“Are you ready?” says Matty James Cassidy. “For a night of rock n’ roll.” And he certainly is. In fact, Cassidy seems like the sort of chap who’s always ready for a night of rock n’ roll. He has that troubadour look, standing there with his guitar slung low, and there’s something wonderfully old-school about the way he does things. His songs are classic-feeling without ever being pastiche, and the opening salvo proves it.
“Tell It To The Ghosts”, his new single, rumbles along with a ragged charm, and “Tell It To The Ghosts” is the sort of thing that makes you remember exactly why he first caught attention back in the Balladmongrels days with Tyla J. Pallas. He even plays a couple of their old tunes here — “Beautiful” and “Trouble” — before finishing with “Brand New You”, the one he claims to hate playing. He shouldn’t. It’s a cracker, and Cassidy remains one of the best ways to start any rock n’ roll party.
Then it’s time for Soho Dukes who, as Spike puts it, “aren’t bad lads… it’s not their fault they come from London.” They’ve been a bit of a new obsession of mine ever since hearing their recent record “Nighthawks, Acrobats and Everything Under the Moon”, and given that it only came out the day before the show, it’s impressive how much of the set comes from it. “Elaine” is wonderful, “Should Know Better” hits hard, and before long Johnny Barracuda has his baseball bat out for “Bovver Boys” before introducing the tremendous “Johnny Domino”.
The truth is they’ve always been this good. Their earlier albums — which I dove into after loving the new one — show it. “Excited” is aired, as is “Suited and Booted”, which appears on the new record and is almost too perfect an anthem given the sharp-dressed state of the band. They’re all better turned out to play this show than I’d be for a wedding. There’s even the song from the album on which Spike takes the lead vocal, appearing “just in time, I was paying my bill at Sinderellas, the local strip club,” as he cheerfully tells it. That slice of sleaze could have waltzed straight off an early Quireboys record. They close with the glamour-slam of “Sunday Magazines”, and as Barracuda says, “If we’ve not met before, it’s been a pleasure.” Speaking personally, the pleasure was mostly mine.
I heard The Quireboys on the Friday Rock Show when I was about 14 or 15, around the time “A Bit of What You Fancy” their debut, came out, and I’d never heard anything quite like it. I didn’t know Humble Pie, didn’t know The Faces, didn’t know The Stones. I didn’t even know The Quireboys until that moment — and they’ve been one of my favourite bands ever since. They opened the door to every band I’ve mentioned. So when Spike suggests that “we are the ones keeping rock n’ roll alive”, he’s right. And tonight proves it.
This version of the band — we don’t need to rehash the events of the last couple of years — includes Luke Morley on guitar and Harry James on drums, meaning half of Thunder are up there powering The Quireboys along. When they open with “Jeeze Louise” there’s something instantly special, and from there they barely let up. “Can’t Park Here” from the second record is a riot, while the “A Bit of What You Fancy” material remains untouchable. “Hey You”, “Misled”, “Sweet Mary Ann”, “Whippin’ Boy”, “7 O’Clock” — all are delivered with that timeless swagger only Spike can muster.
What really surprises, though, is how strong the newer songs remain. “Raining Whiskey”, from the Frank Miller era, still lands beautifully even if it does, let’s be honest, borrow from “Honky Tonk Woman”. “You And I”, Spike reckons, is the sort of song you play to the lady of your dreams if you want to get lucky. “Buy her some Quireboys knickers — if that doesn’t work, nothing will,” he grins.
Spike is in great spirits tonight, cheerfully announcing he “can’t believe I remembered the words” before tearing into “Whippin’ Boy” and the superb “I Think I Got It Wrong Again”. But The Quireboys have always had sides to them: “King of New York” remains heartbreaking, “Happy” still slinks, “Man on the Loose” brings the bar-room energy, and “Roses & Rings” probably counts as the first country song I ever heard — meaning they may well be to blame for my lifelong fondness for the genre.
The final run is pure magic: “There She Goes Again”, the party explosion of “7 O’Clock”, and then a moment Spike has clearly wrestled with. A couple of years ago Guy Bailey — best friend, former guitar player, and one-time original member — passed away, and Spike apparently promised him he’d never play “Sex Party” again. But tonight he breaks that promise. Wolverhampton, he reckons, is ready for one. And you know what? He’s right.
After that, they close with “I Don’t Love You Anymore”, the greatest British rock ballad never to top the charts, and it’s a wonderful ending. Spike leaves the stage blowing kisses and saying, “Thank you for keeping rock and roll alive.”
For 35 years, that’s exactly what The Quireboys have done. And tonight proves — bias and nostalgia aside — that they remain one of the truly great rock n’ roll bands this country has ever produced.
