The evergreen Air Supply will perform their chart-topping songs from the 70s and 80s at Hoa Binh Theater in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday and Saturday evening.

Their last stop must be special to the pair as they are the only foreign pop artists to visit Indonesia more than 15 times.

The shows at 14 Ba Thang Hai Street in District 10 will be their only ones in Vietnam, where Graham and Hitchcock hope to revive local interest in the act that swept Asia and Latin America with sentimental pop ballads like “All out of Love,” “Lost in Love” and “Goodbye.”

What’s so extraordinary about Air Supply is that they are as popular in the two continents now as they ever were.

“Truth is, we still love all the old songs. If we had to choose one above the rest, it would be “All out of Love.” Every time we perform that song, we feel something new,” Air Supply told Thanh Nien.

A more recent favorite is “Goodbye” from the 1993 album “The Vanishing Race.” The lyrics by an old Elvis Presley girlfriend named Linda Thomson tell of a father-son relationship and were a radical departure from Air Supply’s usual tugging at the heart strings.

Along with Lobo, Leo Sayer and Bryan Adams, the Australian twosome were among the first western artists to visit Vietnam in the 1990s and were a smash hit with the residents of Hanoi a decade ago.

Fresh from their show in Indonesia, Air Supply had an amicable press conference on Thursday after flying into HCMC to a reception by 100 young people screened beforehand by concert promoter Viettop Media.

Viettop Media general director Hoang Viet said the hardest part of preparing for the concerts was satisfying Air Supply’s exacting requirements.

“Their instructions concerning the sound system, acoustics, lighting and instruments were very specific. We had to hire the equipment they demanded from Bangkok, though they did bring one of their instruments with them,” Viet said.

“It’s all about quality, making sure the show is as good as can be. After much effort, everything is in place and set up for the shows,” Viet said.

Thirty percent of the proceeds from the first night will be donated to charity, mainly to benefit typhoon victims in central Vietnam, according to Viettop Media.

Tickets cost from VND400,000 (US$22.42) to VND2 million ($112.10) and are available from Viettop Media, 47 Le Quy Don Street, District 3. The price depends on the seat position, which can be found on Hoa Binh Theater’s seating layout published at www.vietopmedia.com.

Reported by Da Ly – Kim Nga