the bettajive review magazine #36
Tammi Savoy at the Rhythm Riot
Here we are peeps, issue #36 of the Bettajive Review Magazine. As we gradually reintegrate into the gig and weekender scene, we have plenty of material from live performances to bring you. This month, it's the 25th annual Rhythm Riot, featuring Tammi Savoy, pictured above. For those who are wondering, we'll say it now Hemsby review will be next month. This allows us to give the most in-depth coverage of both events, unlike a certain publication that reckons it has all bases covered, that also didn't have anyone cover the biggest, sell out, R&B and Roots of Rock n Roll weekender in the country.
We also have review from Chesterfield Rock n Roll Club, featuring the Rhythm Burners and Gainsborough's Blues Club with the Lah Di Dahs - Vintage Vocal trio. And Jackson Sloan's latest CD release. Do enjoy and if you like what you read, how about popping us a donation over using the button below. Many thanks
We also have review from Chesterfield Rock n Roll Club, featuring the Rhythm Burners and Gainsborough's Blues Club with the Lah Di Dahs - Vintage Vocal trio. And Jackson Sloan's latest CD release. Do enjoy and if you like what you read, how about popping us a donation over using the button below. Many thanks
The Bettajive Review
Survival. This last couple of months readers, and for that matter next month, you will see/have seen extended coverage of the weekenders we have attended. Readers, it’s a jungle out there, and just like the real jungle, you need to be able to survive, and I don’t mean just wearing a loin cloth, wrestling a guy in a gorilla suit and shouting ‘Ungawa’. Here’s a Bettajive resume of how to do just that, survive, and as a disclaimer, this is generic, any resemblance to any particular weekender, venue, persons involved or event, is purely coincidental…..
The now well-established weekender is often situated in a holiday camp, with the whole site being taken over by the event. The holiday camp venue is basically chalets, some on two levels, in large rectangular blocks. The direct walking route through, is via some of these blocks. As people stand on balconies and chill, drink, smoke and chat in various languages, I do notice a number of things though.
The first thing to do is play music loud, loud and louder. In essence, your music must be louder than that of your neighbours, and be sure to have some obscurities that no one else does. Make sure your speakers are like wardrobes too. Spoken conversations have to be held at the top of your voice. Anything remotely amusing should to be laughed at in the most exaggerated fashion. Even the smallest of mishaps (eg tripping over the pavement, dropping a spoon) must be met with the most amplified, choral ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!’ and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question. Guaranteed the occupants of a chalet you walk past, will have heard or seen the funniest thing ever just as you get adjacent with it. Either that or they all shout ‘Oi Oi’ in unison. Incidentally at this point it should be noted that despite who is on TV in the chalet at the time, and despite the assertions made by some, they have not had any sort of relationship with whomsoever is presenting the news or the weather, for example.
You must put all your empty beer cans in the window pyramid stylie, and if you’re really hardcore, leave ‘em on Monday!!! If they fall over, don’t forget ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah! Be aware, that whatever your usual dietary victuals intake may be…forget it. You will find almost everything on offer at a weekender, will be the most appetising scran you have ever seen, and it will be even more appealing at 3am, a kind of grub goggles syndrome. Your five a day will consist of the slice of lime in the top of your beer bottle. Incidentally beer, is a password for many, bacon is for others. The opening hours of a weekender, involve copious amounts of afore mentioned libation, but please be careful as this has a hallucinogenic quality, and can result in regular encounters with inanimate objects in a prostrate position. Again, this will be met vocally by ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!’ and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question.
There are so many nationalities with a multitude of languages, all there for a similar purpose. Back on the balconies, it’s almost like you’re walking through an open prison, or dodgy neighbourhood (if I had any experience of either one!!), where you might hear ladies ‘Wan show you good time meester’ or guys shout ‘Ay, you wan buy Red Hot Rockabeeely Seedees much cheeepness’. It’s not of course, but you can get that impression. I’m amazed that some of our overseas visitors can communicate with just a few gestures, for example, open and outstretched arms means, ‘bring beer, food, and some more beer pronto (vite, schnell, rápidamente, raskt, snel, fill in your own language).
Small hall. Often this is the afternoon venue, and also, the late night one, the large hall is where the main acts play. Squashy, hot, illuminated in red and intimate, even if you don’t necessarily want it to be. It’s dark and dingy, and outside is often bright, so you need to be prepared to walk in with eyes like Bush Baby’s. At this point wait until you become accustomed to the ambience in the hall, as even the smallest of steps will have you falling flat on your face or in someone else’s lap again this will be met by ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah! and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question.
Unless you are over 6’6” tall, wherever you stand, even if you are at the front of the stage, with your chest resting against it, someone taller will come and stand in front of you, and even say “sorry mate” but still stand there!!! If you are over 6’6” tall, don’t forget to wear the tallest Gus style Cowboy hat, to ensure us short a*ses are completely eclipsed.
Sleep, forget it, say goodbye to Hypnos for a few days. People returning to chalets, jam sessions, hot rods with open exhausts travelling in ten-yard spurts, gulls, domestic disputes, smoke alarms set off by forgotten toast under the grill, someone shouting for ‘Pascal’ even though they are in the wrong chalet block, people leaving chalets, mean that you leave sleep at the gate on opening day, and you won’t revisit it until the following Monday night. Your hearing and your voice will depart as well. But you must leave enough voice to be able join in with the ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!
And when you come out the other side, you’ll want to do it all again.
Survival. This last couple of months readers, and for that matter next month, you will see/have seen extended coverage of the weekenders we have attended. Readers, it’s a jungle out there, and just like the real jungle, you need to be able to survive, and I don’t mean just wearing a loin cloth, wrestling a guy in a gorilla suit and shouting ‘Ungawa’. Here’s a Bettajive resume of how to do just that, survive, and as a disclaimer, this is generic, any resemblance to any particular weekender, venue, persons involved or event, is purely coincidental…..
The now well-established weekender is often situated in a holiday camp, with the whole site being taken over by the event. The holiday camp venue is basically chalets, some on two levels, in large rectangular blocks. The direct walking route through, is via some of these blocks. As people stand on balconies and chill, drink, smoke and chat in various languages, I do notice a number of things though.
The first thing to do is play music loud, loud and louder. In essence, your music must be louder than that of your neighbours, and be sure to have some obscurities that no one else does. Make sure your speakers are like wardrobes too. Spoken conversations have to be held at the top of your voice. Anything remotely amusing should to be laughed at in the most exaggerated fashion. Even the smallest of mishaps (eg tripping over the pavement, dropping a spoon) must be met with the most amplified, choral ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!’ and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question. Guaranteed the occupants of a chalet you walk past, will have heard or seen the funniest thing ever just as you get adjacent with it. Either that or they all shout ‘Oi Oi’ in unison. Incidentally at this point it should be noted that despite who is on TV in the chalet at the time, and despite the assertions made by some, they have not had any sort of relationship with whomsoever is presenting the news or the weather, for example.
You must put all your empty beer cans in the window pyramid stylie, and if you’re really hardcore, leave ‘em on Monday!!! If they fall over, don’t forget ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah! Be aware, that whatever your usual dietary victuals intake may be…forget it. You will find almost everything on offer at a weekender, will be the most appetising scran you have ever seen, and it will be even more appealing at 3am, a kind of grub goggles syndrome. Your five a day will consist of the slice of lime in the top of your beer bottle. Incidentally beer, is a password for many, bacon is for others. The opening hours of a weekender, involve copious amounts of afore mentioned libation, but please be careful as this has a hallucinogenic quality, and can result in regular encounters with inanimate objects in a prostrate position. Again, this will be met vocally by ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!’ and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question.
There are so many nationalities with a multitude of languages, all there for a similar purpose. Back on the balconies, it’s almost like you’re walking through an open prison, or dodgy neighbourhood (if I had any experience of either one!!), where you might hear ladies ‘Wan show you good time meester’ or guys shout ‘Ay, you wan buy Red Hot Rockabeeely Seedees much cheeepness’. It’s not of course, but you can get that impression. I’m amazed that some of our overseas visitors can communicate with just a few gestures, for example, open and outstretched arms means, ‘bring beer, food, and some more beer pronto (vite, schnell, rápidamente, raskt, snel, fill in your own language).
Small hall. Often this is the afternoon venue, and also, the late night one, the large hall is where the main acts play. Squashy, hot, illuminated in red and intimate, even if you don’t necessarily want it to be. It’s dark and dingy, and outside is often bright, so you need to be prepared to walk in with eyes like Bush Baby’s. At this point wait until you become accustomed to the ambience in the hall, as even the smallest of steps will have you falling flat on your face or in someone else’s lap again this will be met by ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah! and in extreme cases, your carnal competence called into question.
Unless you are over 6’6” tall, wherever you stand, even if you are at the front of the stage, with your chest resting against it, someone taller will come and stand in front of you, and even say “sorry mate” but still stand there!!! If you are over 6’6” tall, don’t forget to wear the tallest Gus style Cowboy hat, to ensure us short a*ses are completely eclipsed.
Sleep, forget it, say goodbye to Hypnos for a few days. People returning to chalets, jam sessions, hot rods with open exhausts travelling in ten-yard spurts, gulls, domestic disputes, smoke alarms set off by forgotten toast under the grill, someone shouting for ‘Pascal’ even though they are in the wrong chalet block, people leaving chalets, mean that you leave sleep at the gate on opening day, and you won’t revisit it until the following Monday night. Your hearing and your voice will depart as well. But you must leave enough voice to be able join in with the ‘Wayhayyyyy---ah!
And when you come out the other side, you’ll want to do it all again.
|
|
|
Dot…..dot Best tracks in the world ever ever to put the Frank in your furter for this month are Faron Young’s ‘I’m Gonna Live Some Before I Die’, ‘Butcher Boy’ by Mr Sad Head and Vickie Diaz ‘Your Mama Said No’……….OK readers, stay with me here. We were watching Professor T the other day. The principal character (played by Ben Miller) put a record on, which happened to be by Edith Piaf, titled ‘Padam Padam’. I listened to this, and immediately it put me in mind of a song played at our gigs, Vince Riccio’s ‘I Still Love You All’. Sure, the tempo is different, but the tune is really similar. ‘Padam Padam’ predates ‘I Still Love You All’ by some ten years, and doing some searching, the original name for Riccio’s recording was ‘Madame Madame (I Still Love You All)’. So, who is going to play Edith Piaf as a stroller at a gig? 😊 ………DJ Jezebel raised an interesting subject on social media recently, should record centres be left in-tact or ‘dinked’ out. My suggestion was that bop and stroll records should be ‘dinked out’ but jive records left in situ. After all, you should never dink and jive, should you………
Sledgehammer. Readers, I’ve been thundering away, writing about our music for nearly twenty years now. Down at the front of stage, you’ll find us trying to get a decent picture to illustrate our articles. I’ve had double figure decibels in my ears, been shoved, pushed, cajoled, goosed, bumped and barged. This is who we are, this is what we do. But try and convince the ‘papers’. No, they tend to go with the stereotypical twaddle they always trot out. 'Back to the 1950's, boy next door, poodle skirt, jukebox, nostalgia' all ghastly representations in publications like the Snu (anagram)
We offered to cover a 1940’s event this past couple of summers. Not a word. When the article did appear, it was quite apparent that the correspondent hadn’t actually gone to the event and taken quotes from attendees on ‘X’ formerly known as Twitter. Lazy.
