I’m amongst friends here, right? So let me tell the truth. I’d seen a bloke marching around KK’s wearing a white fur coat and thought: “Blimey East 17 are in the house”. It was only when Baz Francis got on the stage that I realised it was him, and my goodness, the man exudes star quality. On his Twitter bio, he claims a love of Queen and the Manics and even in this acoustic format you can hear those influences in the likes of “Big Star”, that’s a song he wrote for his band Magic Eight Ball and most of the set he plays here is likewise. Nothing from his from his other band Mansion Harlots, although “Red Hair Wrapped Around My Neck”, played on the piano, proved that he’s got a knack. “Keep Me Out The Sunlight Once Again” and “Russian Ballet”, another Eight Ball tune round out a set that proves a great song translates into whatever format you like. It’s not the easiest job opening for Ginger Wildheart because the crowd are generally so far in his camp, but Baz Francis does it expertly here.
Or maybe that should read “it is not the easiest job in the world unless you’re Carol Hodge and Ben Marsden”. The pair play the same set, more or less, that they did when they opened for Ginger And The Sinners in the summer. This means some from Hodge’s wonderful “Vertiginous Drops” record, like “Moan Of A Thousand Years”, some from Marsden’s back catalogue, “The Only One” a wonderful Spangles tune, “What We Gonna Do” from the equally brilliant Main Grains, and all sprinkled with the fun they always bring (and given that I’ve seen Marsden four times since the summer, he probably thinks I’m stalking him at this point). So they ask for a circle pit, they smile, they laugh and they finish with their usual rendition of “Ain’t No Pleasing You” from Chas and Dave. And all is as it should be in the world.
Then.
Well then, one man and his dog walk on the stage. Ginger and Maggie Wildheart. Together. As ever. Only this time accompanied by Baz Francis for a quite sensational spoken word bit to “Geordie In Wonderland” and he is again. And not to patronise him but it’s great to see Ginger looking well and doing this. He’s our mate. We’re his, in a way, and he’s back.
Back with a request show. No setlist. Just us, shouting out what we want to hear. Whether that’s an old b-side like “Beautiful Thing You” or a Wildhearts staple like “TV Tan” almost doesn’t matter. To all of us, they’re all the same.
This is Ginger plays The Wildhearts like he’s done before, free n easy, to borrow a title from my other favourite band, so the fella next to me yells out “Red Light Green Light” and it’s played, there’s an abridged version of “Sky Babies” (“you don’t want me pissing around for 13 minutes, but it’s your night”) “Loveshit”, “Miles Away Girl”, a slowed down take on “Caffeine Bomb” and all the rest. All wonderful (“Diagnosis” works incredibly well). All old friends.
The cast from the evening appears for the last few. “The Price” (the song Ginger sings on Hodge’s album) “Nita Nitro” and because it’s Christmas and all that shit, a seemingly spontaneous version of “29xThe Pain” with festive lyrics and a run-through “Fairytale Of New York” – which when you think about it was the only one they could have done. Certainly, Maggie can be heard barking her approval.
That leaves just two. “Sick Of Drugs” is raucous as ever, and the way it was always going to end, “I Wanna Go Where The People Go” (or I wanna go where the people snow, or something).
But there’s one thing. There was a young kid there. I’d seen him outside. Ginger spotted him too and asked if he could play guitar. Upon saying he was learning Ginger had promised him his amp if “you promise to practice”. He leaves the venue with it. Merry Christmas indeed.
It was that type of night. It felt like a family gathering. And as you leave into the rainy Black Country night, there’s a line going around your head. And now you’re back. It’s like you never really went away. If you know, you know.
