Bolaji Blues
Band / Storm Warning
The Limelight Theatre,
Friday 17.1.2017
The long
awaited Storm Warning album has finally hit the streets after a long incubation
of over two years allowing some new additions to their set which we were to
enjoy later in the evening.
However, first
up was The Bolaji Blues Band, their first appearance
since reforming after a four-year gap and unsurprisingly they seemed slightly
nervous at the start. They soon relaxed, and played an all-to-short, but
accomplished set of well chosen blues classics. Songs like Bessie Smith's 'Gin
House' and B. B. King's 'Rock Me Baby' showcased the superb blues voice of Dave
Lowrance, while Eric Clapton's 'Old Love' and The Allman Brothers' 'Ramblin' Man'
allowed the gentle guitar style of Dan Smith to wash over us. Keeping things ticking over nicely were bassist Ken Redding, new
band member Steve Dunkley on drums and Storm Warning's Ian Salisbury guesting on keyboards. It was all over too soon.
With the crowd calling for more, the band had to leave the stage with no
further songs fully rehearsed to allow an encore. Hopefully that will change
soon.
A season of
'Blues nights at the Limelight' would not be complete without an appearance
from local band Storm Warning: Stuart 'Son' Maxwell (harmonica/vocals), Bob
Moore (guitar), Derek White (bass), Ian Salisbury (keys) and Russ Chaney
(drums). The set however did not start well. A faulty lead resulted in a
staccato delivery of Hendrix's 'Stone Free', reminiscent of Norman Collier.
Maxwell has an excellent rapport with the audience, which makes for an
entertaining show, and his suggestion that if it was good enough for Metallica
at The Grammys, then it was good enough for Storm Warning at The Limelight went
down well with the audience.
After the
required cable replacement the evening progressed much more smoothly as they
launched into 'The Woman Or The Blues', taken from
their first album. The set continued with a mix of their own material and a
selection of covers, many taken from the long awaited new album; 'Take Cover'.
A rendition of
Bob Dylan's Maggie's Farm, followed by Storm Warning's own 'Lonely Guy' led us
to one of the highlight songs of the night; Otis Rush's 'Double Trouble' which
brought the fluid guitar style of Moore to the fore, aided by Salisbury's free
flowing keyboard. By this point Maxwell, who had originally appeared on-stage
sporting interesting headgear, namely a beanie, realised it had been a bad
choice under the hot lights and happily discarded it. Things were warming up!
After a tale
of how Stuart Maxwell's harmonicas had recently been mistaken for bullets at an
airport, they were then put to good use during a song called 'Bullets', a
staple of Storm Warning gigs, and for good reason with its catchy riff. Stevie
Ray Vaughan's 'Crossfire' brought a return to the covers and allowed Bob Moore
to get down to some superb guitar work. Led Zeppelin's Custard Pie followed.
This did not come across particularly well; it was neither a completely
different interpretation nor a fine copy. Perhaps this recent addition to their
set needs a bit more polish. A return to form quickly followed when the band
delved into the blues archives and served up a stunning 'Five Long Years', a
John Lee Hooker classic. The set was wrapped up with a new cover, Alex Harvey's
'Swampsnake', an interesting choice.
This band has
been together for a long time and it shows in the tight, slick performance that
they always deliver, equipment problems aside. On this
occasion Stuart Maxwell's vocals came across rather harsh, possibly a side
effect of the hasty equipment changes at the start. The choice of music for the
night provided a mix of styles, which the audience loved. The obligatory encore
called for by the partisan crowd was 'Hoochie Coochie Man' it was delivered with style to wrap up an
enjoyable evening.
Words: Bronwen
Harvey
Photo: Laurence Harvey