Merrill Osmond live at The Barn, Ringwood on 28.9.2024
The Barn
A new venue for me – lots of tribute acts play and events that are often mirrored even closer to home for me, in Poole or Wimborne. Last night Shaun Ryder was here. Coming soon Martin Fry, Geoff Hurst and Harry Redknapp.
The Barn opened in September 2022, on the edge of Ringwood town centre – parking a bit limited at the venue but a short walk from the large flat car parks of Ringwood. If waved on at the main Barn car park, to the leisure centre to park, you need to check your car registration in at the venue, not the leisure centre. There was someone outside waving a board with a QR code to deal with this. Internet reception was awful and I really don’t know what I did wrong, if anything, but I received £100 penalty charge a week or so later – the system looked like a recipe for irritation, which it duly proved, grateful though I am for The Barn getting my penalty charge lifted when I contacted them.
There isn’t much spare room inside The Barn, so outside there is a mobile bar and a large awning. Despite the numerous helpful staff inviting us to use another QR code arrangement to order interval drinks once again Internet and Wi-Fi reception led us to a chap with an iPad to deal with this.
Inside, a 600 capacity seated venue with the seats rising steeply behind a good space at the front, to give a good view from any seat I would suggest. What a friendly place – very much a local venue, perched here on the edge of the New Forest.
“We want The Os-monds!”
OK so what am I doing at a Merrill Osmond gig? I have to confess this is not an isolated dip into Osmond-mania, well a calmer later life form of it. The Osmonds were just so massive as I watched early Top of the Pops and read my Look-In magazines in my pre-record buying youth. In those years, when you could boldly say such things, The Osmonds were music for girls…. well they just were. Beneath the surface though they were pretty rocky. It was Donny, later with Marie, who was extracted for greater stardom and The Osmonds as a band fell away from the front line.
On a trip to Las Vegas in 2014, I just had to see Donny and Marie’s show at The Flamingo Hotel, on The Strip – didn’t I? Well worth it. You haven’t lived until you’ve seen Donny sing Puppy Love live – could bring a tear to your eye…. not mine, obviously 😬
Then in 2023, Donny Osmond played Bournemouth BIC on his UK tour. As we knew a longstanding Osmond loving friend I felt this was a great excuse for a get together…and go on then, I’ll come to see Donny.
What an entertainer. So much history to share. He made a lot of women very happy that evening, wandering up through the crowd facilitating hugs and kisses from beaming aging faces of the 70s. What a lovely lad eh.
Merrill Osmond live
Merrill was lead singer, bassist and wrote many of The Osmonds’ songs. He’s 71 now and although he announced his retirement last year, he is doing three last gigs in the UK. He has a connection with Ringwood through his current band and production team and hence his return to The Barn, the venue he launched live music at and helped fund.
As soon as the stage lights go on there is a rush of older women – OK I counted three blokes – to the stage as Merrill comes on.
Crazy Horses to open is one way to keep everyone happy…then ZZ Top’s Sharp Dressed Man. (Go on – remind yourself – Crazy Horses video from the 70s.) There are several covers in the set. Later there is Sweet Caroline and I Saw Her Standing There for instance, introduced with reference to personal stories about Neil Diamond and Paul McCartney (who gave Merrill one of his bass guitars and stuck up for them when the media were giving them a hard time).
He’s had a long spell on the country music scene since the peak of The Osmonds days. There are a few country songs but he does like a bit of the rocky stuff.
There’s a halfway break and in part two Merrill’s son Travis joins him and the band on bass. An extravagant drum solo finishes off Osmonds 1972 song Hold Her Tight. The set rocks along nicely.
Merrill shares a great story of Elvis calling them at home to congratulate them on their success. The Osmonds played at The International Hotel, Las Vegas, after Elvis finished his long residency there.
There are two standout Osmonds songs in part two: Let Me In and Love Me For A Reason…anyone growing up in the 70s knows those. Lots of arm waving and an encouraged mobile phone audience lightshow.
Merrill chats freely between songs – so relaxed – shaking hands with anyone who wants to. One thing I have never seen before occurs: a song ends and someone shoves forward an Osmonds LP and pen for Merrill to sign… he’s still on stage, about to play another song, but he just obliges.
He says it’s the end. The last gig is at the Concorde Club tomorrow (Eastleigh). “Is anyone coming to that one?”. This is greeted with an excited roar and a massive show of excited ladies’ hands…. they are going.
Cheers bring the encores – Born to be Wild and then the apt, 1972 Osmonds song Going Home. Just time for last blast of Crazy Horses once more.
An unusual one for me perhaps but a privilege to see The Osmonds’ frontman signing off on his UK performing career.
The setlists below – we were sat next to the mixing desk, up at the back.
Gigs with Ivan 