Son Of Man played the Boom Boom Club in Sutton on 1 November. It was my first sight of the band in the flesh and this is what I thought...they are most definitely not a Man Tribute Band. Man could be heavy, but with a certain lightness of touch...I'm thinking especially of the way certain songs ebbed and flowed, Terry's crisp drum fills, Phil's twinkly bits...and of course Micky. Son Of Man play far more muscular versions and the two really can't be compared. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying they should sound like ye heritage Man Band, they should do their own interpretations - and they went down very well in front of nearly 100 people.
They started with Clint's 'Love Your Life'. As a case in point, it was revised to exclude the quiet noodly guitar near the end and instead went straight into the last solo. This was followed by 'Talk About A Morning' which was probably the most successful song of the night as it seemed to suit this band. 'Back Together Again' was next, again successfully. 'Hard Way To Die' for me seemed tenuous - I kept thinking of how the old band would do it then reminded myself I wasn't seeing the old band. There's that high harmony to be reached....
'All Alone' was the most recent Man song and segued into a lengthy 'C'Mon'. By now the crowd were really enthusiastic, but for me the moment was lost slightly during the next few songs, perhaps because they were less well known - 'Guiding Hand' dates from an early version of SOM...it's good but not as good. 'Otherside' was a new one on me. They then tackled Neil Young's 'Ohio' which Sassafras had covered - in case you hadn't realised, SOM includes 3 members of Sassafras. This was followed by 'Quasimodo' another early SOM track.
With a final flourish, enthusiasm levels returned for 'Call Down The Moon'. At this point I should mention one of my concerns. I felt that by having a lead vocalist could lead to the issue of 'what does the vocalist do when all the solos start' syndrome. I eat my hat on this one as Richie looked engaged throughout....during George's solo before the last verse he nipped out for a beer, running back on stage just in time to sing. It was hilarious, that man's got style. 'Romain' was included, but not the nice bit at the end. Mind you, when Glenn hit the intro chords I thought it was ZZ Top's 'Tush'.... 'Bananas' featured the complete failure of Ray' bass during the keyboard solo. He swapped basses, prodded his amp....in the end a new lead was required. All that gear and a bit of dry solder knackers it. He was otherwise a big plus point, solid and groovy all at once. The song included a drum solo which curiously I enjoyed, finally 'Spunk Rock' with support act Mark Pontin joining in.
It was recorded, I will be curious to hear it (obviously) as the sound varied depending on where you were. I was taking pictures and moving around...when I was to the side and behind them I could tell the on-stage sound was superior to the over-amplified muggy middlyness we were getting out front. If this recording was taken off the desk (as opposed to an audience recording) then it should be a lot clearer.
So a successful gig, see what you think when they play near you.