Whenever you see coverage of a Rock n Roll event in the press or on TV, they always go for the most awfully coloured pastiche of a drape suited guy, or rhinestone clad, wigged up Elvis impersonator. I guess it’s like taking a bunch of troglodytes to an art gallery full of fine art by masters of the past, and all they want to see is the picture of the dogs playing poker
And then we get ‘I*’s a R*ck*bil*y W*rld’. Dear Lord. There are talented people within the Rock n Roll circuit who could put something far superior and considerably more accurate than the nonsense that is the above. People who walk the walk, talk the talk, take the film, write the article, photo the performer and know the know. For heaven's sake, ask people in the thick of things to assist and present something that's actually accurate.
Sledgehammer. Readers, I’ve been thundering away, writing about our music for nearly twenty years now. Down at the front of stage, you’ll find us trying to get a decent picture to illustrate our articles. I’ve had double figure decibels in my ears, been shoved, pushed, cajoled, goosed, bumped and barged. This is who we are, this is what we do. But try and convince the ‘papers’. No, they tend to go with the stereotypical twaddle they always trot out. 'Back to the 1950's, boy next door, poodle skirt, jukebox, nostalgia' all ghastly representations in publications like the Snu (anagram)
We offered to cover a 1940’s event this past couple of summers. Not a word. When the article did appear, it was quite apparent that the correspondent hadn’t actually gone to the event and taken quotes from attendees on ‘X’ formerly known as Twitter. Lazy.
Whenever you see coverage of a Rock n Roll event in the press or on TV, they always go for the most awfully coloured pastiche of a drape suited guy, or rhinestone clad, wigged up Elvis impersonator. I guess it’s like taking a bunch of troglodytes to an art gallery full of fine art by masters of the past, and all they want to see is the picture of the dogs playing poker
And then we get ‘I*’s a R*ck*bil*y W*rld’. Dear Lord. There are talented people within the Rock n Roll circuit who could put something far superior and considerably more accurate than the nonsense that is the above. People who walk the walk, talk the talk, take the film, write the article, photo the performer and know the know. For heaven's sake, ask people in the thick of things to assist and present something that's actually accurate.
Some of the regulars at the Starfighter Rock n Roll Club, Christmas 2019 (photo by Gary Yallop)
Farewell. The news is out, and it's not great, but in equal part, not wholly unexpected. The Starfighter Rock 'n' Roll Club, at Wreningham, Norfolk, is closing for good at the end of this year. DJ and head honcho Roland Purdy had ceased regular monthly gigs a few years ago, then Covid hit and since then, subsequent events haven't drawn enough people in to make it viable to continue. We will have a full interview with Rockin' Roland in a future issue of our magazine
On a personal note, we first attended the club in 2005, to see Charlie Gracie. For the next decade and a bit, we travelled up from Essex for virtually every gig. Some of the best club events we've been to, around that time, were at the Starfighter. Add to that the friends that we made as a direct result of going there, made that monthly drive something to look forward to.
On a personal note, we first attended the club in 2005, to see Charlie Gracie. For the next decade and a bit, we travelled up from Essex for virtually every gig. Some of the best club events we've been to, around that time, were at the Starfighter. Add to that the friends that we made as a direct result of going there, made that monthly drive something to look forward to.
A message from the Rockabilly Rave and Rhythm Riot.
You may have already seen that Pontins have today announced the immediate closure of the Camber Sands site. As you can imagine, we have been inundated with calls and messages about this and the future of the Rockabilly Rave and Rhythm Riot.
When we have had a chance to speak to Pontins, and explore possible alternatives, we will let everyone know how this will affect future events.
We are already exploring options and will be working hard to bring you news as soon as possible.
In the meantime, please be assured that, if you have already booked with us, all payments are safe and will be transferred to the new event or refunded in full.
Thank you for all your kind messages of support.
From us at the Bettajive Review, we always think of the Rave or the Riot as a 'thing', not a 'place', so moving it from one pile of bricks to another pile of bricks, is infinitely better than losing these quality events. Let's give everyone concerned the time and space to get sorted, and bear in mind they were as much in the dark about Pontins closure as the rest of us
You may have already seen that Pontins have today announced the immediate closure of the Camber Sands site. As you can imagine, we have been inundated with calls and messages about this and the future of the Rockabilly Rave and Rhythm Riot.
When we have had a chance to speak to Pontins, and explore possible alternatives, we will let everyone know how this will affect future events.
We are already exploring options and will be working hard to bring you news as soon as possible.
In the meantime, please be assured that, if you have already booked with us, all payments are safe and will be transferred to the new event or refunded in full.
Thank you for all your kind messages of support.
From us at the Bettajive Review, we always think of the Rave or the Riot as a 'thing', not a 'place', so moving it from one pile of bricks to another pile of bricks, is infinitely better than losing these quality events. Let's give everyone concerned the time and space to get sorted, and bear in mind they were as much in the dark about Pontins closure as the rest of us
A treat upcoming at Chesterfield Rock n Roll Club, click on the flyer for details
|
The 10th Rockabilly Blowout. Check out this ace all dayer by clicking the flyer
|
The Lahdidahs
Triple delight. Just after the Rhythm Riot, we attended a smaller event at Gainsborough’s Blues Club, so named after Gainsborough Trinity football club who play in said primary colour. This club house venue hosts music and sports (like darts) events. Playing live on our visit were the Lahdidahs-Vintage Vocals, a female harmony vocal trio made up of Bridget, Yvonne and Kate. Together, they perform over a backing track, with a hefty chunk of material from the 1940’s.
Who do you think of when you see a female vocal trio? The Andrews Sisters maybe? Indeed, there was a hefty slab of Minneapolis siblings, opening up with their 1938 #1 smash, ‘Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen’. The Glenn Miller backing sound was ideal for their recounting of timeless classic like ‘Tuxedo Junction’, ‘Chattanooga choo choo’, Rum and Coca Cola’ and ‘Pennsylvania 6500’. Travelling even further back, a super take on the Tin Pan Alley hit written by Irving Berlin from 1911, ‘Alexander’s Rag Time Band’, and then fast forward to 1954 and Kay Starr’s ‘Rock n Roll Waltz’
With host Dick Lindsay, as DJ V 4 Victory, mixing up the flavours, and several tail feathers a shakin’ on the dancefloor, the stage was set for set two from the ladies. That began with ‘(I want to get you on a) Slow Boat To China’, originally from 1948, which led seamlessly into a brace of beauties from Carmen Miranda. The ‘Brazilian Bombshell’, famed for her extravagant fruit hat, had a massive film and recording career before her untimely death at the age of 46. The Lahdidahs took on the catchy ‘Tico Tico’ from 1945, and if I had to pick a favourite of the night, it would be ‘South American Way’ from the 1939 musical ‘Streets of Paris’. The trio’s delivery is a lot like the Andrews Sisters version of the following year, and it's a real treat.
In the procession of hits in the second set, again there was a rich seam of Glenn Miller/Andrews Sisters tunes, picking ‘Boogie Woogie Bugel Boy’, ‘In The Mood’, and ‘Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree’ out in particular. Two songs from the 1960’s, Frank Sinatra’s ‘Coffee Song’ and from the 1967 Disney film, Louis Prima’s ‘King of the Swingers’, set up the finale of ‘Bring Me Sunshine’. Although recorded in 1968, I doubt anyone in the room, didn’t immediately associate it with Eric and Ernie.
A really excellent set of harmonies, and a treasure chest of songs from yesteryear and indeed yestercentury presented in the finest vocal fashion.
Who do you think of when you see a female vocal trio? The Andrews Sisters maybe? Indeed, there was a hefty slab of Minneapolis siblings, opening up with their 1938 #1 smash, ‘Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen’. The Glenn Miller backing sound was ideal for their recounting of timeless classic like ‘Tuxedo Junction’, ‘Chattanooga choo choo’, Rum and Coca Cola’ and ‘Pennsylvania 6500’. Travelling even further back, a super take on the Tin Pan Alley hit written by Irving Berlin from 1911, ‘Alexander’s Rag Time Band’, and then fast forward to 1954 and Kay Starr’s ‘Rock n Roll Waltz’
With host Dick Lindsay, as DJ V 4 Victory, mixing up the flavours, and several tail feathers a shakin’ on the dancefloor, the stage was set for set two from the ladies. That began with ‘(I want to get you on a) Slow Boat To China’, originally from 1948, which led seamlessly into a brace of beauties from Carmen Miranda. The ‘Brazilian Bombshell’, famed for her extravagant fruit hat, had a massive film and recording career before her untimely death at the age of 46. The Lahdidahs took on the catchy ‘Tico Tico’ from 1945, and if I had to pick a favourite of the night, it would be ‘South American Way’ from the 1939 musical ‘Streets of Paris’. The trio’s delivery is a lot like the Andrews Sisters version of the following year, and it's a real treat.
In the procession of hits in the second set, again there was a rich seam of Glenn Miller/Andrews Sisters tunes, picking ‘Boogie Woogie Bugel Boy’, ‘In The Mood’, and ‘Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree’ out in particular. Two songs from the 1960’s, Frank Sinatra’s ‘Coffee Song’ and from the 1967 Disney film, Louis Prima’s ‘King of the Swingers’, set up the finale of ‘Bring Me Sunshine’. Although recorded in 1968, I doubt anyone in the room, didn’t immediately associate it with Eric and Ernie.
A really excellent set of harmonies, and a treasure chest of songs from yesteryear and indeed yestercentury presented in the finest vocal fashion.
The Rhythm Burners
Burnin’ Birdholme. On to a regular visit to Chesterfield Rock n Roll Club next, and an evening with a band we had seen a number of times on social media, playing live post the Covid pandemic. The Rhythm Burners’ ‘phone on the shelf’ sessions involved the band playing ‘live’, beamed across the airways by the magic of a mobile phone. Now, finally we get to see them play live at Chesterfield’s Birdholme WMC.
