Concert review
Docklands Arena, London, UK - 6 April 2001
By Jill Hanson

"When we were together I was blown away... just like paper from a fan."
Well, that is what I was. I knew I would be, 'cause it´s Texas we´re talking about.
But I didn´t think I would be like that at all.
I had travelled all the way from Sweden to see them so my expectations were quite high.

I arrived about an hour before the doors opened. I thought the que that I was facing were quite big. 15 minutes later I realized that the que wasn´t even near to be called "big". The whole area was filled with Texas-fanatics. 6.00 pm and they let us in. I manage to smuggle in a so called professional camera (some of the photos are somewere on this site). I did some shopping and then went straight towards the concerthall. I found a spot on the left side by the fence. Perfect for the camera.

1.5 hours later the warm-up band Reef entered...and left. That´s how I remember them. Not very good. But then again, does Texas really need a warm-up band? The only warm-up the crowd needed was Sharleen.

9.00 pm and the lights went out. The crowd started to scream a little and some wolf whistles were heard. A thin, almost transparent curtain was released from the ceiling. Zero Zero began at the same time as a blue-turquoise waterwhirl appeared on the tv-screens and the curtain. I was amazed. Never had I seen such a beautiful thing. Then the silhouettes of the band members was seen. I thought the building would collapse when the crowd saw the dark shaddow named Sharleen. The curtain disappeared and In Demand went off. She had such an energy right from the start, dancing about on stage in blue jeans and a white t-shirt with rainbows on each shoulder.

I was surprised to hear Black Eyed Boy in the beginning of the show. Usually they save the best for last. Halo and Insane came next. At the end of Insane Sharleen ran up to Eddie to mess with the keyboard. There she stayed during Tired of Being Alone.

She was left all alone on stage. She started to talk but some guy interrupted her by yelling she was beautiful. She said "Thank´s. You too" and another guy answered.
Her reply was fast. "I wasn´t talking to you. I was talking to a guy 15 feet away". Everybody laughed. Then THE guy was picked up. Joe (or Joel). She had told the audience that he wasn´t the muscle type of guy, and that he had a belly. Then she said something about his pants. She didn´t look happy. I have never in my life heard 8 thousand people laugh before. It was amazing. He had the most ...not very good looking pants on. Beige (or orange) and checked like the scarfs that are in fashion at the moment. They would´ve been nice on anyone else. Sharleen made fun of them a lot. He was single and Sharleen said she could understand why, pointing at the trousers with the microphone.
He tried to make her take her the top off. Her answer was "In your fuckin' dreams".
"Yes, everynight" was his reply that made Shar laugh madly. Then it was time for the humiliation-dance. Joe said he was bad at dancing. Sharleen faced the crowd with a mean smile on her face. "Girls look at the guys dancing to determine if they are good in bed". The stadium shiverd of laughs and wolf whistles. "You´ve just told half of London you´re shit in bed".
After the dance Sharleen told the guy to burn his pants. I wonder if he did?!

I´m So In Love With You was apparently played for the first time in London. A story about a cabdriver was mentioned and a visit from the "official Elvis fanclub".
The crowd, including me, lost it when When We Are Together, In Our Lifetime and Summer son kicked off. Sharleen told everyone to make as much noise as we could, otherwise they wouldn´t return. So the crowd went nuts until they came back to performe Inner Smile. The reaction was unbelivable.
Shar in leather... and she wonder why everyone see her as a sexobject. You are hot, girl!

The whole show was totally amazing.The lighting as well. A mix of red, orange, pink and purple. Some times blue and green or completely white. The pillars in the background made a really nice effect. The only thing I missed was the foreplay inbetween the songs. They never let the audience guess the next song. And Shar never let us sing on our own like in Glasgow 99, at the Hush tour. But she did compensate that by talking a lot. Fine by me. I love her Scottish accent!

Thank´s a lot to our beloved Texas!
...You touch my Inner Smile...


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