Queenstown’s polo farm will come alive with the sound of reggae in January.
Mountain Scene can reveal the Malaghan’s Road venue will host legendary British band UB40, Jefferson Starship and Australasian group
Dragon for the January 7 concert, part of the six-stop ‘A Summer’s Day Live’ New Zealand tour.
Toby Burrows, from promoter Trademark, says when they were looking for a venue in the Whakatipu, Queenstown Polo ‘‘just ticks all the boxes’’.
‘‘They’ve got capacity to scale up and down, depending on what size [concert] you want to do, so it’s got a lot of scope with it.
‘‘It’s such a beautiful setting, being at the foot of Coronet Peak and looking on to the Remarkables, and being on lush polo fields.
‘‘There are actually not a lot of venue options in Queenstown, especially when you’re doing big concerts, to get one close to Queenstown like that, it’s great.’’
While the consent is still being processed, Burrows says they’re confident it’ll go through, and they’re hoping to get 10,000 punters on the day, particularly given the pulling power of the talent.
UB40, celebrating their 40th anniversary — which was in 2020 — will bring out the big guns, like Food for Thought, 1 in 10, Red Red Wine, Kingston Town and Can’t Help Falling In Love With You, as well as tracks from the latest releases For the Many and Bigga Baggariddim, which will be performed live in NZ for the first time.
Jefferson Starship rose from the ashes of legendary San Francisco band, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Jefferson Airplane.
The band’s singles include We Built This City, Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now, and Sara.
Representing homegrown talent, Aussie/Kiwi rockers Dragon boast hits like April Sun in Cuba, Are You Old Enough, Rain and Still In Love With You.
Burrows: ‘‘When we do the billing for these shows, we’re aiming for bands that have lots of hits, and the three of those together, it’s just an afternoon of non-stop hits.’’
A Summer’s Day Live, January 7, 4.30pm-10pm, Queenstown Polo. Tickets via Eventfinda
