Live Review: Village People, Glenn Leonard's Temptations, Former Ladies Of The Supremes

There were cowboys, Indians and butt-less leather chaps galore as '80s phenomenon Village People kicked off their Australian tour at the Enmore Theatre over the weekend.

The night showcased a smorgasbord of smash hits from the Swinging '60s to '80s disco, and the atmosphere in the theatre was electric. The entire crowd were dancing along to the oh so familiar choreography, bumping, grinding and singing along from start to finish.

First to take the stage were the Former Ladies Of The Supremes, consisting of Scherrie Payne and Lynda Laurence, two genuine latter-day former members of America's most successful vocal group, The Supremes, joined by Joyce Vincent. Playing a collection of Supremes greatest hits including Baby Love, Where Did Our Love Go and You Can't Hurry Love, the lovely ladies of Motown had the crowd singing along to every lyric.

Next up were Glenn Leonard's Temptations. Leonard is a former member of the Motown super group, joining them in 1975, in time to record the hit Shaky Ground, and is the 2013 inductee into the R&B music hall of fame. Leonard opened by saying, “I want you to fasten your seatbelts and assume your positions because we are about to take off”, before leading into renditions of Get Ready and Proud Mary, before the biggest crowd pleaser, 1965 classic My Girl.

But it wasn't until a cop, a Native American Indian, a biker, a cowboy, a construction worker and a soldier all walked out on to the stage that the crowd really went wild. There was not a single person that wasn't up, out of their seats and dancing along as the iconic Village People (featuring two of the original band members – the Native American Indian and the soldier) played all of their most famous hits such as In The Navy, San Francisco, In Hollywood, Go West and Can't Stop the Music, classic songs that took this reviewer back to memories of primary school discos.

The guys ended with a bang, saving YMCA until the very end of their set. We were all given a tutorial on the correct technique for doing the YMCA and were left gagging for more as they finally left the stage. Village People proved that, despite this being their thirty-third year together, they still have all the right moves, and this reviewer would highly recommend checking them out in concert if you get the chance.