05 November 2026 (gig)
32 min
One of Australia's most popular exports, Air Supply, has had a really exceptional year. On November 2nd, the duo were given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, in conjunction with this being their 50th anniversary as a musical act. They also released a new album this year with, "A Matter of Time".
Air Supply, comprised of Graham Russell and Russell Hitchcock, performed at the Chevalier Theater in Medford, Massachusetts on November 5, 2026.
The show was packed with many zealous Air Supply fans, affectionately called "Air Heads", and were ecstatic to see the act that "Time" magazine called, "The most romantic band in the world".
The duo began the show with a quintet of early '80s hits, "Sweet Dreams", "Even the Nights Are Better", "Just as I Am", "Every Woman in the World" and "Here I Am".
Digging deeper into their catalog, the band did "Changes" (from 1980's "Lost in Love" record), "Goodbye", an international hit (charting at number one in Asia) from the 1993 release, "The Vanishing Race", and the title track from "A Matter of Time".
Changing things up a little, Russell read a poem he composed, "Never Too Soon", and did a solo acoustic version of "Me and the River".
Hitchcock rejoined him onstage and after telling stories about their early days (including a spot as the opening act on the Rod Stewart 1977 tour), they churned out, "Two Less Lonely People in the World", from the 1982 disc, "Now and Forever."
Russell tore off a guitar solo fingering his strings with his right hand, while using his left hand (and the body of his acoustic guitar) in an almost bongo drum-like style.
Air Supply is fortunate to have a first-rate backing band featuring: Pavel Valdman (drums); Doug Gild (bass); Kat Finlay (cello); Jessica Soli (cello); and Italian-born Mirko Tessandori (piano/keyboards/backing vocals).
Finlay and Soli took center stage briefly for a dueling cello solo and Valdman did a quick, yet powerful, solo on his drum kit (during which he put on a Boston Bruins hockey team t-shirt, really endearing him to the local crowd).
Air Supply finished up with, "The One That You Love" and the smash hit that set off their career in the US, "Lost in Love". They then ended their set with an epic version of "Making Love Out of Nothing at All". Penned by the late Jim Steinman (who wrote all the songs for Meatloaf's iconic "Bat Out of Hell" LP), the song was originally offered to Meatloaf, but he passed on it, opening the door for Air Supply to turn it into possibly their best song ever.
A great cover of Badfinger's "Without You" (although the best-known version of "Without You" is by its author, Harry Nillson) and "All Out of Love" (which was greatly extended due to the audience participation sing-a-long) brought to a close a night from one of pop music's most enduring acts.
