Words and Pictures: Adrian Hextall / (C) MindHex Media
After a protracted period of wrangling over the name of the band, The Quireboys (minus Spike) are now known as Black Eyed Sons and will be releasing an album in January under their new name which means that the band we had the pleasure of watching in Islington was the new look, Spike fronted version with returning partner in crime, Nigel Mogg back where he should be on bass. With Willie (“from The Grip”) Dowling on keys and Thunders own Harry Webb and Luke (“from Terraplane”) Morley on drums and guitar, it was an assured and impressive line up that would saunter onto the stage of the Assembly Hall later in the evening.
Before that however, two supports to take in, the first being Nottingham’s own Continental Lovers.
Continental Lovers
Flying the flag for trashy glam punk, so says their Bandcamp bio. It’s a fair explanation to be honest. Continental Lovers play the same sort of music that we grew up on listening to Dogs D’Amour. One of my colleagues argues “Why do we need that when we still have the Dogs playing live shows?” My answer is simple, because who doesn’t like trashy glam punk, the music is soaked in swagger and the lads from Nottingham, Joe Maddox- Lead Vocals/Guitars, Keri Sinn- Bass Guitar/Background Vocals, Ben Webster- Lead Guitar/Background Vocals, and Ace Carlton- Drums/Background Vocals, for me, made quite the impression. As far as social media went, “new favourite opening act” was mentioned, by me at least. The music had me smiling, grooving and quite simply, just really really enjoying it and being grateful for getting there early enough to see and hear them. A welcome start to the evening for sure.
Willie Dowling & the Invisible Band
Next up, Willie Dowling, the same Willie that plays in the new look Quireboys and as such gets paid twice for each show – a canny move except, according to Willie, he doesn’t get paid enough and certainly not enough to feed his bass player who joined him on stage, looking, I might add, not quite as malnourished as Willie made out. However, the lad had t-shirts to sell so what better way than guilting the punters into sparing a few quid? It definitely worked as by the end of the night, a fair few “Willie Dowling & The Invisible Band” shirts were on display.
Before launching into his set and giving us Islington’s answer to Billy Joel mixed with some of the flamboyance of Reg Dwight, Willie told the crowd, clearly there for the rock n roll excess of Spike and Co. that his set might not be for them. He was however there and living his own dream (an American one I presume Willie?) and asked those of us that didn’t want to live the dream with him to at least be respectful and keep the chatter to a minimum. It’s fair enough.
Stories were told, songs were sung, Uptown Willie put on quite the show and kept the embers in the fireplace glowing readying the crowd in London for a little bit of what we fancied.
Quireboys
New album ‘Wardour Street’ is out now. It’s the perfect return for Spike, helping him put his unceremonious sacking by his former band-mates behind him. His resurgence, reconciliation with old friends and colleagues including Nigel Mogg and the late Guy Bailey have resulted in the new album and it’s the prefect launch pad to restore Spike and the band to their former glories. ‘Wardour Street’, named after the street in London where Spike and the original Quireboys could be found in the late 80s and early 90s on an almost daily basis, usually in The Ship public house, is a triumph over adversity and reminds us just what the band who released ‘A Little Bit of What You Fancy’ could do when they put their heads together.
That the new songs sit so well against the old is testament to the songwriting skills of all concerned but how do they fit into a live set? This is the first tour the 5-piece have undertaken since the album came out and several numbers from the new album thankfully made it into the setlist. Having seen them play at Stonedead Festival in the summer, I had a rough idea what to expect but this was an opportunity to see their show, their headline set without a need to confirm to the old festival principle that states “you must play the hits”.
The hits still came thick and fast but the new look Quireboys are not afraid to take a few risks. ‘Jeez Louise’ from the new album opened the show and was met with the sort of reception reserved for the bigger and more well known numbers. Similarly, ‘Raining Whiskey’, feels like an old friend and when it sits alongside ‘Whippin’ Boy’ and doesn’t feel out of place then you know the boys done good.
The core of the old Quireboys, the ones from ‘back in the day’ was the looseness, the swagger and yes, the booze soaked approach where Spike, as we know, was always one pint ahead of everyone and we just tried to keep up. The band of today, the one we now see touring round the country, is a little more cautious, a little more clinical. Yes our boy still has a pint in his hand, his voice as powerful as ever and with Nigel Mogg back on board, a live show is like watching Mick Jagger and Keith Richards performing together. Every good band needs those two musicians that can just play off each other and with Nigel on board, Quireboys 2024 has that.
Tracks like ‘You and I’ show us just how much life the old dogs have in them still and it bodes well for the future in terms of both songwriting and live performances. There is an element that feels more Thunder-y than Quireboys-y but with Luke and Harry in tow and Luke running proceedings to help keep Spike on the straight and narrow, the old school hazy swagger is somewhat missing in favour of a little more of a clinical approach. However, there are early days for the new line up and if Luke and Harry can relax a bit and blend in with the Quireboys vibe then all will be well.
For now though, this is a welcome and exciting return and with the voice that has to be front and centre, long may it continue.
SETLIST:
Jeeze Louise
Can’t Park Here
Misled
Sweet Mary Ann
Raining Whiskey
Whippin’ Boy
Tramps and Thieves
Hey You
You and I
I Think I Got It Wrong Again
King of New York
Happy
There She Goes Again
Roses & Rings
Encore:
Like It or Not
I Don’t Love You Anymore
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