Black Star Riders, 10th Anniversary Tour 2023. SWG3 Galvanizers, Glasgow. Thursday 23rd February, 2023

Two things persuaded me to get a ticket for this show: the band's new album, Wrong Side of Paradise, which includes their cover of The Osmonds' classic Crazy Horses, and I was able to pick up a resell ticket for less than face value (I do like a bargain!). The fact that there were two support acts of interest and some of my friends were going was an added bonus.

I first saw them play at the Barrowlands (as Thin Lizzy) and then again at the O2 ABC (RIP). Tonight's show at the 1250 capacity SWG3 Galvanizers was not sold out. They've been going ten years with some success but have yet to quite make that leap into the big league. 

The same could be said for the two support acts, who on the right stage, in the right size of venue, could easily headline a show of their own. 

Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons were formed by the ex-Motorhead guitarist. Their lead singer reminds me of the bastard son of Canadian comic Craig Campbell and comedy superstar (in his dreams) Nick Helm, with his rock moves and gravelly voice.  

Joel Peters

Craig Campbell

Nick Helm

 

I liked this band. They play mostly their own stuff with a bit of Motorhead, finishing, of course, with Ace of Spades. The competition sing-a-long was a bit retro but fun.  

Phil Campbell

Michael Monroe, the former singer with Hanoi Rocks, is in his sixties but still rocks out like he's living in the 1980s. He twirls the mike stand, flourishes his fan, waves his scarf and struts all over the stage, climbing onto (and occasionally falling off) the riser because that's the glam thing to do. His party trick involves doing the splits, which is quite a feat at his age. He's said to have inspired the likes of Mötley Crüe and Guns N Roses and I can see why. Unfortunately, his career and talents never reached those lofty heights. His biggest hit with Hanoi Rocks was a cover of the Creedence Clearwater Revival song, Up Around the Bend. Tonight, I reckoned he looked like the Bastard son of David Lee Roth and Lily Savage. He had a bit of a nightmare performance what with the falling, his microphone cutting out and some of the PA going down but he kept smiling because that's showbiz. He also seemed a bit twitchy and all over the place, unable to settle because of his need to perform.100% for effort but a bit less for enjoyment, the band were good value as a support act.    

Michael Monroe (2023)

Lily Savage

David Lee Roth (1980s/90s?)

  
Black Star Riders have Ricky Warwick's stamp all over them. He's very much at the centre of the band and his muscular performance drives the show. The crowd absolutely love him. 

He says his heart belongs to Belfast but his soul belongs to Glasgow and I believe him. 

My favourite tracks from the night were both covers: Crazy Horses, originally by The Osmonds, and Don't Believe a Word, originally by Thin Lizzy. I didn't like the performance of Jailbreak, which they trampled all over with a heavy sound. 

Scott Gorham, guitarist with Thin Lizzy, joined them on stage for most of the show. He's an elder statesman of Rock and could be the Bastard younger brother of Joe Biden, choosing music over politics and having a great time in the process. 

During the show, both Phil Campbell and Michael Monroe joined the band on stage for different numbers, the latter, unfortunately, encountering microphone mishaps again when his was faulty. He wasn't amused. 

Overall, it wasn't a bad night for under thirty quid. Here's to ten more years.

Ticket price: £29.20 inc fees.

Setlist

Pay Dirt

Another State of Grace

Better Than Saturday Night

When the Night Comes In

Riding Out the Storm

Wrong Side of Paradise

Crazy Horses (The Osmonds cover)

All Hell Breaks Loose

Bloodshot

Soldierstown

Don't Believe a Word (with Phil Campbell) (Thin Lizzy cover)

Blindsided

The Killer Instinct

Before the War

Testify or Say Goodbye

Tonight the Moonlight Let Me Down (with Michael Monroe)

Kingdom of the Lost

Bound for Glory

Jailbreak (Thin Lizzy cover)

Finest Hour

Phil Campbell and his Bastard Sons

Michael Monroe

Boo hoo, my microphone's faulty

Ricky Warwick

Top fan, Ally McCoist 

Those Damn Crows, February 2023 Tour. The Garage, Glasgow. Tuesday 21st February, 2023

Sometimes a song on the radio sticks in your head so much, you feel compelled to learn more about the band, seeking out their back catalogue and searching the tour listings to see if they're coming to town. Such a song was "Man on Fire", a catchy head nodder that received heavy airplay on Planet Rock Radio. Having listened to and liked their other work, it was a no-brainer to go with the lads to this gig. Better still, it was on a Tuesday, my regular day off from work, so no problems getting there on time.

