Ladies swooned and rowdy lads cheered in the presence of Rob Thomas, enamoured by his distinctively deep, gravelly vocals as he commanded an audience to sing along with him in a packed Sydney venue.

Known to naughties kids as the frontman of popular rock group Matchbox Twenty, Rob Thomas took to the Sydney stage on his solo tour last night, Wednesday 13th. Fans were excited to hear him sing some of his nostalgic bangers and showcase new songs from his recent record Chip Tooth Smile. They were not disappointed, as Rob presented a two-hour set with a vast array of hits written throughout his long and illustrious career.

Supporting Thomas on his tour was Australian treasure, Daryl Braithwaite, who sung many of his own beloved tunes, including those from his former band Sherbet, until he finally gave the people what they really wanted with the ultimate crowd-pleaser, ‘The Horses’, which had boomers up in their seats.

Patrons were certainly warmed up for Rob, who later arrived on stage with a full rock band ensemble adorned in endlessly cool black jackets, with gorgeous leggy backup vocalists in matching thigh-high boots. All members proved themselves to be outstanding musicians, shredding their instruments in various drum, guitar and even Saxophone solos in a cover of David Bowie’s ‘Lets Dance’ and Rob Thomas original ‘I Am an Illusion.’

For most of his songs, Rob would share witty, funny anecdotes associated with his best tunes.  Each seemed to represent a significant moment in his life, which brought the crowd a little closer to the star.  One, in particular, was ‘Her Diamonds’, which he explained was about the age-old story of “boy meets girl”. He continued on his seemingly simple explanation: “boy writes song for girl because it’s the only thing he knows how to do” and before performing the hit he concluded with “boy gets girl,” which got a very loud, positive reaction from his adoring fans. A Matchbox Twenty essential, ‘3AM’, was also thrown in, which Rob stated was “the first song he ever wrote… that he liked.” Many laughed, charmed by the dark and mysterious rocker.

Indigenous culture was embraced as traditional dancers were invited to join the performance for the song ‘Fire on the Mountain’. People carried the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags through the Audience and afterwards, Rob expressed that he wanted to “acknowledge ancestors past and present.”

In his encore, the best was definitely saved for last as the band prepared to play ‘Smooth’, the Grammy award-winning collaboration with legendary guitarist Carlos Santana. 10-year-old Australia’s Got Talent contestant Taj Farrant joined Rob on stage for the iconic electric guitar riff, and played it so accurately that it felt like Santana was there in the flesh.

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Rob possessed a humble vulnerability on that stage that made him highly respectable by fans and musical counterparts alike. Although he celebrated his mainstream commercial successes, he didn’t forget about his audience and entertained with the people, for the people. After capping off the gig with ‘This is How a Heart Breaks’, Rob stood arm in arm with the rest of his band (even little Taj) and in true rock star fashion they threw guitar picks that admiring Moshers flocked to catch. Classic.

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