Naturally resident DJ’s Andy B and Steve O served up a menu of delights with assistance from Clive Hodgson (Red Planet Rock) between sets of the band. The Rhythm Burners are your characteristic rocking four piece, fronted by Andy Bradley in his trademark tall hat, lead guitarist Trevor Magson, bassist Dylan Kay and Aaron McDermid on drums. Their sound is tight and sharp, and their choice of songs, mixt and varied.
They announced their first set with Ray Smith’s Sun scorcher ‘You Made a Hit’ and keeping with Sun, Carl Perkins’ ‘Honey Don’t’ and Warren Smith’s ‘Rock n Roll Ruby’. Elvis’ ‘Dixieland Rock’ now there’s a track you don’t hear covered that often, then switch it to Hank Williams’ knotty pine tale of ‘Kawliga’. ‘The Cats Were Jumping’ to John Worthan’s rocker and Danny Wolfe’s ‘That’ll Flat Git It’ also got a fine run-out. A rousing rendition of ‘Woodpecker Rock’ and another Perkins kicker ‘You Can Do No Wrong’ closed out a fine set.
The second set picked up a-pace with Conway Twitty’s thumping rock-out ‘Long Black Train’ and a switch in style with Big T Tyler’s simious ditty ‘King Kong’. Slowing down a tad, with Charlie Rich’s ‘Midnite Blues’, before ratcheting it up again the pacy ‘Georgia Slop’, and then back down again for ‘Love Potion Number Nine’, perfectly demonstrating the bands’ ability to include light and shade in their track selection.
A respectful nod to bands that got many of us started in the seventies came courtesy of Whirlwind’s ‘Tore Apart’, before hurtling to a conclusion with the likes of ‘Ready Teddy’, ‘Sneaky Pete’ and ‘Tear It Up’. A mighty fine brace of sets by the Rhythm Burners, and a great introduction to them ‘live’.
I hear the shelf and the phone are taking legal advice for unfair dismissal though……..
Like what you see? Help us keep it free by popping us a donation using the button below. Many thanks
Naturally resident DJ’s Andy B and Steve O served up a menu of delights with assistance from Clive Hodgson (Red Planet Rock) between sets of the band. The Rhythm Burners are your characteristic rocking four piece, fronted by Andy Bradley in his trademark tall hat, lead guitarist Trevor Magson, bassist Dylan Kay and Aaron McDermid on drums. Their sound is tight and sharp, and their choice of songs, mixt and varied.
They announced their first set with Ray Smith’s Sun scorcher ‘You Made a Hit’ and keeping with Sun, Carl Perkins’ ‘Honey Don’t’ and Warren Smith’s ‘Rock n Roll Ruby’. Elvis’ ‘Dixieland Rock’ now there’s a track you don’t hear covered that often, then switch it to Hank Williams’ knotty pine tale of ‘Kawliga’. ‘The Cats Were Jumping’ to John Worthan’s rocker and Danny Wolfe’s ‘That’ll Flat Git It’ also got a fine run-out. A rousing rendition of ‘Woodpecker Rock’ and another Perkins kicker ‘You Can Do No Wrong’ closed out a fine set.
The second set picked up a-pace with Conway Twitty’s thumping rock-out ‘Long Black Train’ and a switch in style with Big T Tyler’s simious ditty ‘King Kong’. Slowing down a tad, with Charlie Rich’s ‘Midnite Blues’, before ratcheting it up again the pacy ‘Georgia Slop’, and then back down again for ‘Love Potion Number Nine’, perfectly demonstrating the bands’ ability to include light and shade in their track selection.
A respectful nod to bands that got many of us started in the seventies came courtesy of Whirlwind’s ‘Tore Apart’, before hurtling to a conclusion with the likes of ‘Ready Teddy’, ‘Sneaky Pete’ and ‘Tear It Up’. A mighty fine brace of sets by the Rhythm Burners, and a great introduction to them ‘live’.
I hear the shelf and the phone are taking legal advice for unfair dismissal though……..
Like what you see? Help us keep it free by popping us a donation using the button below. Many thanks
After a sell out Hemsby 67, spaces are selling really well already for Hemsby 68. Click on the flyer for details
|
The full line up for Hot Rock n Boogie #5 next May. Click the flyer for details
|
the 25th rhythm riot
Camber calling, early October, and the 25th Rhythm Riot event drew a sellout crowd down to the Sussex coast. It came a few months after the Rockabilly Rave had celebrated a similar argentine anniversary, and the line up promised a splendid time, for all those gravitating toward the Pontins site. A very cosmopolitan crowd shows up at the Riot, with overseas visitors making a hefty chunk of the numbers.
Three ladies from France in a small hatchback car, pulled up next to us, still looking cool in their finery, and managed to fit four days of revelry into the car as well. How do they do it, I wondered, as I took the fifteenth piece of heavy luggage from our car to the chalet. The saviour for many-a visitor this time, was the fine and warm weather, as the lost souls passed through the chalet blocks looking for their domicile for the weekend.
This year, unlike all of the other Riots we have been to, was different for us. Our wings were clipped due to June’s continuing knee replacement recovery, which was unusual, us not dancing to the many DJs gracing the decks. Also, covering bands in the pub, was impractical. So, we were limited to upstairs, which is by no means a bad thing. There we were, in place for DJ Jay Cee from France, opening-up proceedings with a top selection of R&B.
Three ladies from France in a small hatchback car, pulled up next to us, still looking cool in their finery, and managed to fit four days of revelry into the car as well. How do they do it, I wondered, as I took the fifteenth piece of heavy luggage from our car to the chalet. The saviour for many-a visitor this time, was the fine and warm weather, as the lost souls passed through the chalet blocks looking for their domicile for the weekend.
This year, unlike all of the other Riots we have been to, was different for us. Our wings were clipped due to June’s continuing knee replacement recovery, which was unusual, us not dancing to the many DJs gracing the decks. Also, covering bands in the pub, was impractical. So, we were limited to upstairs, which is by no means a bad thing. There we were, in place for DJ Jay Cee from France, opening-up proceedings with a top selection of R&B.
John Lewis
First of the live acts, the venerable John Lewis and his Trio, up from Penarth, Wales. John takes vocals and lead guitar with Billy Roberts on drums, Stuart McIlroy on piano and bassist Nick Whitfield. Out of the traps first, the tribute to Mac Curtis with the rock-out ‘Flat Top Cat’, a frantic rocker with a slightly maniacal delivery. It’s rare that a John Lewis show doesn’t include some Hank Williams, as many who watched his live shows through the Covid pandemic with associate with. And one track seems to be a fan-favourite, the 1951 ‘B’ side, ‘Ramblin’ Man’. This isn’t a direct cover, it has an increasing tempo through the song, giving it a JL twist.
In a similar vein, Hank’s ‘Please Don’t Let Me Love You’, which was another ‘B’ side from ’55 (recorded in ’49), was zhuzhed up on the ‘Sanity’ album, to create a jive tempo. Curiously that album is nearly ten years old as well! One more nod to the Hillbilly Shakespear, with the despairing lyrics of ‘You Win Again’ appeared a bit later. Earlier this year, there were two singles released by the band on the Atomic Cowboy label and from the red splatter vinyl 45, came the rollocking rocker, ‘Somebody Walked Over My Grave’ and the flip, ‘Knows Nothing’. And from the green splatter 45, ‘Happy Ending’ made a welcome appearance.
There was time for a bit of R&B too, with a cover of Clyde McPhatter’s ‘Lover Please’ and the standout stroller he performs, Ronnie Love/Tom Jones/whoever’s ‘Chills and Fever’. Many of the Rhythm Riot crowd were introduced to the wonderfully titled and themed ‘Where’s me F***ing Snouts’ for the first time. Massively enjoyable set, containing a cool collection of variety. Great start to the live stuff.
In a similar vein, Hank’s ‘Please Don’t Let Me Love You’, which was another ‘B’ side from ’55 (recorded in ’49), was zhuzhed up on the ‘Sanity’ album, to create a jive tempo. Curiously that album is nearly ten years old as well! One more nod to the Hillbilly Shakespear, with the despairing lyrics of ‘You Win Again’ appeared a bit later. Earlier this year, there were two singles released by the band on the Atomic Cowboy label and from the red splatter vinyl 45, came the rollocking rocker, ‘Somebody Walked Over My Grave’ and the flip, ‘Knows Nothing’. And from the green splatter 45, ‘Happy Ending’ made a welcome appearance.
There was time for a bit of R&B too, with a cover of Clyde McPhatter’s ‘Lover Please’ and the standout stroller he performs, Ronnie Love/Tom Jones/whoever’s ‘Chills and Fever’. Many of the Rhythm Riot crowd were introduced to the wonderfully titled and themed ‘Where’s me F***ing Snouts’ for the first time. Massively enjoyable set, containing a cool collection of variety. Great start to the live stuff.
Bobby Wilson
The first of the headliners for the weekender, Bobby Wilson, took the stage next backed by the Revolutionaires. Now we need to be tipping our collective hats in the direction of the Revolutionaires, and the stellar work they did backing acts over the weekend. Led by Ed Stephenson slinging his Gretsch White Falcon, you also have Rich Stephenson now on electric bass as well as upright bass, teaming up with Steve Croft on keyboards (ie not just piano) and John Lambert on drums.
Add to that, Alex Bland and Kenny Tomlinson on saxophones and you have a coup de maître, providing expert sound. Indeed, if you’ve ever been to a sound check, there’s a completely different language the bands use (I don’t mean Geordie either!), using nods and looks to cue each other in. So, the main act can know they’ve got quality backing throughout.
Bobby Wilson, making a welcome return to the Rhythm Riot (now dropping the ‘Brooks’ from his name) looked sharp in his sparkly studded black suit, bounded onto the stage, and energetically set about some of his dad’s classic tunes. It would be surprising if anyone in the room wasn’t familiar with the opening number ‘Reet Petite’, with ‘I’ll Be Satisfied’, the dancefloor winner, ‘Etcetera’ and ‘Come On Back To Me’ following seamlessly on. Slowing the tempo down, he introduced a ‘61/62 Solomon Burke track, ‘Cry To Me (Don’t you feel like crying)’, which would be familiar to many readers here, from the ‘Dirty Dancing’ soundtrack. Excellent vocal delivery on this one, folks.
The follow-up to that, was another vocal tour de force, Sam Cooke’s 1957 ballad, ‘You Send Me’ and a touchy-feely with the ladies at stage front, before we were back on the Jackie Wilson trail again with the bright and breezy ‘Lonely Teardrops’. Whipping the audience again for some sing-along participation, the Isley Brothers’ ‘Shout’, which could have gone on for most of the night if he’d have wanted. But ‘You Better Stop Doggin’ Around’ gently tapped the brakes for a few minutes, while ‘You Better Know It’ conjured up visions of Bobby’s dad performing on screen in front of a large cartoon coffee cup, to the infectious beat.
