Wishbone Ash - Plymouth Review

It has been nice over the past couple of weekends to get to some shows more locally. Travelling is fun, but it can often be tiring - and if I looked back and worked out how much of my free time I have spent sitting on trains it would probably be quite shocking. I cannot see myself slowing down, though, especially as I already have quite a lot planned for next year - but I certainly would not say no to having a few more local options. As such, any band that makes the effort to come down to the South West should be rewarded - especially those that come all the way to Plymouth. For a city of Plymouth's size, it has punched well below its weight for many years when it comes to live music. The lack of motorway connections and an airport likely does not help - but Plymouth often used to do pretty well, with bands regularly still making their way down here until around the mid-2000s. The Plymouth Arena, which is criminally underused by touring bands, was actually busy when it opened in the 1990s - but is now, largely, just a place for comedians and spoken word-type events. I will be seeing the latest tour of Jeff Wayne's The War of the Worlds there next week, which I likely will not cover here as it will not be a gig in the traditional sense, but it will only be my second visit there of the year - which is likely far fewer times than if I lived near a venue of an equivalent size elsewhere. People are trying in Plymouth, though. There are attempts to restore and reopen two of the city's old cinemas, partly as music venues, and The Depo seems to be upping its game when it comes to live music - having largely operated as a nightclub up to this point. Additionally, and whilst it has not taken the city by storm, The Quad Theatre at Marjon is also trying to do its bit. Again, it largely seems to be the home of comedians - but a handful of bands have taken to its stage over the past couple of years. I first went to the university venue around this time last year, when I caught the Graham Bonnet Band playing to a fairly healthy crowd. Whilst possibly not the most ideal late night venue given that it is out of time and essentially needs to be driven to, The Quad Theatre has the potential to become a decent fixture of the city's live music scene. The overall facilities seem pretty good - and a mixture of standing and seating areas can be configured differently depending on the needs of the night. I made my second visit to the venue last night, as the legendary British rockers Wishbone Ash brought their latest lengthy UK tour to a close in the city. In recent times, Plymouth has not been a regular haunt for Wishbone Ash. I remember them playing at The Hub around a decade ago, which I should have gone to really, but generally their South West venue of choice has been the Phoenix in Exeter. I have been a casual fan of Wishbone Ash for many years, but last night was my first time seeing them properly. I definitely saw a couple of songs of their set at one of the Cambridge Rock Festivals many years ago, but I did not stick around for whatever reason - and over the past few years I have become more of a fan. I caught former member Martin Turner live in Tavistock a few years ago, whom I enjoyed, and I had been wanting to see the band live since - but I did not consider myself enough of a fan to travel to Exeter. When I saw that a Plymouth date was included this year, though, I snapped up a ticket - and started to try and better familiarise myself with the band's lengthy catalogue.

Given the apparent format of the rest of the tour, I was expecting an early start and an early finish - which would have been welcome before a busy weekend. That was not to be the case, though, as the Plymouth show included a support act - with the local Bad Knees Blues Band playing a few numbers before Wishbone Ash took to the stage. I have made it clear over the years that the blues is not my favourite genre. I have become much more appreciative of it over the years, but one of the reasons that I have often struggled with it is that it tends to be the go-to of essentially every average pub band going. As much as I used to enjoy the aforementioned Cambridge Rock Festivals, they were prone to including a few too many pub-level blues bands on their bills - so bands like the Bad Knees Blues Band I have experienced many times over. They certainly were not awful, but I was not expecting them to be there - and I just did not need to sit through half an hour or so of pretty average blues before Wishbone Ash's set. Some of the guitar playing was pretty good, especially the slide work, but vocally I thought the band were quite weak - and they were a bit sloppy at times, too, especially the drummer. It did not help that they were all crammed together at one side of the stage, as it looked like they were constantly getting in each other's way - which made me think that they were certainly an afterthought and nothing to do with Wishbone Ash. The promoter had likely insisted on a support act, and given that someone (who maybe even was the promoter) awkwardly took to the stage to introduce both them and Wishbone Ash, and tried and sell more tickets to a Dr. Feelgood show miles away in Wiltshire next year which also featured the Bad Knees Blues Band, I imagine they were told to stay away from any of the main band's gear and get off as quickly as possible. They seemed an unnecessary addition to a show that had seemingly not had a support act on its other tour stops - and the decent-sized crowd did not seem all that enthused, either, with only fairly muted applause offered throughout.

