Focus the band

A great concert

Focus played the County Town of Dorset - Dorchester- on a fresh, but dry, Saturday Night in November, and it was absolutely stupendous! Thijs van Leer came onto the stage, followed by his bandmates, to a rapturous applause. He promptly sat down at his Hammond organ, and belted out their first hit ‘House of the King’, and from then on, it was 100% quality classics. ‘Focus 1’ made way for the magnificent, multi-sectioned ‘Eruption’, Thijs excelling on harmonies and scatting, with his stellar cohorts each a virtuoso on their respective instruments. Pierre van der Linden on drums - a giant for a little guy, ever present since virtually the beginning; Menno Gootjes on guitar, making it sing and scream, and hitting all the poignant notes pitch perfect; Udo Pannekeet on an unusually shaped bass guitar, who provided the structure and resonance to the whole sound. I have seen Focus on many occasions in my 50 year love affair, but none was as good as this; local to me, a ticket price that was so palatable, a venue with great seating and vista - heaven! After a short interval, the band came back with ‘Round Goes The Gossip’, a lovely jazz/pop hybrid of the 1972 double album ‘Focus 3’. They proceeded with Harem Scarem, Focus III, plus a beautiful piece dedicated to the bells in Strasbourg Cathedral, in which each band member came into its own. Of course they played riveting versions if their biggest hits ‘Sylvia’ and ‘Hocus Pocus’, before finishing off with another eponymously-named tune. Thijs went on to state that we, the audience ‘was the fifth band member’, and he was touched by the venue, ambience and reception. Please catch them in tour, you will not be disappointed! ’

What a great band! Top musicians, brilliant music!a band I've followed since 1970!

Great display of virtuoso musicianship. Amazing gig.

Excellent as ever. The only disappointment was that Focus had a short 40 minutes set.

Asia: 7/16/24 My full review here: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10235078800297374&set=a.1204260793130 Review and photo by DAve (Concert #898)

Absolutely brilliant concert in an intimate setting. Hearing Focus 3 for the encore was a delight. Pierre van der Linden’s drum solo was extraordinary although that is not to take anything away from the rest of the band not least the great Thijs van Leer.

2nd time we’ve seen them this year and they still smashed it! The roar of the crowd on the final song was so full of energy and would not think twice about seeing them again.

i was exited and curious to see the band after 50 years. The concert was great and to see thijs and pierre was amazing. The other members , menno and Udo where great to. I had a great time with the concert. Thanks and lots of succes.

Absolutely brilliant performance from a band that's been going for over 50 years. Thijs van Leer is 75 and clearly enjoyed every minute of his and the band performance. I'd often mourned Jan Akkerman leaving the band but Menno Gootjes was absolutely fantastic on guitar playing a number of amazing solos. I was also blown away by 77 year old Pierre van der Linden's drumming and what must have been a 15 minute solo, where does he get the energy. Great venue which is small creating an intermate atmosphere and could get close to the stage. In all, well worth the entrance fee and will see them again if they keep touring.

Tremendous musicians still producing the goods on their fusion of classical, jazz and rock music. The quality of the music makes it timeless to me with engaging and often funny chat from band leader Thijs van Leer between songs.

Absolutely fantastic night. The music was just like it was in the seventies, but the fact that they could do that was unbelievable. My opinion only but the lead guitarist was better than Jan. The really massive impact was the drum solo. I always felt that the best one live had been done by Carl Palmer but this was superb and Carl had been in his twenties, at the time! Absolutely insanely good! Superb gig -please, please come back soon, Love you guys

Focus were incredible as always!

Incredible musicianship and professionalism and a friendly and humourous approach. Just brilliant!!!

What can I say? The gig at Haslemere was probably the most amazing I've ever been to, and the level of musicianship onstage was mind blowing!

Absolutely astonishing. Playing was amazing and such a great evenings entertainment. Long live Focus \0/

Top performance again. Thijs van Leer on organ and flute a fantastic ear for musical harmony and creating different musical moods. His background at Amsterdam Conservatorium comes out all the time. Pierre van der Linden on the drums. Unbelievable how he's still delivering at over 70. Keeps up a fantastic intensity interspersed with rolls and must be the best rock drummer in the world. Ability to improvise at its best.

What can I say, that hasn’t been said already? Focus are FOCUS! There is no other band even remotely like them. From the first note to the last they prove that creativity, passion and the desire to entertain us is still very important to all of them! Thijs is unmistakably Thijs, the founder and chief creative force behind the band. Pierre has been a member for more than 50 years and is a drummer without equal. Who else could play for 2 hours, including a 10 minute solo, at the tender age of 76!!! Menno takes all the inventive influences of Jan Akkerman and adds his own style on every track. Udo, on Bass guitar, has so much talent it’s difficult to quantify. Focus are so much more than just the sum of its’ parts! Go see them, you won’t be disappointed!

Thijs and the ‘boys’ ALWAYS deliver a fantastic performance. From the first note to the last, every song is built with the care only half a century of experience can create! If they come to your area, do yourself a great favour and see them! With a brilliant mixture of classics and newer songs, they prove that age cannot diminish their passion to perform! Thijs is, of course, a founding member and Pierre has been with Focus since 1971. You won’t find another drummer, of his age (76!!!), still able to deliver a powerful, 10 minute, Drum Solo anywhere! Menno Gootjes is a master of his guitar, taking Jan Akkerman’s inspirational originals and adding his own ‘spin’, and Udo Pannekeet knows a thing or two about Bass playing!!! Go see them, while they still have the desire to bring their unique music to an appreciative audience. They are still selling out venues all over the UK and Europe!

Great to see them in concert again. Good show!