It was another dancefloor classic that concluded a very immersive show, in the shape of ‘Baby Workout’, as Bobby left the stage, albeit temporarily. He was never going to get away with that, and back he came with the pearly smile he’d worn throughout the set. The finale, was another classic Jackie Wilson tune, this time from 1967, ‘Higher and Higher’. A tip top show
Add to that, Alex Bland and Kenny Tomlinson on saxophones and you have a coup de maître, providing expert sound. Indeed, if you’ve ever been to a sound check, there’s a completely different language the bands use (I don’t mean Geordie either!), using nods and looks to cue each other in. So, the main act can know they’ve got quality backing throughout.
Bobby Wilson, making a welcome return to the Rhythm Riot (now dropping the ‘Brooks’ from his name) looked sharp in his sparkly studded black suit, bounded onto the stage, and energetically set about some of his dad’s classic tunes. It would be surprising if anyone in the room wasn’t familiar with the opening number ‘Reet Petite’, with ‘I’ll Be Satisfied’, the dancefloor winner, ‘Etcetera’ and ‘Come On Back To Me’ following seamlessly on. Slowing the tempo down, he introduced a ‘61/62 Solomon Burke track, ‘Cry To Me (Don’t you feel like crying)’, which would be familiar to many readers here, from the ‘Dirty Dancing’ soundtrack. Excellent vocal delivery on this one, folks.
The follow-up to that, was another vocal tour de force, Sam Cooke’s 1957 ballad, ‘You Send Me’ and a touchy-feely with the ladies at stage front, before we were back on the Jackie Wilson trail again with the bright and breezy ‘Lonely Teardrops’. Whipping the audience again for some sing-along participation, the Isley Brothers’ ‘Shout’, which could have gone on for most of the night if he’d have wanted. But ‘You Better Stop Doggin’ Around’ gently tapped the brakes for a few minutes, while ‘You Better Know It’ conjured up visions of Bobby’s dad performing on screen in front of a large cartoon coffee cup, to the infectious beat.
It was another dancefloor classic that concluded a very immersive show, in the shape of ‘Baby Workout’, as Bobby left the stage, albeit temporarily. He was never going to get away with that, and back he came with the pearly smile he’d worn throughout the set. The finale, was another classic Jackie Wilson tune, this time from 1967, ‘Higher and Higher’. A tip top show
Peter Sandberg of the Go Getters
The last act on Thursday, was a complete contrast, bringing the Go Getters for some late-night musical butt kicking. Peter Sandberg cuts a familiar figure stood behind his drum kit, dark shirt and equally dark glasses, as he embarks on a take-no-prisoners set of tunes with a ‘GG’ slant. Taking Ersel Hickey’s ‘Going Down That Road’ for starters, which ‘Boom Chick-a Boom Bop Bop-ed’ into their own track ‘MexiGo!’ (scarily over twenty-five years old now). The gritty take on Gayten & Johnson’s ‘Red Hot Mama’ had the crowd stage-front doing the shout-back vocals.
Not sure if it’s an invite or a warning, but ‘Welcome to my Hell’ rattles to the very soul. Two eyebrow raising choices sandwiched Clarence Frogman Henry’s ‘Slow Down’. The Beatles ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and Illinois power-pop band, Cheap Trick’s 1977 smash hit ‘I Want You To Want Me’. Johnny Rivers’ theme to the TV Spy series ‘Danger Man’ from the mid-60’s ‘Secret Agent Man’ set up probably the ‘Getters best known track, ‘One Heart to Spare’ which delighted the dancers at the back of the hall. Finally, a mash-up of ‘Mona’ and ‘Who Do You Love’ proved they know Diddley, to end a well-received show, rounding off the first night.
Not sure if it’s an invite or a warning, but ‘Welcome to my Hell’ rattles to the very soul. Two eyebrow raising choices sandwiched Clarence Frogman Henry’s ‘Slow Down’. The Beatles ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and Illinois power-pop band, Cheap Trick’s 1977 smash hit ‘I Want You To Want Me’. Johnny Rivers’ theme to the TV Spy series ‘Danger Man’ from the mid-60’s ‘Secret Agent Man’ set up probably the ‘Getters best known track, ‘One Heart to Spare’ which delighted the dancers at the back of the hall. Finally, a mash-up of ‘Mona’ and ‘Who Do You Love’ proved they know Diddley, to end a well-received show, rounding off the first night.
MC Ian Gillon Jr
Rioting dot…dot. Best tracks at the 25th Riot ever ever to hallmark your silver ingot for this weekender are The Federals ‘You Gotta Love Me Baby’, ‘Tokyo Stomp’ by Chuck Fayne and ‘Gonna Hop On Down The Line’ by Ralph Willis…….Most pointless sign seen as the Riot, the ones that say to the effect of ‘Please Move Your Car’. Yeah, that’ll work, not!.........Big up to the MCs for the event, Ian Gillon Jr, Frankie Riedell and Robert Hillier almost effortlessly bringing the acts on and off stage, with witty repartee aplenty…… One barn burner of a track we did catch by Howlin Ric and the Rocketeers, ‘Sweet Gene Vincent’, originally by Ian Dury in ’77 (roughly when I, as a teenager, found Gene’s music). Great choice and a real crowd pleaser……There were so many DJs at this year’s Riot it’s difficult to have kept tabs on them all, to the point where it would be remiss of us if we missed anyone out. Suffice to say that there was a plethora of differing styles, from Gospel on Sunday morning at the Boot sale, through Jazz, Blues, R&B, Hillbilly, Western Swing, Jump Jive, Surf, Rockabilly, Rock ‘n’ Roll and the occasional ‘WTF was that?’………There’s a lot that goes into these reviews, but I fully expect the social media ducking stool if we miss an apostrophe out of a song title somewhere……..A quick Riot quiz. Which famous DJ fell over on the grassed area outside their chalet and suddenly had a ‘plastic toy’ of a certain shape and use, adhered to their head? Ni allaf ddweud 😊 …..Sat in our (ground floor, odd number) chalet, suddenly the slow rumble of a case was heard, a man walked slowly by. Two minutes later, the rumbling returned and he went the other way past the window. Another two minutes passed, back he came again, that little bit slower, and two minutes later he tapped on our window. ‘I’m in chalet (numbers changed) 1134, you’re 1133, next door is 1135??’. ‘Have you tried upstairs?’ I asked, to the sound of pennies dropping 😊 ……… One of the many plusses of the Riot, is the sound quality, which is undertaken by Rory Alderson and his team from Stage Mobile. First class.
Dylan Kirk
Friday saw many of the remaining of the attendees arriving. The rumble of cases and the knee buckling boxes being heaved through doors of chalets and the circumnavigating of the camp in the forlorn hope of finding a parking space, all part and parcel of arrival at Camber. The afternoon DJ sessions were pretty-well populated ‘downstairs’, as soon as they started, people were ready to dance.
In the evening, the main ballroom opened up with a bang, featuring Dylan Kirk and the Killers. Good to see Jerome Van Gastern (CC Jerome) back on the main stage, taking up the lead guitar duties for Dylan, who announced himself with ‘Down the Line’ and the belting sound of ‘Papa Lou and Gran’. Good to hear the inclusion of Eddie Cochran’s ‘Skinny Jim’ Joel Hill’s heavily reverbed ‘I Thought It Over’ and Carl Perkins’ ‘Put Your Cat Clothes On’.
In the dark ages, many of us ‘kids’ at the time, bought an LP called Chess Rockabillies. The last track on side two, was Russell Bridges ‘All Right’, a frantic piano driven rocker. Fast forward to Dylan Kirk’s show, and a pitch perfect presentation vocally and musically. A real ace up the sleeve that one. Following that with Gene Summers’ ‘School of Rock ‘n’ Roll’ and Jimmy Pritchett’s ‘That’s the Way I Fell’ was a lesson in scheduling, keeping the high-octane tempo going.
If it could’ve been taken a notch further, then Ronnie Self’s ‘Bop a Lena’ desperate tear-up from 1958, did exactly that. There was audience participation, call and answering, and a finale of Ronnie Dawson’s ‘Monkey Beat City’. Would it be fair to say this was a killer set?
In the evening, the main ballroom opened up with a bang, featuring Dylan Kirk and the Killers. Good to see Jerome Van Gastern (CC Jerome) back on the main stage, taking up the lead guitar duties for Dylan, who announced himself with ‘Down the Line’ and the belting sound of ‘Papa Lou and Gran’. Good to hear the inclusion of Eddie Cochran’s ‘Skinny Jim’ Joel Hill’s heavily reverbed ‘I Thought It Over’ and Carl Perkins’ ‘Put Your Cat Clothes On’.
In the dark ages, many of us ‘kids’ at the time, bought an LP called Chess Rockabillies. The last track on side two, was Russell Bridges ‘All Right’, a frantic piano driven rocker. Fast forward to Dylan Kirk’s show, and a pitch perfect presentation vocally and musically. A real ace up the sleeve that one. Following that with Gene Summers’ ‘School of Rock ‘n’ Roll’ and Jimmy Pritchett’s ‘That’s the Way I Fell’ was a lesson in scheduling, keeping the high-octane tempo going.
If it could’ve been taken a notch further, then Ronnie Self’s ‘Bop a Lena’ desperate tear-up from 1958, did exactly that. There was audience participation, call and answering, and a finale of Ronnie Dawson’s ‘Monkey Beat City’. Would it be fair to say this was a killer set?
Miss Lily Moe
Next up, Miss Lily Moe’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Show. Another welcome return to the Rhythm Riot for Lily Moe, her last one being in 2019. Hailing from Switzerland, Lily Moe has her own style, which fits perfectly into the Riot raison d’etre, and the super smooth delivery of ‘Woman’ set up a smashing show. So much to appreciate in this show with the likes of ‘Ah Huh’ and ‘I’m Moving On’ a brace of delights.
The authoritative chunk-a beat of ‘Never Let Me Go’ set up the peach of a jive rhythm, in ‘I’m a Wine Drinker’. The curiously titled ‘Sammy the Rabbit’ hopped along next, which is a bouncy call-and-answer song involving the band joining in with the vocals. Judging by the lyrics, Sammy’s quite the catch……
’My Baby’s Gone’ has more of a deliberate ramble sound, and an infectious guitar riff. ‘Lula’ I recognise, but can’t quite put my finger on where or how(!), however a sublime take, on Little Johnny Taylor’s ‘Somewhere Down The Line’ was a first class booty-shaking stroller. Flagging up a conclusion to a top-drawer show, Lily Moe rounded everything off with a great version of ‘El Camino Real’, that sparkled like her stage outfit.
