Vintage Trouble, The Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow. Sat 25th June 2016

'Leave your troubles at the door, we're having a dance party tonight in Glasgow.'

But first...

The support act tonight were Slydigs, a band from Warrington who plug away with a sub-Oasis manc-rock. I had trouble understanding the bescarfed, vest wearing bassist when he occasionally made a comment on the mic but musically they did a fine job warming up the crowd of Troublemakers, most of whom were 40+. Just before the main act took to the stage, you began to notice the influx of sneaky teenagers, with their youthful energy, squeezing through the lard.

The audience anticipation was tangible and Vintage Trouble didn't disappoint. They have always been a great live band but tonight it struck me how tight they have become, visibly enjoying the performance, confident in their talent, yet humble that we decided to spend our time with them. Each of the waist-coated marvels was superb, packing more into 90 mins that a lot of bands ever give. The keyword was energy.

The audience sing-a-longs were loud, proud and word perfect showing how devoted a following they've picked up. Tye Taylor, the lead singer, loves to get among the audience and he was everywhere tonight: main stage, floor, tech board, side balcony, rear balcony and on top of the audience. He's like a dance preacher, with 'hands in the air' shouts and demands to dance, clap and sing that get all ages responding, showing his own moves like a dance-dynamo. The only time the audience energy sagged was when they played an unfamiliar new number that had a different groove. By the end of the show, my palms were so sore from clapping I had to fake clap.

I believe, now that the world has lost some of its musical greats, Vintage Trouble deserve to claim one of those fallen crowns. If you get the chance, go and see them. You won't be disappointed.

Setlist
Run Like the River
Nobody Told Me
Strike Your Light
Another Man's Words
Roller Coaster
Turn the Sky to Blue
Highland Dance Party!
Trouble Makers Medley: You Better Believe It (With elements of Total Strangers) / Soul Serenity / Angel City, California / Jezzebella / Gracefully / Total Strangers
Doin' What You Were Doin'
Blues Hand Me Down
Pelvis Pusher

Encore:

Nancy Lee

Vintage Trouble, Glasgow Barrowland. Sun 8th Nov 2015

Another night, another gig: this time Vintage Trouble at the Barrowland.

Vintage Trouble are a hard-working band. In five years they've circumnavigated the globe five times playing their blues rock music with a gin joint twist. Having recently released their second album, 1 Hopeful Road, this is their largest headline tour of the UK, having previously supported Paloma Faith and AC/DC earlier this year. This is the third time I've seen them.

The frontman Ty Taylor has the swagger of Jagger and the moves of a young James Brown and dances a whirlwind not just around the stage but all over the hall. He spent a great deal of the show among the crowd, dancing with the ladies, crowd surfing from the back of the hall to the stage and getting everyone to crouch lower and lower until everyone was practically sitting on the floor. It was as if he'd used a giant ball to make a dent in the crowd, using the force of his personality to drive even the elderly to follow his dance moves down. The rest of the band are a tight outfit, but Ty is the energy. I think the reason I preferred this gig to last night's U2 gig is down to that energy. Both Bono and Ty had the crowd in the palms of the hands, but Bono was more like an elder statesman, respected for his past, his values and his ability, whereas Ty grabbed the crowd's attention and refused to stop until he owned everyone in the hall.

It left me on a high. Maybe that was because I was shaking my hips and generally boogying. Sadly no photos of this horrific sight. You'll just have to make do with these.

Setlist
Soul Serenity
Blues Hand Me Down
Angel City, California
Nancy Lee
Before the Tear Drops
Doin' What You Were Doin'
Another Man's Words
Shows What You Know
Nobody Told Me
You Better Believe It
Not Alright by Me

Encore:
Strike Your Light
Run Like the River
Pelvis Pusher

AC/DC, 'Rock or Bust' World Tour, Hampden Park, Glasgow. Thurs 28th June 2015

Ears still buzzing after AC/DC at Hampden. Quite a crush in the standing section, but it stayed dry until the encore (if you exclude sweaty bods). The gig was outstanding. Support act, Vintage Trouble, were really good too.

Setlist
Rock or Bust
Shoot to Thrill
Hell Ain't a Bad Place to Be
Back in Black
Play Ball
Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
Thunderstruck
High Voltage
Rock 'n' Roll Train
Hells Bells
Baptism by Fire
You Shook Me All Night Long
Sin City
Shot Down in Flames
Have a Drink on Me
T.N.T.
Whole Lotta Rosie
Let There Be Rock (with Angus Young guitar solo on a raised platform in the crowd)

Encore:
The Bonnie Banks o' Loch Lomond ([traditional] cover)
Highway to Hell (with Angus Young guitar solo intro)
For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)

Pre-gig nourishment with Bob and Julie