But we were meeting in the pub and some were running late so we didn't arrive at the venue till after seven (doors open at 6.30pm). The place was rammed. I've never seen The Garage so full so early. Valhalla Awaits were mid-set and it looked like we were going to struggle to find a spot except at the back. What I didn't know was we had booked a booth. With six of us crammed in, my nutsack came in for a bit of a crush, legs pressed together, and I knew this position would be untenable for the duration of the gig. Fortunately, Alan and Bob wanted to stand so the increased space became bearable.

Sitting properly on the seat, the view was poor. I could barely see the second support act, which I wasn't overly bothered about. The music didn't move me. They played their set. That's about all I can say about them.

I was here for Those Damn Crows. They did not disappoint. Choosing to perch against the wall on the top of the backs of the seats, my view was much improved except for the pipe on the underside of the balcony which restricted it marginally, becoming an issue only when the lead singer or bassist stood on the platform at the nearside of the stage.

The sound was good, the music had depth and the lead singer enjoyed himself immensely, teasing us that we couldn't be better than Swansea (the band are Welsh, as in fact were all the bands tonight). He even climbed onto the balcony to lead the singalong, returning to the stage through the crowd.

This was their first UK headline tour and I think they played safe picking the 700 capacity Garage. I don't know if they could have filled the Barrowland but that is a gig I want to see.  Maybe there the other guitarist would have had more stage to play with instead of being stuck in the corner.

I predict great things from this band. They will fill arenas one day.

Setlist

Fill The Void

Wake Up

Sick of Me

Kingdom of Dust

Sin on Skin

Blink of an Eye

Who Did It?

Send the Reaper

Rock N Roll Ain't Dead

Go Get It

Takedown

Man On Fire

Waiting For Me

Encore:

This Time I'm Ready

Play Video

See You Again

Ticket Price: £18 plus fees.  

The timings slipped slightly on the night

James & The Cold Gun

Sara Pascoe, "Success Story". The Pavilion, Glasgow. Friday 3rd February, 2023

No support act for Sara tonight. It was a proper stand-up tour show with two halves and an interval (so The Pavilion could sell us ice cream, sweets and alcohol). 

From the publicity leaflet: "Sara decided she wanted to be famous when she was 14 years old. since then, she had auditioned for Barrymore, scared Pete Burns and ruined Hugh Grant's birthday - but look at her now... (please look, she needs you to look. And clap. And laugh. And then clap again)."

This covered the first half. Some of this material I'd heard her perform previously, on chat shows and the like. The familiarity didn't make it less funny.

In the second half, she discussed her path to pregnancy, her lactating boobs ("maybe they'll attract more men to my show") and her feelings towards her son, Siegfried Sassoon (not his real name - that's Theodor) and her dog, Mouse, which confused the pest control person she'd called in when she had a rodent problem.

I do like Sara. She doesn't do big gags but instead races along, almost getting breathless at the speed she talks, casually throwing out funny line after funny line, often as the butt of her own jokes. She presents as warm and authentic and says what she believes. She puts a lot of craft into her routines while making them feel effortless. 

One thing that appeared strange was seeing so many spaces in the audience. We had tickets in the front-row Circle and there were four empty seats beside me (I've ceased taking it personally) with more gaps elsewhere. Did people forget about the show? Were they ill? Or were the tickets purchased by touts who couldn't resell them? I'll never know. Or need to know. 

What I do know is tonight was a success... a success story! 