The authoritative chunk-a beat of ‘Never Let Me Go’ set up the peach of a jive rhythm, in ‘I’m a Wine Drinker’. The curiously titled ‘Sammy the Rabbit’ hopped along next, which is a bouncy call-and-answer song involving the band joining in with the vocals. Judging by the lyrics, Sammy’s quite the catch……
’My Baby’s Gone’ has more of a deliberate ramble sound, and an infectious guitar riff. ‘Lula’ I recognise, but can’t quite put my finger on where or how(!), however a sublime take, on Little Johnny Taylor’s ‘Somewhere Down The Line’ was a first class booty-shaking stroller. Flagging up a conclusion to a top-drawer show, Lily Moe rounded everything off with a great version of ‘El Camino Real’, that sparkled like her stage outfit.
The Country Side of Harmonica Sam
For some years now, ‘Lookout Heart’ has been synonymous with Sweden’s, The Country Side of Harmonica Sam, as it has been a go-to DJ floor filler, since it’s release on 45rpm in 2016. There’s much more to these guys, who are lead on vocals and rhythm guitar, by Samuel Andersson (Harmonica Sam). This band encapsulates the original sound of early Country music, a more rustic, and simple, but full sound, including the joyous pronounced vibrato of Peter Andersson’s steel guitar. My goodness weren’t they wearing some sharp stage gear too!
This band aren’t a covers band, though their songs sometimes give the impression to the listener, that they’ve heard them many times over the years, even from the halcyon honky tonk days of late 1930’s/40’s Grand Ole Opry. The exquisite ‘I’ll Leave the Front Door Open’ started things off perfectly, with the lament of ‘First Broken Heart (Since My Last Broken Heart)’ being an ironic delight. A brighter subject matter is covered with ‘Stepping Out’, and the nippy tempo of ‘Cry Me a River’ (an original, not Julie London or for that matter Justin Timberlake!) is a true toe-tapper. ‘Take a Letter Miss Gray’ is probably the slowest track they played, but oh what a treat, especially the steel on this.
‘Broken Bottle, Broken Heart’ is the title track of their 2019 album, and that along with, ‘I’ve Been Draggin’ Since You’ve Been Gone’ and ‘Patches on my Heart’ are all tonkin’ treasures. The last named was the final track of the set, but the audience clearly weren’t going to let that be the end of it. Indeed, the lads obliged with??? Well, it won’t take a genius to work out what came as the encore. ‘Lookout Heart’ was originally written by Lila Duncan, and performed by her husband Coy Jackson on the 1966 single on Wayne Raney’s, Rimrock Records. This adaptation, has a slightly zippier tempo than the original, despite being slightly longer in duration. It was a fitting end to a gem of a set.
This band aren’t a covers band, though their songs sometimes give the impression to the listener, that they’ve heard them many times over the years, even from the halcyon honky tonk days of late 1930’s/40’s Grand Ole Opry. The exquisite ‘I’ll Leave the Front Door Open’ started things off perfectly, with the lament of ‘First Broken Heart (Since My Last Broken Heart)’ being an ironic delight. A brighter subject matter is covered with ‘Stepping Out’, and the nippy tempo of ‘Cry Me a River’ (an original, not Julie London or for that matter Justin Timberlake!) is a true toe-tapper. ‘Take a Letter Miss Gray’ is probably the slowest track they played, but oh what a treat, especially the steel on this.
‘Broken Bottle, Broken Heart’ is the title track of their 2019 album, and that along with, ‘I’ve Been Draggin’ Since You’ve Been Gone’ and ‘Patches on my Heart’ are all tonkin’ treasures. The last named was the final track of the set, but the audience clearly weren’t going to let that be the end of it. Indeed, the lads obliged with??? Well, it won’t take a genius to work out what came as the encore. ‘Lookout Heart’ was originally written by Lila Duncan, and performed by her husband Coy Jackson on the 1966 single on Wayne Raney’s, Rimrock Records. This adaptation, has a slightly zippier tempo than the original, despite being slightly longer in duration. It was a fitting end to a gem of a set.
Big Boy Bloater
For many (I think nineteen) Rhythm Riots, Big Boy Bloater was almost part of the stage furniture at Camber, heading up the house band, backing some of the biggest stars to play there. I still recall him being the final act on at one such Riot, and delivering probably the best version of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ ‘Little Demon’ ever seen this side of the Screamin’ Skull.
Here he was back on stage, and supported by the Revolutionaires, for a one-off, never to be repeated show. And brother was he back on the best form, his voice just as powerful and forceful, with a kind of matured gravelly cadence. The Fender Strat guitar is still there, as is the stage filling presence.
What followed was a virtuosic performance of Blues played with the phattest sound, thanks to the consummate backing from the Revolutionaires in full six-piece mode. Taking Paul Gayten’s 1956 Checker single, ‘You Better Believe It’. The spirited and uninhibited vocals came over in a blues shouter/Howlin’ Wolf style, with a seriously good guitar break. ‘Gangster of Love’ (Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson I think) had your classic Blues guitar riff opening, a real ‘Sho’ nuff, woke up this morning’ vibe.
Some material from the 2008 album, ‘That Ain’t My Name’ (title track included), ‘I Ain’t Done Nothing Wrong’ and the vibrato soaked ‘Double Whammy’, a tremolo-tastic kicker. Similarly, there was an outing for Billy Gayles’ ‘Just One More Time’, another string-bending beauty, expertly delivered. Lob in Big Danny Oliver’s ‘Sapphire’ and you’ll have a feel for the powerhouse nature of this fine show.
Here he was back on stage, and supported by the Revolutionaires, for a one-off, never to be repeated show. And brother was he back on the best form, his voice just as powerful and forceful, with a kind of matured gravelly cadence. The Fender Strat guitar is still there, as is the stage filling presence.
What followed was a virtuosic performance of Blues played with the phattest sound, thanks to the consummate backing from the Revolutionaires in full six-piece mode. Taking Paul Gayten’s 1956 Checker single, ‘You Better Believe It’. The spirited and uninhibited vocals came over in a blues shouter/Howlin’ Wolf style, with a seriously good guitar break. ‘Gangster of Love’ (Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson I think) had your classic Blues guitar riff opening, a real ‘Sho’ nuff, woke up this morning’ vibe.
Some material from the 2008 album, ‘That Ain’t My Name’ (title track included), ‘I Ain’t Done Nothing Wrong’ and the vibrato soaked ‘Double Whammy’, a tremolo-tastic kicker. Similarly, there was an outing for Billy Gayles’ ‘Just One More Time’, another string-bending beauty, expertly delivered. Lob in Big Danny Oliver’s ‘Sapphire’ and you’ll have a feel for the powerhouse nature of this fine show.
Backyard Casanovas
Saturday in the evening began with a treat for lovers of electric blues, a fusion of Delta and Chicago sounds, emanating from Bonn, Germany. Now anyone who has read the Bettajive Review over the last (nearly) twenty years, will be aware, I luuuuuuuuurve this type of Blues, and when it’s done as well as the Backyard Casanovas do, then clearly this was going to be a treat. They opened their show up with a sublime instrumental, ‘Chicken Stuff’, which had the style of John Lee Hooker meets Elmore James. Just excellent guitar work.
The band are Tommy J. Croole on vocals and lead guitar, Sydney Ramone on rhythm guitar and percussion, bassist Lucky Luciano, and Rene Lieutenant on drums. With the stall set out, they launched into ‘Be My Love’, two minutes of slightly distorted vocals and fuzzy guitar heaven. ‘Let’s Rock ‘n’ Roll’ with it’s tick-tock percussive beat and rambling rhythm followed by a rattling good native American influenced song ‘Geronimo Rock n Roll’. They set up rockers like ‘Buzz Back Home’ and ‘I Ain’t Botherin’ Nobody’ and the decidedly un-PC titles like ‘You’re and Old Lady’ and ‘Big Fat Mama’.
A noteworthy set concluded with a scintillating version of Hound Dog Taylor’s ‘Take Five’, slide guitar heaven for those that truly appreciate the art. A smashing start to Saturday
The band are Tommy J. Croole on vocals and lead guitar, Sydney Ramone on rhythm guitar and percussion, bassist Lucky Luciano, and Rene Lieutenant on drums. With the stall set out, they launched into ‘Be My Love’, two minutes of slightly distorted vocals and fuzzy guitar heaven. ‘Let’s Rock ‘n’ Roll’ with it’s tick-tock percussive beat and rambling rhythm followed by a rattling good native American influenced song ‘Geronimo Rock n Roll’. They set up rockers like ‘Buzz Back Home’ and ‘I Ain’t Botherin’ Nobody’ and the decidedly un-PC titles like ‘You’re and Old Lady’ and ‘Big Fat Mama’.
A noteworthy set concluded with a scintillating version of Hound Dog Taylor’s ‘Take Five’, slide guitar heaven for those that truly appreciate the art. A smashing start to Saturday
Tammi Savoy
Another welcome return came next, with Chicago based Tammi Savoy gracing the stage. Ameripolitan Award winner, Tammi, was flying solo this time, relying on the support from the Revolutionaires. And they really did connect well, shining a well-deserved spotlight om the material by some of the most talented ladies from the 1950’s. None moreso from this scribe, that Little Esther Phillips, whose 1959 Savoy Records (coincidence?) release ‘It’s So Good’ opened up proceedings in the finest style.
Song after song vied for the crowd’s attention. A brace of Annie Laurie tunes followed with the belting ‘Rockin’ and Rollin’ Again’ and a perfect rendition of ‘Love is a Funny Thing’. Big Maybelle, one of the International Sweethearts of Rhythm, released some ace R&B in the 1950’s. One such joyous ditty, ‘Ring Dang Dilly’ got the Tammi Savoy treatment, the slightly novelty lyrics a delight to experience.
LaVern Baker another queen of R&B, recorded Nellie Lutcher’s ‘He’s a Real Gone Guy’, which is maybe not one of the best known of her tracks. Tammi shone a vocal light on this track following along with the assertively humorous Wynona Carr ‘Finders Keepers’ flowing effortlessly along.
Nearing the end of the show, another LaVern track ‘Whippersnapper’ from ’57 rattled along and to loud applause, Tammi returned for a socking take on Lillian Briggs’ ‘I Want You To Be My Baby’ to end an outstanding performance. Perfect act for the Riot.
Song after song vied for the crowd’s attention. A brace of Annie Laurie tunes followed with the belting ‘Rockin’ and Rollin’ Again’ and a perfect rendition of ‘Love is a Funny Thing’. Big Maybelle, one of the International Sweethearts of Rhythm, released some ace R&B in the 1950’s. One such joyous ditty, ‘Ring Dang Dilly’ got the Tammi Savoy treatment, the slightly novelty lyrics a delight to experience.