Thankfully, it was not too long before Wishbone Ash took to the stage to show everyone how it should be done. The band do have a bluesy edge sometimes, but Wishbone Ash's sound encompasses a lot of different styles - which is likely why they never made it bigger, given they were pretty consistent line-up and release-wise in the 1970s during their heyday. Only Andy Powell (vocals/guitar) remains from those days, though, and he is 76 now - but Bob Skeat (bass guitar/vocals) has been in the band for almost 30 years at this point; whilst new drummer Windsor McGilvray only joined this year. Many musicians have come and gone from Wishbone Ash over the years, but the current line-up delivered last night - playing a 13-song set that touched on a number of different eras. Knowing that most of those who go and see them will have done so many times, Wishbone Ash seem to shake things up between tours - pulling out different deep cuts to play alongside some more famous songs. The 1980s instrumental In the Skin kicked things off, with Powell and fellow guitarist Mark Abrahams trading bluesy and fluid guitar leads and solos back and forth - with the latter also including plenty of slide in his playing. It was an upbeat and intricate way to kick things off, before the somewhat more well-known You See Red was the first vocal-led song of the night. Vocally, the band are not the strongest these days - but then again they never had a Robert Plant nor an Ian Gillan in their ranks. Turner was likely the strongest, but Powell now does a decent job - helped out by Skeat and McGilvray harmonising with him. The focus throughout the night was on Powell and Abrahams' guitar playing, though, with most of the songs stretched out to include additional soloing and jamming. This was certainly the case with the late 1970s title track Front Page News, which was a real feast of guitar soloing, but perhaps the highlight of the set's first set was a suite of songs from 1972's Argus - a truly classic album. Personal favourite The King Will Come kicked off the three-song suite, with Abraham's nailing the classic lead guitar melodies and lengthy solo - before a more plaintive Throw Down the Sword allowed for a bit more of a laid back feel. This section was closed out by Sometime World, a song which showcased the band's somewhat progressive leanings from the 1970s - with some wordless vocal melodies that the crowd helped out with. The crowd was certainly not boisterous, given it was an all-seated gig, but there were clearly a lot of long-time fans in attendance  - and there was a good vibe in the room throughout. Dispelling with the mid-set break that the band have been taking throughout the tour, it was then time for some deeper cuts from relatively more recent times. Both the poppier Enigma and a stretched out version of In Crisis came from the 2000s - but perhaps the highlight of this section was the lengthy Tales of the Wise, with its delicate vocals and lengthy guitar showcases. Some of the best twin guitar harmonies came during this song, with both Powell and Abrahams getting plenty of time to showcase their playing. It was the last deep cut of the night, too, with the songs that followed all being pretty well-known. One last trip was taken to Argus for the bouncy single Blowin' Free, before a gargantuan Phoenix rounded out the main set - with plenty more guitar soloing and even a bit of a drum showcase for McGilvray. There was time for one more, though, with the chugging, boogie blues rock of Jail Bait allowing for a bit of a rock out before the night came to a close. The setlist was:

In the Skin

You See Red

Front Page News

Lifeline

The King Will Come

Thrown Down the Sword

Sometime World

Enigma

In Crisis

Tales of the Wise

Blowin' Free

Phoenix

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Jail Bait

Given how long I have been aware of Wishbone Ash, it seems to fitting to have finally seen them live properly. They will never be one of my favourite bands, but I like quite a lot of what they have put out over the years - and it is great that they remain a busy live act. They have their place in rock history for a reason, and a decent-sized Plymouth crowd saw last night that, even so many years after their heyday, they can still deliver.