Playing to 2300 people in Leeds on the first night of a sold-out UK tour, was certainly an exciting way for George Ezra to kick off his latest run of shows, promoting his new album, ‘Staying at Tamara’s’.
Kicking off the night with hit single, ‘Cassy O’’, Ezra had the crowd wrapped around his finger from the very beginning. In between songs he discussed how we wrote his album whilst travelling – part of which involved staying at an AirBnB in Barcelona, owned by a girl named Tamara (hence the album name, ‘Staying at Tamara’s’!). Ezra stated that he spent his days in a public garden up a hill, watching the world go by, and realising that “No one has a clue what they’re doing… we’re all just trying our best!”. This particular discovery led him to write his 4th song on the setlist, ‘Pretty Shining People’.
He then went on to sing a further mix of songs from both his debut, and sophomore albums – seeming somewhat surprised when the crowd knew almost every word of his latest tunes. Humble, yet charismatic, Ezra charmed the audience with his tuneful melodies and humorous anecdotes.
His single ‘Paradise’, which soared to Number 2 in the charts this summer, was met with open arms. Describing how he came up with the tune whilst feeling ill and “sorry for himself” on tour in California, Ezra explained how he often records riffs into his phone – then forgets about them for months on end.
He also admitted that he’s never learnt to drive – not out of inability however… he’s simply never attempted to! This confession brought him nicely into his next song, aptly named ‘Shotgun’. The catchy chorus had the whole crowd on their feet, shouting all the lyrics – much to Ezra’s delight.
The final song on the setlist, was arguably the one that really started to kick off Ezra’s musical career. The Hertford singer’s second single, ‘Budapest’ ended the show on a high. From the front of the venue, to the very back, the entire audience sang along to every word, almost as energetically as Ezra himself.
Spirited, modest, and lovable – it’s no surprise that George Ezra’s selling out arenas…
LDOI 