LaVern Baker another queen of R&B, recorded Nellie Lutcher’s ‘He’s a Real Gone Guy’, which is maybe not one of the best known of her tracks. Tammi shone a vocal light on this track following along with the assertively humorous Wynona Carr ‘Finders Keepers’ flowing effortlessly along.
Nearing the end of the show, another LaVern track ‘Whippersnapper’ from ’57 rattled along and to loud applause, Tammi returned for a socking take on Lillian Briggs’ ‘I Want You To Be My Baby’ to end an outstanding performance. Perfect act for the Riot.
Ray Collins Hot Club
From one blue chip act to another with Ray Collins Hot Club populating the Riot stage next. Nine, count ‘em, nine guys, set up, looking sharp and ready to go. Clearly popular with the crowd, they delighted everyone immediately by commencing with ‘Barefoot’.
This band is the type that sound brilliant on record as well as on stage. The curiously titled and themed ‘Seven Years in a Coffin’, skipped through nicely, succeeded by the velvety smooth ‘1to 5 Jive’. ‘Civilisation’ has a procreation theme to it’s lyrics, one might suggest an ulterior motive hidden within the apparent necessity to advance the numbers of our species……
The super haunting and ghostly sound of ‘Meet in Hell’ has a jaunty rhythm, despite it’s rather sinister undertone. There was leg shaking and toe-tapping a-plenty to the ivory tickling sound of ‘Thank You’ and similarly, ‘Chicken 4 2’, which has a hook riff that sounds really familiar, but I can’t put my finger on where I’ve heard it before. Kind of like ‘Baby’ (think that’s the title) which sounds very much like ‘The Walk’.
The drinking lament ‘Keep ‘em Coming’ retains the bands highly effective frolicsome rhythm, and a must for many came as the last track, ‘Bye Bye Paris’. It took the band a while to leave the stage before the inevitable and I must say, thoroughly deserved encore. ‘Knockout Boogie’ is a real barn-burner of a track, with a hand clapping beat, infectious sax(s) hook and great guitar work, as well as kicking rhythm. What a great end to a brilliant set.
This band is the type that sound brilliant on record as well as on stage. The curiously titled and themed ‘Seven Years in a Coffin’, skipped through nicely, succeeded by the velvety smooth ‘1to 5 Jive’. ‘Civilisation’ has a procreation theme to it’s lyrics, one might suggest an ulterior motive hidden within the apparent necessity to advance the numbers of our species……
The super haunting and ghostly sound of ‘Meet in Hell’ has a jaunty rhythm, despite it’s rather sinister undertone. There was leg shaking and toe-tapping a-plenty to the ivory tickling sound of ‘Thank You’ and similarly, ‘Chicken 4 2’, which has a hook riff that sounds really familiar, but I can’t put my finger on where I’ve heard it before. Kind of like ‘Baby’ (think that’s the title) which sounds very much like ‘The Walk’.
The drinking lament ‘Keep ‘em Coming’ retains the bands highly effective frolicsome rhythm, and a must for many came as the last track, ‘Bye Bye Paris’. It took the band a while to leave the stage before the inevitable and I must say, thoroughly deserved encore. ‘Knockout Boogie’ is a real barn-burner of a track, with a hand clapping beat, infectious sax(s) hook and great guitar work, as well as kicking rhythm. What a great end to a brilliant set.
Joey Simeone of the Bellfuries
Ok, where could you possibly go from there? How about, Austin Texas’ finest, the Bellfuries? A rhetorical question of course, as modern-day Rock n Roll poet Joey Simeone prepared to treat the assembled with another set of lyrical and vocal finery. He was backed by Bobby Trimble on drums, Jeff Seaver on bass guitar and lead guitarist Jonny Safford.
From the opening bars of ‘Bad Seed Sown’, the crowd were hooked, and pretty much performing the songs in tandem with the band. In previous shows, Joey has articulated how it feels to have a crowd sing ‘your’ songs back at you. Bellfuries numbers have now become etched in the British Rock ‘n’ Roll circuit, ever since the album ‘Just Plain Lonesome’ hit the UK, scarily over twenty years ago.
From that album came ‘Up to Your Old Tricks Again’, before we flawlessly switched over to ‘Workingman’s Bellfuries’ tunes and ‘’Under the Light of the Moon’, which is a vocal masterpiece, and then back again with the classic ‘You Must Be a Loser’. A slightly livelier beat followed with ‘Love Found Me’, the oft imitated, but never equalled ‘You’re Love is all That I’m Missing’.
There are tracks within the Bellfuries catalogue that are simply must-haves as far as audiences over here are concerned (much as with the previous band), and the one that, dare I suggest, started it all off, ‘Hey Mister Locomotive’, came near the end of the set and all but took the roof off of the Pontins Ballroom. Then the audience participation recached crescendo proportions as they sung along (in part) to ‘Loving Arms’, which saw the guys off the stage. The foot-stomping suggested they wouldn’t be gone long and indeed back they came with another classic, the fugitively hard-luck themed ‘Beaumont Blues’. Yet another sublime Bellfuries show
From the opening bars of ‘Bad Seed Sown’, the crowd were hooked, and pretty much performing the songs in tandem with the band. In previous shows, Joey has articulated how it feels to have a crowd sing ‘your’ songs back at you. Bellfuries numbers have now become etched in the British Rock ‘n’ Roll circuit, ever since the album ‘Just Plain Lonesome’ hit the UK, scarily over twenty years ago.
From that album came ‘Up to Your Old Tricks Again’, before we flawlessly switched over to ‘Workingman’s Bellfuries’ tunes and ‘’Under the Light of the Moon’, which is a vocal masterpiece, and then back again with the classic ‘You Must Be a Loser’. A slightly livelier beat followed with ‘Love Found Me’, the oft imitated, but never equalled ‘You’re Love is all That I’m Missing’.
There are tracks within the Bellfuries catalogue that are simply must-haves as far as audiences over here are concerned (much as with the previous band), and the one that, dare I suggest, started it all off, ‘Hey Mister Locomotive’, came near the end of the set and all but took the roof off of the Pontins Ballroom. Then the audience participation recached crescendo proportions as they sung along (in part) to ‘Loving Arms’, which saw the guys off the stage. The foot-stomping suggested they wouldn’t be gone long and indeed back they came with another classic, the fugitively hard-luck themed ‘Beaumont Blues’. Yet another sublime Bellfuries show
Mel Peekaboo
Sunday evening began with a band new to us, as the petite Mel Peekaboo began proceedings on the main stage. Looking fine in her pink flapper styled dress, Mel Peekaboo Sapienza, held back while her band, led by Vince Mannino on lead guitar rattled off a fine instrumental, in the shape of Link Wray’s ‘Turnpike USA’ to set the stall out.
The full line up is Vince Mannino lead guitar, Massimo Jaguar Pafumi acoustic guitar, Stephane Ferlay double bass and Frank Dee drums. Mel presented an Ann Cole track as her opener, ‘I’ve Got a Little Boy’ (originally the flip to the probably better known ‘Got My Mojo Working’).
‘Who Did It’ and ‘Just a Little Bit’ are original tracks, the first having a slightly jazzy lilt, while ‘Just a Little Bit’, is a delightful jive tempo. The more genteel flow of ‘I Believe’ set up the cheery sound of ‘This Heart of Mine’. The Brooklyn Cowgirl, Mimi Roman, recorded ‘Little Lovin’ (b/w I’m Ready if You’re Willing) in 1956. An instantly recognisable brace of rockers, the first of which, Mel put across really well vocally. That was followed by another cracker, Ronnie Self’s ‘Flame of Love’.
An excellent set continued with versatile switches in style, from the country bop sounds of Rose Maddox’s ‘Hey Little Dreamboat’ and Jean Shepard’s ‘He’s My Baby’ through to the R&B smoothness of Wynona Carr, in ‘Touch and Go’. A really feel-good set ended with ‘Burn That Candle’, a top introduction to Mel’s musical style for us.
The full line up is Vince Mannino lead guitar, Massimo Jaguar Pafumi acoustic guitar, Stephane Ferlay double bass and Frank Dee drums. Mel presented an Ann Cole track as her opener, ‘I’ve Got a Little Boy’ (originally the flip to the probably better known ‘Got My Mojo Working’).
‘Who Did It’ and ‘Just a Little Bit’ are original tracks, the first having a slightly jazzy lilt, while ‘Just a Little Bit’, is a delightful jive tempo. The more genteel flow of ‘I Believe’ set up the cheery sound of ‘This Heart of Mine’. The Brooklyn Cowgirl, Mimi Roman, recorded ‘Little Lovin’ (b/w I’m Ready if You’re Willing) in 1956. An instantly recognisable brace of rockers, the first of which, Mel put across really well vocally. That was followed by another cracker, Ronnie Self’s ‘Flame of Love’.
An excellent set continued with versatile switches in style, from the country bop sounds of Rose Maddox’s ‘Hey Little Dreamboat’ and Jean Shepard’s ‘He’s My Baby’ through to the R&B smoothness of Wynona Carr, in ‘Touch and Go’. A really feel-good set ended with ‘Burn That Candle’, a top introduction to Mel’s musical style for us.
Barrence Whitfield and MFC Chicken
A real blast of sound next, courtesy of the scream machine, Barrence Whitfield, backed by MFC Chicken. Barrence has been a regular visitor to these shores, bringing his powerhouse vocal style to many-a stage.
Dressed from top to toe in black, he hit the ground running with the vocal butt-kick from the mid-80’s, ‘Bloody Mary’. In nearly forty years, his voice hasn’t lost any of it’s intensity, and MFC Chicken replicated the Savages sound perfectly.
‘Big Mamou’, the call and answer stroller, was a peach, and Big T Tyler’s 1957 Alladin shouter ‘King Kong’ was masterfully delivered, as was Teddy McCrae’ s ‘Hi-Fi Baby’. The frenzied sound of ‘Bip Bop Bip’ ratcheted up the pace even more, and the crowd were right there with him. ‘Hole in Heart’ is an extended song, mainly due to the interaction with the crowd, various ‘yeahs’ ‘wows’ and random noises from the stage to the audience and back again, and to a lesser degree, so was Young Jessie’s ‘I Smell a Rat’. Ba Ba Thomas’ ‘Miss Shake It’ and the pinnacle of power and crest of the set ‘Stop Twistin’ My Arm’. In a word, Wow.
Dressed from top to toe in black, he hit the ground running with the vocal butt-kick from the mid-80’s, ‘Bloody Mary’. In nearly forty years, his voice hasn’t lost any of it’s intensity, and MFC Chicken replicated the Savages sound perfectly.