(Ticket price: £15 plus fees)

An actual paper ticket!!

Danny Bhoy, Work in Progress, The Stand, Glasgow. Wednesday 1st February, 2023

Oh Bhoy, what a brilliant comedian this man is. Even for a work-in-progress show, this was superb. Yes, the flow was occasionally a little stilted between routines but he'd taken two years off because of the pandemic so that was to be expected. He's still polishing his set. The quality of the jokes is exquisite (a work of art in one case) and his performance adds so much to the comedy (acting out a conversation between a penguin and a giraffe or queuing at a Spanish supermarket, for example). He possesses such great stage charisma, it's hard not to instantly warm to him.  

A lovely touch about tonight's show was he was donating the ticket money to a Glasgow food bank. A punter at the front gave him a giant Toblerone but I think she intended it for him rather than as a donation. He joked about it being racist as she'd given him the white one, not the brown one.

If you get the chance to catch him live, do not hesitate. You will not be disappointed. 

Ticket price: £12 plus booking fee.

  

Omid Djalili, "The Good Times Tour", The Stand, Glasgow. Sunday 29th January, 2023

I mentioned to a neighbour that I was going to see Omid and he replied, "Oh, the accents man". This was something unknown to me as, in truth, I wasn't that familiar with Omid's work. My interest had been piqued when I saw he was playing The Stand (always a great venue) with Boothby Graffoe, a rather good, offbeat comedian/musician, in support.  

We arrived at 6.15 pm to join the queue for the 6.30 pm doors open. It was blustery wet outside so unsurprisingly the queue wasn't too long (still within the confines of the building grounds rather than up the street). Ahead of us, one bearded punter, whose haircut consisted of a mop on top, shaved sides and a rat's tail, was filling the air with unnecessary expletives. I said an internal prayer that he would not sit near us, which fell on deaf ears. Who knew God wasn't a mind reader? 

The gig was sold out so I was pleased to snag my regular seat, offering a clear view of the stage. No possibility of a tall punter blocking my view (see above).

Once the place filled up, there was standing room only but that didn't stop one female from getting her friend to bring her a barstool so she could sit at the end of my row. She wanted to be near her other friend who had taken the last available table seat. Her joy was short-lived as the soundperson returned and instructed her to move, reminding her she was blocking a route of escape. Her charms fell on deaf ears when she begged him to remain. 

Later, someone else took up position on the steps and was told to move. I love it when the staff enforce the rules with latecomers. It makes standing in the queue in the rain all the more worthwhile. 

I spotted a Middle Eastern punter sitting along the row from us. With his bald head and beard, I had to do a double-take to check it wasn't Omid (it wasn't - the chap was too young). The gentleman then moved to sit at the front, right beside the stage. I wondered if he was a plant for Omid's show (he wasn't - just a fan).   

Boothby was terrific. A seasoned veteran, he loves to wrongfoot his audience with gags out of nowhere (though he did tell the old one about the wife on holiday complaining about the manner in which she'd been told her cat was dead - punchline: 'So your mum was on the roof'). He spotted the Middle Eastern chap and engaged him in some audience banter. It turned out Vaheem was Iranian, worked in the army in logistics ("Which army?" asked BG faux nervously) but was living in East Kilbride. Omid later cleverly incorporated him into several gags, giving him a fist bump in thanks. 

The beardy bloke with the rat's tail ended up so drunk he failed to understand Omid wasn't talking directly to him and started replying in a loud but unintelligible manner. Thankfully, Omid didn't engage and the beardy bloke settled down allowing the night to continue smoothly.

Omid has a great charm even if his material is just okay. He is engaging and amusing and even used his platform to raise awareness of the current plight of Iranian women, finding some humour in a serious subject. He also told a gag about football chants that Mark Thomas had used albeit tagging it to a different team. His proper act did get some big laughs but overall I'd agree it was the Good Times Tour as opposed to the Not Bad Times Tour or the Seriously Great Times Tour. His accents are incredible, however.

Ticket price £22 plus booking fee.