Sound Relief, (March 14th, MCG)

It rained and it poured and we arrived with our towel, our tarpaulin and our waterproof jackets. It was a horrible day for an outdoor concert but it was a once in a lifetime opportunity, a chance to see some classic re-formed Australian and New Zealand acts on stage for possibly the last time ever. And the forecast made us optimistic. After the first heavy rainfalls in the morning, we hoped that it would clear to the odd shower. Apart from two heavy downpours and some irritating wind-propelled drizzle, this remained true for much of the day.

The acts themselves seemed to enjoy the responsive crowd. Being so far away from the stage took away some of the atmosphere, but the screens and sound were mostly effective. We arrived in time for Kings of Leon's set, brief but punchy. They opened with Crawl, followed by Notion, On Call and Use Somebody (surprisingly no Sex on Fire). They were followed by Paul Kelly whose low-key set of acoustic guitar pleased the crowd. He played To Her Door, Leaps and Bounds, How to Make Gravy and a couple of other songs.

The complexities of Augie March's instrumentals seemed to be lost in the enormous venue, especially with the sound problems that plagued their set. But their renditions of This Train Will Be Taking No Passengers and closer One Crowded Hour showed off their talents. As they played, dark clouds gathered above and Bliss N Eso arrived to pep up the soggy patrons.

Following that were Kasey Chambers, Shane Nicholson and Troy Cassar-Daly who showcased their vocal talents in a series of beautiful songs, even enjoyed by non-country fans. The first surprise of the day came with Liam Finn, who seemed to be acting as every member of Led Zeppelin at once in a set including Second Chance. He was joined by special friends Neil and Tim Finn, plus brother Elroy and Crowded House's Nick Seymour. They played Don't Dream It's Over, followed by Weather With You, after which the clouds seemed to clear. To finish, Neil sang Better Be Home Soon. If anyone can get 80 000 people to have an impromptu singalong, it's Neil Finn.

After Jack Johnson's set, Wolfmother performed an energetic series of songs, including Woman, Unicorn and The Joker and the Thief although not Mind's Eye. Throughout the day we saw songs broadcast from the Sydney show including a great set by Coldplay (highlights: the entire SCG singing Viva La Vida's vocal riff, You're the Voice sung by John Farnham and Chris Martin), Josh Pyke, Little Birdy beating Split Enz to the punch covering Six Months In a Leaky Boat and the Presets. But it was the rest of the evening that the crowd was really anticipating.

Hunters and Collectors arrived on stage to mass excitement. They played all the expected favourites including Do You See What I See, When the River Runs Dry, Holy Grail and Throw Your Arms Around Me with passion and energy that only a re-formed band can have when they realise how much they've missed performing together.

I was awaiting the arrival of Split Enz and my anticipation grew as one of Noel Crombie's custom designed backdrops graced the stage while we watched another Sydney set on the screens. Then we heard the musical introduction and Tim Finn, Neil Finn, Eddie Raynor and the rest of the band appeared in matching white suits to launch into Shark Attack. Tim had the performance presence to match his enthusiasm, undertaking several lively dance moves to propel himself across the stage. This was followed by Poor Boy and then I Got You, an obvious crowd favourite that prompted more singalongs. We heard another of Neil's songs with Message to My Girl, then Pioneer introduced Six Months In a Leaky Boat (why wasn't the whole crowd doing the hand claps?). Later was Dirty Creature, History Never Repeats and the set closed with the crowd on their feet singing along to I See Red. They left too soon and we wanted more. No I Hope I Never? Very strange.

The last act for the night was Midnight Oil, with the federal Minister for the Environment Peter Garrett fronting the band for probably the last time. Their set included Blue Sky Mine, Beds Are Burning, The Power and the Passion and King of the Mountain and lasted almost an hour. It was a fitting end to a great night and we were treated to an encore before they left the stage. It had been a long day but a great experience.