‘Big Mamou’, the call and answer stroller, was a peach, and Big T Tyler’s 1957 Alladin shouter ‘King Kong’ was masterfully delivered, as was Teddy McCrae’ s ‘Hi-Fi Baby’. The frenzied sound of ‘Bip Bop Bip’ ratcheted up the pace even more, and the crowd were right there with him. ‘Hole in Heart’ is an extended song, mainly due to the interaction with the crowd, various ‘yeahs’ ‘wows’ and random noises from the stage to the audience and back again, and to a lesser degree, so was Young Jessie’s ‘I Smell a Rat’. Ba Ba Thomas’ ‘Miss Shake It’ and the pinnacle of power and crest of the set ‘Stop Twistin’ My Arm’. In a word, Wow.
Alan Power and the Aftershocks
You want to talk ‘new band’, ‘up and coming’ maybe? Alan Power and the Aftershocks were formed about a year ago in Munster, the city in Munster, Ireland late in 2022. They have been making (shock)waves on the music circuit since then and now here they were on the main stage at the Rhythm Riot. Backing Alan are Liam on drums, Ciian on bass and Jimmy on lead guitar.
There are parallels drawn between Alan and young Elvis performances, although don’t think for one second, that he’s a tribute act. Certainly, they opened with ‘Baby Let’s Play House’, and throughout the set we got the seminal ‘That’s Alright Mama’, and an awesome take of ‘Peace in the Valley’, but that’s about it for EP songs. They took on the Echo Valley Boys ‘Wash Machine Boogie’, the Gospel sounds of Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s (traditional) ‘This Train’ and going way, way back to the early 1900’s for ‘Down By The Riverside’.
Offsetting that some real barn burners, like the frenzied ‘Tear It Up’, Chuck Berry’s ‘Maybelline’ and Little Richard’s ‘Tutti Frutti’.
To demonstrate their versatility yet further, a bit of skiffle too with Nancy Whisky/Chas McDevitt’s ‘Freight Train’, plus their own material ‘Morning Blues’ which exemplifies their talents as songwriters. This set fizzed by, and an encore was a gimmie really. For that they chose Ewan McColl’s 1949 love lament of the City of Salford ‘Dirty Old Town’ popularised by among others, the Dubliners and the Pogues. This version retained the anguished affection for the city, in fine stripped down vocal style, which clicked immediately switched back to youthful exuberance, and Little Richard’s ‘Ready Teddy’. A most excellent show from the Irish combo.
There are parallels drawn between Alan and young Elvis performances, although don’t think for one second, that he’s a tribute act. Certainly, they opened with ‘Baby Let’s Play House’, and throughout the set we got the seminal ‘That’s Alright Mama’, and an awesome take of ‘Peace in the Valley’, but that’s about it for EP songs. They took on the Echo Valley Boys ‘Wash Machine Boogie’, the Gospel sounds of Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s (traditional) ‘This Train’ and going way, way back to the early 1900’s for ‘Down By The Riverside’.
Offsetting that some real barn burners, like the frenzied ‘Tear It Up’, Chuck Berry’s ‘Maybelline’ and Little Richard’s ‘Tutti Frutti’.
To demonstrate their versatility yet further, a bit of skiffle too with Nancy Whisky/Chas McDevitt’s ‘Freight Train’, plus their own material ‘Morning Blues’ which exemplifies their talents as songwriters. This set fizzed by, and an encore was a gimmie really. For that they chose Ewan McColl’s 1949 love lament of the City of Salford ‘Dirty Old Town’ popularised by among others, the Dubliners and the Pogues. This version retained the anguished affection for the city, in fine stripped down vocal style, which clicked immediately switched back to youthful exuberance, and Little Richard’s ‘Ready Teddy’. A most excellent show from the Irish combo.
The Rhythm Riot Jubilee All Stars
It has become almost a tradition at the Riot, to have an all-star Jamboree style performance on the Sunday night. This was no exception, with the Jubilee Allstars, quite literally filling the stage. For completeness, here is a roll call of the artists on stage, led by Willy Briggs, who took steel guitar duties. Lisa Briggs took up the accordion, with bassist Gary Boller, David Doel on lead guitar, drummer Tony Hillebrandt, Tim Heming on clarinet, Carl Woodison on trumpet, violinists/fiddlers Rebecca Wilson and Chris Haigh with David Jones on piano and rhythm guitar. Now with that lot you know you’ll get a splendid reverberation, and using Bob Wills ‘Jumping at the Woodside’ as a bouncy introduction, was a triumph.
On to the vocal songs, and believe it or not, they had guests on stage as well throughout the performance. It was Lisa that (strategically) took lead vocals firstly with Hank Penny’s ‘Catch Them Young, Treat Them Rough, Tell Them Nothin’. First guest vocalist up, Mary Ann taking on ‘Ain’t a Bump in the Road’ (I think), and the cheery beat of Cindy Walker’s ‘All Your Fault’ from 1942(!) and Bob Wills’ ‘Rockabye Baby Blues’. David Doel then took on ‘I Lost My Gal From Memphis’ which featured an exquisite trumpet break, set to a nimble and spry rhythm
Plenty of Tex Williams throughout the show, and a fine exponent of the style, Rob Heron, was the next guest vocalist on stage. Tex’s biggest hit, was #1 on the Country and US charts in 1946 ‘Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)’ which Rob vocally conveyed with considerable aplomb. Again, ‘Shame on You’ and the zippy ‘That’s What I Like About the West’, just ace. Rob exited stage right, and Willy Briggs kept up the Tex theme with Texas in My Soul’ with it’s jaunty shout-back chorus.
The next guest vocalist brought Tammi Savoy back to the stage. What a fine start to her contribution with Bonnie Davis’ ‘Pepper Hot Baby’ from 1955, a song and style perfectly suited to her. ‘I Can’t Give You Anything But Love’ impressed and the well-known ‘Straighten Up and Fly Right’ from 1944 was simply sublime. David Doel pitched in again with ‘Your Red Wagon’, before Willy and Lisa Briggs reprised a Pee Wee King tune from a previous Rhythm Riot tribute night. ‘I Don’t Mind’ from 1952, was a ‘B’ side to ‘Busybody’, is a humdinger of a track, and the recital from Willy and Lisa was just superb. The entire ensemble, including guest singers all took the stage for a rousing climax of Bob Wills ‘Stay All Night Stay a Little Longer’, which topped off not only a brilliant show, but the live acts for this year’s Riot.
The silver anniversary of the Rhythm Riot, was an absolute blast. The quality of the acts, the blend of different roots and rockin’ music, the sound, the recorded music, everything was en pointe. Congratulations must go to Robin & Colette Weathersbee and Jerry Chatabox, for the longevity and continued quality of the Rhythm Riot over the past twenty-five years. Onward and upward to number twenty-six
Gallery images below, click on them for full sized pic
On to the vocal songs, and believe it or not, they had guests on stage as well throughout the performance. It was Lisa that (strategically) took lead vocals firstly with Hank Penny’s ‘Catch Them Young, Treat Them Rough, Tell Them Nothin’. First guest vocalist up, Mary Ann taking on ‘Ain’t a Bump in the Road’ (I think), and the cheery beat of Cindy Walker’s ‘All Your Fault’ from 1942(!) and Bob Wills’ ‘Rockabye Baby Blues’. David Doel then took on ‘I Lost My Gal From Memphis’ which featured an exquisite trumpet break, set to a nimble and spry rhythm
Plenty of Tex Williams throughout the show, and a fine exponent of the style, Rob Heron, was the next guest vocalist on stage. Tex’s biggest hit, was #1 on the Country and US charts in 1946 ‘Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)’ which Rob vocally conveyed with considerable aplomb. Again, ‘Shame on You’ and the zippy ‘That’s What I Like About the West’, just ace. Rob exited stage right, and Willy Briggs kept up the Tex theme with Texas in My Soul’ with it’s jaunty shout-back chorus.
The next guest vocalist brought Tammi Savoy back to the stage. What a fine start to her contribution with Bonnie Davis’ ‘Pepper Hot Baby’ from 1955, a song and style perfectly suited to her. ‘I Can’t Give You Anything But Love’ impressed and the well-known ‘Straighten Up and Fly Right’ from 1944 was simply sublime. David Doel pitched in again with ‘Your Red Wagon’, before Willy and Lisa Briggs reprised a Pee Wee King tune from a previous Rhythm Riot tribute night. ‘I Don’t Mind’ from 1952, was a ‘B’ side to ‘Busybody’, is a humdinger of a track, and the recital from Willy and Lisa was just superb. The entire ensemble, including guest singers all took the stage for a rousing climax of Bob Wills ‘Stay All Night Stay a Little Longer’, which topped off not only a brilliant show, but the live acts for this year’s Riot.
The silver anniversary of the Rhythm Riot, was an absolute blast. The quality of the acts, the blend of different roots and rockin’ music, the sound, the recorded music, everything was en pointe. Congratulations must go to Robin & Colette Weathersbee and Jerry Chatabox, for the longevity and continued quality of the Rhythm Riot over the past twenty-five years. Onward and upward to number twenty-six
Gallery images below, click on them for full sized pic
Cracking line up for Rockin at the Bomber Command in Lincoln in 2024. Click the flyer for details
|
Racketeer Radio brings you the New Golden Age of Radio with over 20 scheduled radio programs from around the world, airing each week. Racketeer Radio features the longest running radio program on air, favorite radio programs from 1930s - 1950s as well as the latest programs in the vintage revival.
Hear your favorite classics, along with the newest released tunes from Big Band, Swing, Jump Rhythm and Blues to Lounge, Rockabilly and More. In the Racketeer Radio App find News, Updates, Events and More, go to linktr.ee/RacketeerRadio. |
cd review
Take Me Back In Time – Jackson Sloan
Jackson Sloan has been a towering presence (most people tower over us anyway) on the Rock n Roll and R&B scene for many years now. He has a knack of producing catchy rhythms in original material, and supplying DJs and dancers alike with collections to grace any dancefloor.
His latest album, which is his fifth solo record, ‘Take Me Back In Time’, features backing by the Drew Davis Combo, which consists of Drew Davis on tenor sax and guitar, Jean Marc Labbe on baritone sax, keyboardist Cesar Pastre, on double bass Xavier Nikqi and drummer Kevin L’Hermite. The tracks themselves were recorded ‘live’ at Jump Start Studios in France. All the fourteen tracks are written by Jackson himself.
The opening track ‘False Alarm’, has jive winner stamped all over it. It’s a jaunty rhythm, complemented by a super sax break. Yes, it could rival that ‘dust’ song for popularity on the dancefloors of the world. ‘B.O.O.G.I.E, That’s All’, serious ivory tickling on this track readers, to a bouncing R&B beat, straight out of the early ‘50’s. ‘Last Act of Love’ eases off the tempo pedal slightly, well crafted lyrics set to a stroll beat.
