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If you invited your better half to spend St. Valentine’s night at London’s 100 Club, the chances are your relationship could soon be in trouble.
Imagine my surprise then to discover a fair sprinkling of women as part of an enthusiastic crowd for the splendidly titled Andy Sharrocks & The Incurable Romantics London showcase.
The Mancunian UK Americana singer-songwriter has worked with the likes of Mick Taylor, Paul Jones and Bobby Vee’s sons, as well as road managing the stars.
His solo career can be traced all the way back to the punk injected, crusty and hippy years of the late 70’s, when he was an integral member of Accident On The East Lancs.
Significantly his occasional snarled phrasing and fellow guitarist Danny Bourassa’s shared on-stage intensity fleetingly evokes that spiky era, but it’s counterweighted by a feel good vibe is which is grounded in well crafted old school sensibilities.
The graveyard shift is filled by Calm Carl Chamberlain an animated poet who doubles as tonight’s MC’s. His rapid fire and mellifluous rhymes connect well with the early comers and set an optimistic tone for the night.
The languid and very tall figure of Pete Kosanovitch follows. His catalogue of short acoustic songs with just the occasional touch of harp take their time to make their mark, but once he finds his range and tuning he impresses us.
‘Love Is Rare’ has an annoyingly familiar melody, and ‘Shadows of the Night’ is a fragile love song and title track of his album.
In sharp contrast, ‘They Are For Real’ is a sweeping waltz time song with harp, which is remarkable for the fact that people are actually listening, very old school!
The middle section of the evening features East Of Reno, who boast a member of The Hoosiers and are a feverish high octane blur of roots rocking goodness.
And so to Andy Sharrocks, who headlines an event he bravely promotes himself in an attempt to market a triple vinyl album, by playing the highlights of his opus.
He takes the stage like a man on a mission, opening with ‘Little Boogaloo’, a slice of Americana injected rock and roll and a manifesto for the evening as a whole.
The darkly titled ‘Crash & Burn’ is quite the opposite and sounds like a snarling Ian Hunter, while the equally doomy theme of ‘Dead Man Walking’ is surprisingly imbued with jangly guitars and features a Beefheart style growl.
‘Freeport Town’ is one of several highlights and benefits from a sharp hook, which means even if you don’t know the lyrics you find yourself singing along.
His set is interwoven with purpose, bluster and spontaneity, as exemplified by a sudden extra slide guitarist who dutifully solo’s and then disappeared into the ranks.
‘What Did You Say’ is a beguiling duet with Michelle Turnbull and is an even better than the album version, mainly because the ‘call and response’ section works so well live.
Best of all is his album title track ‘Country, Rock & Roll N’ Durty Blues’ which is an excellent example of his UK Americana crossover style.
Sharrocks writes heartfelt original songs and backs them up with engaging intros which invites us into his wry exploration of modern life.
‘Work Work Work’ for example, gets an empathetic response from an enthusiastic crowd, who quickly warm to the Stones ‘Exile of Main Street’ vibe.
The fact that he also successfully pulls off a sonorous Tom Waits influenced ‘Old Leather Coat’ confirms his impact.
He sensibly alternates more introspective tunes with full band workouts, on which fellow guitarist Danny Bourassa revels in a dervish like presence.
There’s a priceless moment when Andy is stopped in his tracks while introducing the next song, simply because of the volume of the crowd’s appreciation for his previous song.
He regains his composure and slips back in the groove with the riff-led ‘Where’s All The Love Gone’ and more tales from his roots rocking triple set.
St. Valentines Night never sounded so good.
Review by Pete Feenstra
Featured Artist: JOSH TAERK
Since early 2020 Josh has been entertaining us with exclusive monthly live sessions, streamed via Facebook.
In 2023 he signed a recording deal with Sony in Canada and released a new single on 15 September.
Latest session: Sunday 14 April
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David Randall presents a weekly show on Get Ready to ROCK! Radio, Sundays at 22:00 GMT, repeated on Mondays and Fridays), when he invites listeners to ‘Assume The Position’. The show signposts forthcoming gigs and tours and latest additions at getreadytorock.com. First broadcast on 14 April 2024.
UK Blues Broadcaster of the Year (2020 and 2021 Finalist) Pete Feenstra presents his weekly Rock & Blues Show on Tuesday at 19:00 GMT as part of a five hour blues rock marathon “Tuesday is Bluesday at GRTR!”. The show is repeated on Wednesdays at 22:00, Fridays at 20:00). This show was first broadcast 9 April 2024.
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Power Plays w/c 29 April 2024
BRIGITTE PURDY Sugar Fried Candy (Dirtshack Records)
ATTIC THEORY The Legacy (indie)
THE HOWLERS I Need Your Love (indie)
VELVETEEN QUEEN Bad Reputation (indie)
WILLS AND THE WILLING Scuffed Knees (Smash & Grab Music Ltd)
READY THE PRINCE Still Believe (indie)
Featured Albums w/c 29 April 2024
09:00-12:00 PRAYING MANTIS Defiance (Frontiers)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2003-2023
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