Colin
Sets full of wry storytelling at the
venue's original Fairfax location would
conclude as Hay adjourned to his
merch table, signing fans' old Men at
Work albums alongside newer solo
discs like 1994's Topanga and 1998's
Transcendental Highway. "It was a weird
time, but it was great for me because it
was like establishing yourself in a place
where you never really lived before,"
says Hay. "That was as close to a little
Colin Hay with Men at Work, circa 1981
11•2015
labradoodle. "The song originally did
end [after the second verse]," says Hay.
"I thought about my sister in
Melbourne who has a groodle, which is
a similar dog. Her first question to me
would have been, 'What happened to
the dog?' I had to give it the Hollywood
ending."
"Did You Just Take the Long Way
Home" sweetens a story about lost love
with a childhood memory. "My mother
and I used to go for eggs on a Sunday
to this farm in Melbourne," says Hay.
"On the way back, we'd hit an intersection called the Five Ways. She always
took the wrong turn. I knew she was
going to do it, but I let her. It was
always fun to have that extra time
alone with my mother."
Since 1991, Hay has played countless shows at night spot Largo in his
adopted hometown of Los Angeles.
family as you can get in terms of playing live.”
Overlapping the period, Hay also
played occasional Men at Work revival
shows alongside late friend and bandmate Greg Ham. "We toured for six
years from ‘96 until 2002," says Hay.
"We had aspirations of doing something new. It didn't turn into what I had
envisioned, but it was good to do what
we did."
"Where are all you people when I
play my solo shows, "Hay once asked a
packed Men at Work audience at
House of Blues Los Angeles, goading
fans with a smirk. When Hay performs
in Chicago on November 6, he'll appear
at the Vic Theatre before a crowd much
larger than that House of Blues set. It's
a triumph, but Hay remains pragmatic.
"It feels good to play to any crowd, and
that's the truth of it," he says, before
12 illinoisentertainer.com november 2015
remembering his own Dust Bowl years.
"Still, when you go from 150,000 people
to 40, it's a bit strange. Not only for a
little while, but probably like 10 years,
it was very tough. You wonder whether
you're just kidding yourself."
Ultimately, Hay's longevity is the
result of dogged persistence. "Hand to
hand combat, all the way," he says,
laughing with a survivor's relief.
Hay remembers that the faithful few
were encouraging in lean times. "They
would say, 'please don't stop. We love
what you do. Come back, and we'll
bring our friends,'" he says. "That's
really the basis of it. It's an organic
process of people telling other people.
The best thing about it is it feels very
real."
Appearing The Vic Theatre,Chicago
November 6, 2015, 8:00 PM, 3145
North Sheffield Avenue, Chicago.
Jeff Elbell