‘Hold on to That Dream’ has a joyful and jazzy lilt, before we are uplifted by an ace slice of beguiling boogie ‘Hey Mister Wheel of Fortune’. There’s a love-lost, blues lament, with a late-night café appeal in ‘Lonely Table For One’. ‘People Talk’ on first listen, you could imagine the likes of Ivory Joe Hunter or his ilk recording this one. Hearing ‘Rock Paper Scissors’ was somewhat of a surprise, as it has a rock-steady timbre, and lyrically, it’s not completely about the hand game of that name.
Interesting that ‘Take Me Back’ has a live audience adding to the sizzle of a smashing piano driven rocking hand-clapper, while ‘Neon Angel’ slows it down some, while ‘Life Jacket’ has an interesting nautical lyrical take on relationships. The atmospheric ‘Damage is Done’, unsurprisingly has a sad undertone to the lyrics, with a dark jazz club, after-hours ambience. By contrast, there’s the uplifting tone of ‘Hang On In There’ you could bounce happily along with wherever you are. Finally, a cool romp to conclude the release, ‘There’s No Good in Goodbye’, with a hook beat that really sounds familiar.
The cover art shows Jackson very relaxed and laid back on a pile of LPs. He certainly hasn’t rested on the laurels of previous releases and continues to write and record excellent material. His voice remains as powerful as ever and the vocal delivery is the perfect complement to the eminence of the band. Fans of jumping jiving rhythm and blues, will love this, dancers and DJs will love this, and so will you.
Like what you see? Help us keep it free by popping a donation over by using the button below. Many thanks
Jackson Sloan has been a towering presence (most people tower over us anyway) on the Rock n Roll and R&B scene for many years now. He has a knack of producing catchy rhythms in original material, and supplying DJs and dancers alike with collections to grace any dancefloor.
His latest album, which is his fifth solo record, ‘Take Me Back In Time’, features backing by the Drew Davis Combo, which consists of Drew Davis on tenor sax and guitar, Jean Marc Labbe on baritone sax, keyboardist Cesar Pastre, on double bass Xavier Nikqi and drummer Kevin L’Hermite. The tracks themselves were recorded ‘live’ at Jump Start Studios in France. All the fourteen tracks are written by Jackson himself.
The opening track ‘False Alarm’, has jive winner stamped all over it. It’s a jaunty rhythm, complemented by a super sax break. Yes, it could rival that ‘dust’ song for popularity on the dancefloors of the world. ‘B.O.O.G.I.E, That’s All’, serious ivory tickling on this track readers, to a bouncing R&B beat, straight out of the early ‘50’s. ‘Last Act of Love’ eases off the tempo pedal slightly, well crafted lyrics set to a stroll beat.
‘Hold on to That Dream’ has a joyful and jazzy lilt, before we are uplifted by an ace slice of beguiling boogie ‘Hey Mister Wheel of Fortune’. There’s a love-lost, blues lament, with a late-night café appeal in ‘Lonely Table For One’. ‘People Talk’ on first listen, you could imagine the likes of Ivory Joe Hunter or his ilk recording this one. Hearing ‘Rock Paper Scissors’ was somewhat of a surprise, as it has a rock-steady timbre, and lyrically, it’s not completely about the hand game of that name.
Interesting that ‘Take Me Back’ has a live audience adding to the sizzle of a smashing piano driven rocking hand-clapper, while ‘Neon Angel’ slows it down some, while ‘Life Jacket’ has an interesting nautical lyrical take on relationships. The atmospheric ‘Damage is Done’, unsurprisingly has a sad undertone to the lyrics, with a dark jazz club, after-hours ambience. By contrast, there’s the uplifting tone of ‘Hang On In There’ you could bounce happily along with wherever you are. Finally, a cool romp to conclude the release, ‘There’s No Good in Goodbye’, with a hook beat that really sounds familiar.
The cover art shows Jackson very relaxed and laid back on a pile of LPs. He certainly hasn’t rested on the laurels of previous releases and continues to write and record excellent material. His voice remains as powerful as ever and the vocal delivery is the perfect complement to the eminence of the band. Fans of jumping jiving rhythm and blues, will love this, dancers and DJs will love this, and so will you.
Like what you see? Help us keep it free by popping a donation over by using the button below. Many thanks
|
There's a mental amount of jewellery, ties, gift sets, handbags and all sorts on their stall folks, to suit all tastes. Check them out at weekenders and festivals all over the country, or on their website
|
There is now a site up an running where you can check out what's on and upload your gigs. See MBSN Gig Guide (bluesuedenews.co.uk) for details.
Notice to advertisers:- The advertisers in this issue, have paid for their adverts, if you would like to run one with us, and have your event/facility open to our 40,000 + viewers per month, drop us a line to [email protected] for details. If you have a company that makes and sells clothing or accessories, you have a themed event or location, you run a record label or shop, you can advertise with us as well. Anything associated with Rock n Roll music, or 1940’s, 1950’s related. We will include a brief article on your company and services if required, as well with your advert, and a clickable link attached to the flyer, which will take customers directly to your webpage or event page on social media. Adverts are £25.00 per month, much less than most printed magazines, and reaching far more potential customers and attendees, more bang for your buck.
We want to keep this magazine free to read, so rely on advertisers and donations. If you like what you see, help us keep it free by popping us a donation using the button. This has to be a two way street for us to be able to continue beyond 2022. Many thanks
Bands and artists who would like their music or latest record release reviewed. We listen to records several times before writing a word about them. We research songs if they are covers, credit writers, performers and musicians. In effect, we pay true reverence to your recordings, not relying in on merely describing a song as a bopper, jiver or stroller. If we don't know about your release, we can't review it. You can send it to us in electronic form or the actual article, drop us an email and we'll arrange it. We do not plagiarise unlike some other sites and publications. Get in touch at [email protected] if you want your record included.
When you get chance to, as seemingly the case is now, do go and support live music, gigs, clubs and bands. Never before has the industry needed it's customers than now. It's much more exiting than two cans and a takeaway in front of the telly.
When we are able to get out and about, if you would like us to cover your event or club night, please get in touch. For two press passes, we will review your event, or your band's show at a gig, in detail, in both words and pictures. We are out there, boots on the ground, front, centre and right and most points in between.
Photographs in this magazine have been provided by the subjects, for use here, or are from our own library. All are copyright
NB, Events and all advertised services are supplied by the advertisers themselves. We do not accept any responsibility for any alterations or adjustments, cancellations or disputes between customers and the advertisers. Please check before booking, travelling to, or buying from advertisers in our magazine
Please note that all material on this website is (c) Andrew Smith, June Smith, The Bettajive Review. Please avoid copying and pasting articles or parts of articles to your websites or social media, we'd much prefer people to visit our site direct. Thank you for reading our online magazine. Comments, remarks, suggestions and yes, even gentle criticism, all welcome. We do not share links to adult sites here, although adults are welcome to read it. We are considering deleting some early issues and we're interested in your thoughts on whether we should keep them or not. Drop us a note with your thoughts sometime.
Keep up to date with us here, or on our various platforms:-
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/The-Bettajive-Review-569161136474404/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bettajivereview/
Twitter https://twitter.com/AndrewBettajive
email:- [email protected]
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-smith-b626aa63/
Cheers 'til next month
Andrew and June
Next month, we review Hemsby 67, don't miss it.
To keep this magazine free we rely upon donations and advertising. We would ask if you could drop us a donation of whatever you can by using our Paypal.me account here. The smallest contributions all add up so we can keep our monthly publication going. This is the way we can continue beyond 2023
Many thanks
If you have enjoyed our magazine, why not pop a donation over by using the button below. Many thanks
Notice to advertisers:- The advertisers in this issue, have paid for their adverts, if you would like to run one with us, and have your event/facility open to our 40,000 + viewers per month, drop us a line to [email protected] for details. If you have a company that makes and sells clothing or accessories, you have a themed event or location, you run a record label or shop, you can advertise with us as well. Anything associated with Rock n Roll music, or 1940’s, 1950’s related. We will include a brief article on your company and services if required, as well with your advert, and a clickable link attached to the flyer, which will take customers directly to your webpage or event page on social media. Adverts are £25.00 per month, much less than most printed magazines, and reaching far more potential customers and attendees, more bang for your buck.
We want to keep this magazine free to read, so rely on advertisers and donations. If you like what you see, help us keep it free by popping us a donation using the button. This has to be a two way street for us to be able to continue beyond 2022. Many thanks
Bands and artists who would like their music or latest record release reviewed. We listen to records several times before writing a word about them. We research songs if they are covers, credit writers, performers and musicians. In effect, we pay true reverence to your recordings, not relying in on merely describing a song as a bopper, jiver or stroller. If we don't know about your release, we can't review it. You can send it to us in electronic form or the actual article, drop us an email and we'll arrange it. We do not plagiarise unlike some other sites and publications. Get in touch at [email protected] if you want your record included.
When you get chance to, as seemingly the case is now, do go and support live music, gigs, clubs and bands. Never before has the industry needed it's customers than now. It's much more exiting than two cans and a takeaway in front of the telly.
When we are able to get out and about, if you would like us to cover your event or club night, please get in touch. For two press passes, we will review your event, or your band's show at a gig, in detail, in both words and pictures. We are out there, boots on the ground, front, centre and right and most points in between.
Photographs in this magazine have been provided by the subjects, for use here, or are from our own library. All are copyright
NB, Events and all advertised services are supplied by the advertisers themselves. We do not accept any responsibility for any alterations or adjustments, cancellations or disputes between customers and the advertisers. Please check before booking, travelling to, or buying from advertisers in our magazine
Please note that all material on this website is (c) Andrew Smith, June Smith, The Bettajive Review. Please avoid copying and pasting articles or parts of articles to your websites or social media, we'd much prefer people to visit our site direct. Thank you for reading our online magazine. Comments, remarks, suggestions and yes, even gentle criticism, all welcome. We do not share links to adult sites here, although adults are welcome to read it. We are considering deleting some early issues and we're interested in your thoughts on whether we should keep them or not. Drop us a note with your thoughts sometime.
Keep up to date with us here, or on our various platforms:-
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/The-Bettajive-Review-569161136474404/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bettajivereview/
Twitter https://twitter.com/AndrewBettajive
email:- [email protected]
https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-smith-b626aa63/
Cheers 'til next month
Andrew and June
Next month, we review Hemsby 67, don't miss it.
To keep this magazine free we rely upon donations and advertising. We would ask if you could drop us a donation of whatever you can by using our Paypal.me account here. The smallest contributions all add up so we can keep our monthly publication going. This is the way we can continue beyond 2023
Many thanks
If you have enjoyed our magazine, why not pop a donation over by using the button below. Many thanks
