A few hours before the show some of the soundcheck was streamed on Instagram.

All songs solo acoustic except where noted.

Setlist info provided by Mike W and Louis P
Photos provided by Mike W

Online review by Spectrum Culture
It was St. Lennon’s Day according to Robyn Hitchcock who mounted the first of two sold-out, mostly solo concerts at Portland’s Old Church on what would have been the former Beatle’s 84th birthday. The past has been on this 71-year-old British musician’s mind lately. Not only has Hitchcock recently released his memoir, 1967: How I Got There and Why I Never Left, the songwriter also put out a limited-edition album called 1967: Vacations in the Past to accompany it. Featuring covers of songs by Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, the Kinks and more, the album is a collection of the threads that have informed Hitchcock’s own very literate psychedelic songs.

Much of the 25-song setlist also delved into the past as Hitchcock, curated by both fan requests and his own whimsy, mainly selected music from his ‘80s and early ‘90s heyday. In fact, five of the first six songs came from his work with the Egyptians, which he disbanded back in 1994. By playing these selections unaccompanied on acoustic guitar, one could pick out how Hitchcock’s influences, such as John Lennon, touched his sound. The dissociative weirdness of the Beatles, the deadpan comedy of the Kinks, the absurdity of Syd Barrett and the wistful melancholia of Nick Drake all play a part. Also, by stripping away some of the shiny production that marks albums like Element of Light and Globe of Frogs, Hitchcock demonstrated how he was quite the man out of time in the ‘80s. Songs like “Madonna of the Wasps” and “The Leopard” felt more elemental in this naked form. More natural.

The evening was divided into two sets separated by an intermission. All told, Hitchcock played for nearly 135 minutes, mostly on the acoustic guitar. He began the second set on the piano, playing “Flavour of Night,” “Ted, Woody and Junior” and “Somewhere Apart” before moving back to guitar. Emma Swift, Hitchcock’s partner, joined him for the final portion for a handful of songs, adding rich vocal texture to selections such as “Glass Hotel,” “Oceanside” and “Queen Elvis.” Swift also kept up with Hitchcock’s oft-dislodged banter, giving him a hard time for being a technophobe and stretching out a joke about her love for the viral hippo baby, Moo Deng.

Still, the trio of cover songs that ended the show felt almost more important than Hitchcock’s own music this specific evening. As someone who both keeps the past alive and allows it to influence his work, Hitchcock’s reverence for his forebears made itself apparent in his performance. He returned to the piano for Lennon’s “Isolation,” abandoning all cheeky humor as he played that devastating song. Hitchcock then went back to the guitar for the Kinks’ “Waterloo Sunset” and Pink Floyd’s “See Emily Play.” Hitchcock may have never left the ‘60s but these songs still remain vital to many rock ‘n’ roll fans. Perhaps the Summer of Love never left us either.