Rod Stewart in Krakow: The fans took a long time to get going

Countless cult hits, world-famous anthems or even the most popular party songs are no guarantee that you can always wrap your audience around your little finger. Sir Rod Stewart had to learn this from his performance yesterday in Krakow, Poland.
At his second appearance in Poland in just a few days, the audience in the Tauron Arena was slow to get going. This may also have been due to the fact that the start of the show was delayed. Instead of starting at 6 pm as originally planned, the red curtain (Let the ggod times roll) in front of the stage didn't rise until 8 pm. In view of the almost two-hour delay, some of the 18,000 visitors were probably a little annoyed and didn't let the two opening songs ‘Tonight I'm Yours’ and ‘Havin’ A Party’ get them in the mood.
The mood then improved noticeably when Sir Rod didn't stop belting out his hits: ‘It's A Heartache’ and ‘It Takes Two’ broke the ice, with ‘You Wear It Well’, ‘Ooh La La’ and ‘Some Guys Have All The Luck’ almost everyone in the packed arena was up to speed and the evening picked up speed.
The setlist remained almost unchanged compared to the gig in Gdansk on Tuesday. Only the end of the show was slightly altered by Sir Rod. ‘Stay With Me’ and “Hot Legs” made it into the “normal” evening programme. After ‘Sailing’, the curtain came down, only to rise again for the only encore, ‘Sweet Little Rock'n'Roller’.
The Polish media still paid homage to the 80-year-old, despite the slight dip in spirits at the beginning. ‘Stewart triggered a dance frenzy and standing ovations with his hits,’ wrote the news portal “Wolne Media”. ‘The evening was a nostalgic journey through hits and strong cover versions’.
The online news magazine ‘Krakow Naszemiasto’ stated: ‘The energy that filled the arena that evening was incredible. It was hard to believe that Rod Stewar is already 80 years old’.
The fans and media also responded very favourably to Stewart's support for Ukraine. ‘Rod Stewart, who performed in a yellow and blue outfit, sang ‘Rhythm of my heart’ and moving photos from the front were shown on the screens,’ emphasised “Krakow Naszemiasto” and reported on an “incredibly dynamic” show. ‘Sir Rod Stewart thrilled the audience with his energy and his unmistakable, always powerful voice. The band complemented him perfectly - the beautiful female crew proved to be just as musically talented,’ the paper summarised.

Setlist Krakow:
1st Tonight I'm Yours
2 Havin' A Party
3 It's A Heartache
4 It Takes Two
5 You Wear It Well
6 Ooh La La
7. Some Guys Have All The Luck
8. The First Cut Is The Deepest
9 Tonight's The Night
10. Forever Young
11th Young Turks
12th Maggie May
13 I'd Rather Go Blind
14 Lady Marmalade (Band only)
15 Baby Jane
16th Rhythm Of My Heart
17 I Don't Wan't To Talk About It
18. if You Don't Know Me By Now
19. Proud Mary (Band only)
20 Da Ya Think I'm Sexy
21 Stay With Me
22 Hot Legs
23rd Sailing
24. Sweet Little Rock'n'Roller (Encore)