Francis Rossi - Sunday 16th May - Her Majesty's Theatre, London

OK, hands up all those who thought this was going to be an evening of pleasant, but dullish country-tinged pop tunes from "that bloke from Status Quo". Wrong!

It's fair to say that those in our group (all Quo fans) were treating this with a bit of trepidation. We needn't have worried. From the opening bars of a bluesy "Caroline", the audience were on their feet and the excellent band reeled through a selection of material from Rossi's new solo offering "One Step At A Time" and Quo obscurities. The real joy was hearing those delights which Quo never or rarely play. I've moaned often enough about their static setlist and yet here is the man who many believe to be the main architect of that policy, deliver a great selection. It just shows what can be done when some thought is given to it. Of course, it helps when the band are as solid as they were here.... Rossi jnr on one guitar and the annoyingly good Freddie Edwards on another perfectly complementing FR himself (well, I'm guessing he helped teach them both to play!).

All in all well above expectations and probably more enjoyable as a result than some of the times I've seen Quo. Let's hope there is more to come!

Setlist
Caroline
Claudie
All We Really Want To Do (Polly)
You'll Come Round
Crazy For You
Old Time Rock 'N' Roll
Strike Like Lightning
Tallulah's Waiting
Here I Go
Tongue Tied
Blessed Are The Meek
My Little Heartbreaker
Electric Arena
One Step At A Time
Marguerita Time
Rolling Down The Road
Diggin' Burt Bacharach
Sleeping On The Job
Twenty Wild Horses
Can't Give You More
+
Don't Waste My Time

Band of Skulls - Friday 14th May - Electric Ballroom, Camden

Well, well well - another new London venue for me (yes, yes, I know the Electric Ballroom has been around for years - I've just never been here). Richard signed me up for this one based on the debut CD which he then lent to me. First play - not impressed. Second play, ditto. Forced myself into a third play and it wasn't improving - hopefully it would be better live I thought.

Anyway, I liked the venue and got a good spot fairly near the front. As showtime arrived, the place was heaving with a relatively young audience. The band came on and did their stuff and the crowd was enthusiastic. Set was only an hour and a bit. As we shuffled out at the end, Richard asked me what I thought. "A fair reflection of the CD" was my reply!

Belinda Carlisle - Tuesday 4th May - Jazz Cafe, Camden

Went with Mrs B for this one and sat up in the restaurant overlooking the stage. Very civilised and an excellent view away from the crush below. Food wasn't bad either!

 

This was another acoustic evening and Ms Carlisle performed a good selection including most of her solo and Go Go's hits. It was really rather good. The band had to walk past our table to get to and from the stage - Di couldn't believe how attractive Belinda remains at 51.

Ian Hunter - Sunday 2nd May - Barbican Centre

'allo, 'allo, 'allo, 'allo!

New venue for me - very posh! Mr Hunter played material almost exclusively from his last 3 albums for the first hour, which by his own admission sold a handful of copies. Still, there were some good tunes none the less.

Things livened up a bit for the encore with the predictable Mott The Hoople material ("All The Way From Memphis" remains a personal favourite) and the even more predictable guests - daughter Tracey and Mick Ralphs. A decent evening.