My first live music gig in over sixteen months. Will the excitement of that milestone compromise my ability to write an objective review? Yup, it certainly will, and I make no apology for that. This was a homecoming, and emotions matter more than mere facts. I think the musicians would agree with that sentiment, for they were clearly overjoyed to be in front of real clapping, cheering, foot-tapping people once again.
Tweeddale is one of the country's best known, and most respected, blues guitarists, making him an ideal man to be the first on stage act of the resurrected EJBF 2021. He was backed by the drums, bass (upright and electric) and keyboards of Willie Mollison, Chris Agnew and Ali Petrie [with apologies to all or any of them whose name I've got wrong, but I've haven't been able to check that I heard them correctly), and joined, after the first number, by Geordie harmonicist and singer Lyndon Anderson.
The tone, once the welcoming noise abated, was set by an audience member shouting out "Do you remember what to do?". The opener provided an emphatic Yes. A solid professional band who love the blues and play it with passion and affection. Sandy has a good strong voice, not the most immediately recognisable perhaps, but one you feel immediately comfortable with. His guitar work is excellent, on his many solos which show plenty of flair, and the intuitive support he provides for others. Anderson took lead vocals on a couple of numbers and it would have been good to hear a bit more. A special mention to Petrie who had some wonderful solos and looked on the verge of bursting with joy at being there.
Mostly they stuck to blues classics, but with a few of Tweeddale's own songs mixed in. Half way through the quintet became duo, and Sandy and Lyndon did a couple of unplugged numbers, including one the former wrote during lockdown called "Ain't Goin' Out No More" - a feeling most of us have had at one time or another in the past year. But the quieter numbers were few and the set got louder and rockier as time went on. The show blurb said there would be no more than sixty minutes. Fortunately Sandy's not too good with those sort of numbers so the encore took us about twenty minutes past that!
This was a socially distanced audience of course, with around fifty people in a space that could easily hold three or four hundred, so the atmosphere wasn't quite what it would once have been. But what a difference to be in the same room as the musicians, to have the volume up high, the clarity of the notes, and be able to focus on the individual musicians you want to watch, not what the director dictates.
It's good to be back.
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