It was Alabama 3’s turn last night to fill The Tramshed full of funk and bass and they didn’t disappoint. Getting straight into it with Tranquilize Yourself Britannia, the harmonica build up from the talented Nick Reynolds was captivating and caught everyone’s attention in a packed-out venue.
And then it was time for the frontman himself to take the stage. Dressed in his traditional cowboy hat and jet-black glasses combo Larry Love made his entrance and the crowd went wild. A quick hello, swig of his can and he got straight on with it.
Performing a lot of their music from their latest album Step 13, with an altered addition of Whacked while naming South Wales place names in the build-up, I must admit I was quite impressed not only with his diverse vocals but that he had done his homework on where he was performing. (It wasn’t until after the gig that I realised that he was a Caerphilly boy all along!)
Being a huge fan of the hit series Soprano’s, I was very eager to hear Woke Up live but was caught off guard with it being played so early in the set that I was intrigued to know what’s coming after that, and boy did they deliver with my favourite song of the evening Have You Seen Bruce Richard Reynolds, a song that Larry gave way to Nick to perform which is all about the 1963 Great Railway Robbery where over £2 million was taken. A great combination of storytelling lyrics with a sensational harmonica chorus.
I was just about ready to throw the coat on and rush to the nearest kebab house when they left the stage, but my gut told me they were not done yet and to no surprise, they came back to the stage to perform Too Sick to Pay and Road Goes On to a very satisfied crowd.
Jonathan Woolway