Paul Young, Midge Ure and Kayla Marque at The Oriental Theater

Posted on October 26, 2018
by Aimee

What was your first concert? Mine was Paul Young, in Washington D.C., in 1985. I was 15 at the time and not old enough to drive. A friend’s parents were kind enough to take us and go to dinner while we attended the show. I think about that a lot as I take my now-16-year-old around to things – because that concert started me on a trajectory towards music for sure.

I had not seen Paul Young in the 30+ years since that first show, so I was thrilled that he was appearing at Denver’s Oriental Theater with Midge Ure (who I had seen acoustically in 2014) as well as my friend, Denver singer Kayla Marque.

As a soul singer-songwriter, Kayla was surprised when she was added to a show with 80s music legends. To me, her silky smooth voice was a perfect accompaniment, and the crowd agreed (she got a standing ovation from those of us there early enough to see her).

Midge Ure played first, and this time he was fully electric. He played songs from his solo career and Ultravox, with one notable exception – “Dancing With Tears In My Eyes.” Midge was really rocking out, almost verging on a punk-laced set. Even the quieter songs, like “Dear God,” weren’t actually all that quiet because he was filling the room with his distinctive voice. (I’m not sure he even needed a microphone.)

Paul Young, sadly, was suffering from a cold and his voice showed it. His enthusiasm for the crowd and the performance never lagged, though. As a near lifelong fan, I truly appreciated hearing songs that spanned his career.

My 16-year-old loves listening to 80s music and knew exactly who I was seeing when I got the tickets. How can anyone – or their children – ever forget their first concert?