Hollies home for Christmas

The Hollies finished off their 2014 Australia, New Zealand and European Tour at Southport Theatre on Friday evening.

It was almost a full house for the band who, with their cascading harmonies, drew the blueprint for The Mamas and Papas and Fleetwood Mac just as surely as The Searchers, with their 12 string guitar sound, inspired The Byrds.

These days, Blackpool’s Peter Howarth fronts the band, backed up by the two remaining original members, Tony Hicks and drummer Bobby Elliott.

Changed personnel or not, however, the sound remains true to the days of Graham Nash and Allan Clarke and the audience sang and clapped along to old hits like ‘Bus Stop’, ‘Jennifer Eccles’ and On a Carousel’, often given new arrangements ‘to liven things up’.

Stirring versions of ‘He Ain’t Heavy He’s My Brother’ and ‘The Air that I Breath’ closed the show, and The Hollies left a satisfied audience shouting for more.

Ron Ellis