed the show – he was met with a round of applause before the song had even finished.

The build-up to that finale was slow and deliberate.

Dobbyn and his seven-piece band began their close-to-two-hour set by exploring some of the quieter songs in his canon.

'Belltower' was moody, with Dobbyn and Victoria Girling-Butcher’s guitars chiming together. Girling-Butcher and bass player Jo Barus added delicious vocal harmonies to 'Kingdom Come' before Dobbyn moved to piano for 'Forgiveness' and 'It Dawned On Me'.

Though he made some oblique references to his physical challenges - 'I feel like I'm riding a horse that’s quite kicky', he said at one point - Dobbyn seemed happy and comfortable in himself, interspersing songs with humorous asides, self-mocking references to memory loss, and the occasional shaggy-dog story.

As he plucked songs from across his catalogue, I was struck by the relevance of the material, some of which was first heard more than thirty years ago.

In 'Don't Hold Your Breath', originally on the 1993 album Lament For The Numb, Dobbyn dreams of peace in Palestine and an end to global warming.

Introducing 'Maybe the Rain' from the same album, he recalled the anti-nuclear protest ships of the 1980s and wondered whether we might soon be needing them again. And 'Welcome Home' will sadly remain topical as long as there are refugees.

Dobbyn's Opera House show was also an opportunity to appreciate how well-structured his songs are, full of subtle details, and his band navigated them skilfully.

With the trumpet of Guy Harrison and tenor sax of JY Lee, some of the material found a new soulfulness.

'Just Add Water' became an R&B powerhouse, with Girling-Butcher and Barus adding call-and-response backing vocals, and the gear-shift continued through a raucous 'Falling Off A Log'.

By the end of their second encore, Dobbyn and his band had played 22 songs. If anyone’s favourite had been left out, it was only further proof of what a rich repertoire he has to choose from.

Also of note was a highly entertaining opening set by Taite Prize winner Anthonie Tonnon.

Crooning and dancing, while accompanying himself on a pair of identical, surprisingly mobile synthesisers, Tonnon previewed songs from his new album, due out next year. From what we heard tonight, it's worth waiting for.