Given its status as the closest thing Ry's had to a hit single it was no surprise to find Little Sister up next, and there was no way that anything could have followed How Can A Poor Man Stand Such Times And Live.
Glancing around the auditorium there were a number of vacant seats, so there were way too many people who missed the chance to see one of the world's great guitarists on stage and very close to his best form.
As a long term fan, the stunning solo in How Can A Poor Man.... came as no surprise.
Single keening drawn out notes that run in and out of the melody line are a Cooder trademark when it comes to soloing in slower numbers (I'd point anyone towards John Hiatt's Lipstick Sunset as an example of what I'm talking about) but that last number of the night was jaw-dropping tears to the eyes stuff.
If I had to fault anything about the evening it wouldn't be something coming from the stage. The Brisbane Convention Centre is a comfortable venue, but it was obvious on the night that the place was running with a skeleton staff.
Toilets that are usually open were shut, with no indication to warn the public that they'd need to go elsewhere and save themselves a walk. In much the same way bars that were open when we caught Elvis Costello a month before were inexplicably closed, and the queue at the one that was open was horrendous.
And when the obligatory idiot started his forays across the space between the front row and the stage there was no sign of anyone from Security suggesting that he might care to cease and desist lest he find himself departing.