Live Review: Vika & Linda

Just when we thought the 2019 Adelaide Cabaret Festival couldn’t get any better, along come Vika & Linda Bull to delight a packed Dunstan Playhouse.

Slipping onto the stage to a recording of a Tongan choir – a nod to their heritage – the sisters launched into a Tongan love song with simple ukulele backing. As they then explained, it was the first song that their mother had taught them to sing in the Tongan language (and is also the only song they know how to sing in that language).

The fantastic mix of gospel, soul, rock, pop and country that featured throughout the 70-minute set was matched by personal recollections that were filled with humour and warmth. There were stories of family (a grandfather who had turned up at school in traditional Tongan dress, which inspired a song in later years), stories of early musical inspirations (including a hilarious medley of TV show themes and TV commercials) and stories of songwriting jitters (for Vika especially, who admitted it was difficult to come up with original material).

As has become customary, the duo was accompanied by members of Paul Kelly’s band (Cameron Bruce, brilliant on piano, keyboards and acoustic guitar and Bill McDonald on bass), as well as Dion Hirini on guitar and John Watson on drums (formerly of Australian Crawl and also Vika’s husband).

The sisters dedicated the show to their parents – their Tongan mother and Australian father – who clearly had a big influence on their musical passions. Memories of the church choir on a Sunday morning were matched by memories of the "Sunday evening church of Countdown". The stars that they worshipped on that iconic show would later become collaborators, such as Joe Camilleri and The Black Sorrows. That group’s Never Let Me Go sounded just as good tonight as it did nearly 30 years ago.

Self-deprecating humour was evident, with comments made about the long time between albums (13 years since their last studio outing), with a promise to get recording again sometime this year. A song penned by Kasey Chambers for the next album was previewed.

All of the material covered in the show was well chosen. Although Linda Bull’s version of Always On My Mind was divine (a highlight of Stardust, her Willie Nelson tribute show at Fringe earlier in the year), it was Vika Bull’s vocals on the finale Bridge Over Troubled Waters that proved the highlight. While their 70-minute set went all too quickly and didn’t feature an encore, we all went home happy.