CASH BAND - LONDON
Payin' respect to the Man in Black
IAC 20th December 2024
What a terrific night at the International Arts Centre last night watching CASH BAND (London) - Payin' respect to the Man in Black... they delivered a full on 90 minutes of Johnny's classic material with an exceptional authenticity and energy and had the enthusiastic audience whoopin' and hollerin' from the off.
The set started with the band playing the familiar licks, with Nick Whitfield in sparkling form in the Luther Perkins lead guitar roll along with an upright slap bass player and drummer (i didn't catch their names) but all three are exceptional musicians and playing brilliantly, keeping up the energy and drive from the first bar to the last.
After a minute or so "Johnny" took the stage to an ovation...immediately disappeared and came back to another ovation while the band continued playing their introduction.
The man looks not unlike Johnny, has his gestures and movement perfectly, and when he cracked into the first song, which if memory serves was "Big River", he had the voice and delivery spot on.
The whole set was Cash classics... every song and introduction cheered and everyone familiar and loved, so it is difficult to recall the sequence!!... With a tribute act, payin respect to a man with such a legacy, it must be hard to select just 90 minutes of material, but i couldn't pick one song that i would have replaced... beautifully selected set.
The music covered a wide range... early on the train songs like "Rock Island Line" and "Wreck of the 97" then running through a a wide range of classic material, including Kris' "Sunday Morning Coming Down" and Jerry Shirleys "Greystone Prison", which i believe was written by a Folsom inmate and debuted on that concert.
A few songs into the set "June" joined the band and proved to be a great singer with a lovely voice, and a permanent smile...
June sang lead on some songs, duetted with Johnny on some and added harmonies.
The classics were there... "Folsom Prison Blues" "San Quentin" "One Piece at a Time" "Give my Love to Rose" "I Walk the Line"... after taking a break June reappeared and with Johnny delivered a mighty version of "Jackson" before the band moved into the final numbers... leaving the crowd whoopin and calling for more... Given the set list, and a couple of omissions, I think we all knew what the encores would be... "Boy named Sue" and "Ring of Fire" .. as the introduction to "Ring of Fire" sounded, the whoopin grew louder and the bulk of the audience took to it's feet and danced joyfully.... leading to a standing ovation when they finished.
This was more than a concert... this was truly payin' respect to the Man in Black... a hugely uplifting joyful party of a gig... high energy from the off, brilliant musicianship and singing throughout and superb rapport on stage and with the enthusiastic audience.
Totally uplifting show... superb... i along with the whole crowd, loved every moment of it... a definite highlight for the year
Keep music live... keep music real... support your local venues
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