Prior to the pandemic Black Star Riders were one of the hardest working acts, seemingly constantly on tour or playing festivals. So it was something of a surprise that this was their first tour since Lockdown, though there have been significant changes in their camp, of which more anon.

As with their previous two headline tours there was a trio of bands, who in their diverse way showcased the primeval power of rock and roll. First up were festival mainstays Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons, who since I saw them last year had shed a guitarist and were down to a four piece.

With only 40 minutes to play with their own material took precedence beginning with the near eponymous ‘We Are The Bastards’ and ‘Bite My Tongue’, though they rattled through the three chord bash of ‘Going To Brazil’ and ‘Born To Raise Hell’ was rendered even more of a gas than usual when a loose-limbed Michael Monroe came on stage for a guest vocal and harmonica slot.

The former Motorhead guitarist, hidden under a baseball cap was content to play a low key role and leave raspy voiced singer Joel Peters to do the rabble rousing including the old ‘divide the crowd down the middle’ audience participation.

Their numbers were basic but enjoyable though in the case of ‘Freak Show’ with a naggingly familiar riff which I later traced to AC/DC’s ‘Girls Got Rhythm’. The slower but doomier ‘Dark Days’ was a welcome change of tempo then Phil, in one of the more unusual father to son greetings, asked people to shout ‘f— you Tyla Campbell’ as the bassist played that unmistakable intro to the only song that could close the set in ‘Ace Of Spades’.

Michael Monroe was a contrasting figure of flamboyance and, with his tousled blonde mane and loose limbed hyperactivity, he seemed barely unchanged from 40 years ago. When not doing the splits or perching king-of-the-castle style on the drumkit, he regularly clambered into the front row.

Many of the songs (‘Ballad Of The Lower East Side’ a case in point) were a joyously chaotic wall of sound like a sleaze version of a Jersey shore band, and though his vocals would not stand too much technical scrutiny, they suited their debauched feel perfectly.

I enjoyed the likes of the title track from current album ‘I Live Too Fast To Die Young’, and ‘Murder The Summer of Love’. However the Hanoi Rocks connection will always be the most beloved and sure enough, ‘Don’t You Ever Leave Me’ took me back to days of 84 when I played to death the session I had taped off the Friday Rock Show, while ‘Malibu Beach Nightmare’ saw him play sax for the only time in the set.

A special mention should go to his band, mostly with artfully coiffed jet black hair and leathers to match, who kept things no frills but impressively solid, and their choreographed moves, complementing without overshadowing their master, leaving me to draw comparisons with Alice Cooper’s backing bands.

‘Dead, Jail or Rock’n’Roll’, with Michael playing harmonica, delighted both casual fans and the fanatics I could spot at the front from my balcony view alike, but there was even time for another trip back to Hanoi’s triumphant and tragic year of 1984 with an authentic cover of ‘Up Around The Bend’. Without particularly considering myself a fan this was a fun 40 minutes of inexhaustible energy that flew by, and for that reason he would be a welcome support act or festival offering for me any time.

Headliners Black Star Riders made a dramatic entrance, coming on stage with backs to the crowd then turning round to a volley of pyrotechnics before plunging straight into gritty new song ‘Pay Dirt’. Here was the first sighting of a new look, four piece band. Though new guitarist Sam Wood with his flowing blond hair and Les Paul looked a little like Scott Gorham in his seventies glory, for now the present day version was absent.

It also marked a final break with the band’s Thin Lizzy origins and other than a brief intro to ‘Another State Of Grace’ with a choreographed pose, the twin lead guitar breaks were also absent.

There was no mistaking the passion and intensity of Ricky Warwick and Sam was playing splendidly, as well as owning the stage with his big smile, but the majority of the opening numbers which were taken from the fine new album ‘Wrong Side Of Paradise’ (including the title track, ‘Better Than Saturday Night’ and ‘Riding Out The Storm’ ) felt rather one- dimensional and actually inferior to the studio versions. The ‘Crazy Horses’ cover, despite bassist Robbie Crane doing a great job on the high vocals, failed to dispel this sense of ordinariness.

That all changed when Scott Gorham made a belated guest appearance half an hour in to play the remainder of the set. A distinguished silver haired figure in a natty waistcoat and patterned trousers, he was given a rather more dramatic billing by Ricky with a series of epithets – the Baron of Putney among others. From the first harmony lead break midway through ‘All Hell Breaks Loose’, my spirits instantly lifted, followed by the buffeting riffs of ‘Bloodshot’ and the ‘Emerald’ redux of ‘Soldierstown’.

The last BSR tour before the pandemic had seen them shed Thin Lizzy oldies entirely but not this time, with Phil Campbell brought on to add to an enjoyable if rather ragged canter through ‘Don’t Believe A Word’. Sam was losing nothing in comparison with his senior partner and indeed on a welcome change of pace both played exquisite individual solos on ‘Blindsided’, almost in a similar vein to Lizzy’s live treatment of ‘Still In Love With You’.

It has to said that other than the odd average number (‘Testify Or Say Goodbye’) the quality of the material in this second half of the set was far superior including ‘The Killer Instinct’, and ‘Tonight The Moonlight Let Me Down’, Michael Monroe having great fun as he made his third appearance of the evening.

They saved the best to last with two of their more Lizzy sounding classics in the Celtic themed romp of ‘Kingdom Of The Lost’, and twin guitar overload of ‘Bound For Glory’.

Ricky then implored everyone to their feet for ‘Jailbreak’, including those in the balconies and from my vertiginous viewpoint at the front of Level 2, I punched the air with one hand and grabbed the guard rail for safety with the other, before they closed with ‘Finest Hour’, a song which I think does what it says in the tin in terms of BSR’s catalogue.

Equally praiseworthy was how this hardest working of bands squeezed 20 songs into a set of just over an hour and a half, devoid of chat and padding.

Indeed it completed an excellent night of no holds barred rock n roll from three contrasting but complementary acts. However, my lasting takeaway was that in trying to bridge the gap between the old BSR and the new post-Scott Gorham era, the set inadvertently only showed how much the band’s quality still depends on his presence and that classic sound.

Review and Photos by Andy Nathan

Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK

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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024

In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections

Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024

09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)