The decade or so in which Mike Scott was just Mike Scott, rather than a Waterboy, led most to assume the chap had lost it, at least a little. The 'big' sound of those early records always seemed to suggest he had airy, epic tendencies, but as matters spiritual have become more and more important to him, his performances have grown more erratic, and a touch pretentious.
Few, then, could have anticipated anything quite as crowd-pleasing as this. Obviously, if you're playing for a festival crowd you make sure your setlist is as friendly as possible, but the first few songs this evening are fine enough to remind you just how highly prized The Waterboys were in the mid-'80s.
When the newly reformed Waterboys released last year's 'A Rock In The Weary Land', few were impressed with its overtly rock'n'prog-isms. But these aren't particularly evident tonight, as the sound instead reminds us of the expanses of 'This Is The Sea', and the folky 'Fisherman's Blues'.
Just as a crashing 'The Whole of The Moon' looks set to seal the triumph, those rock/prog influences finally take over, the songs take a back seat, and the set withers to a rather dull and stodgy finish.
Watching The Waterboys being so fine for the early stretch, and then f*cking it up just before the finish line, was like watching a potted version of their entire career...
