For the second time this year I walked in over halfway through the HUNGRY DOG BRAND'S set. This time Martin was solo on acoustic guitar and of the two songs I heard all of (Over the Wall) was by far the most memorable. It left me wondering if it was the same Over The Wall that David Bowie had a hand in writing in the early 70's, but it's so long since I heard that I'm not sure. Either way Hungry Dog Martin told his story well. He then did a song about Waiting To Die that was full of poignant reflections on being terminal but I'm not sure what with. With a bit of luck next time I see the Hungry Dog Brand I'll manage to catch a full set.
Tonight is all about TAURUS TRAKKER as this is the launch night for there excellent Building Ten album out now on Gem Like Records. They launched it in front of a fairly packed 12 Bar Club whose audience contained a musical legend or two from unlikely places. They opened with a great version of the title track from the LP: a song that always leaves me wondering exactly where Martin was working that had ten buildings and such stuff happening in it. After a quick "Hello" they were into 21 Miles To A Water Pump - a song I really keep wanting to hear. I love the way he blends the greed of those of us with far more than we actually need against the poor and suffering who have to walk 120 miles to get to a water pump.
We were then taken back from the West End to West London for some West London Rock n Roll. From the crowd reaction, it was just what we needed to be reminded why The Clash and London Cowboys and heaps of others called our patch home. They then did one of the songs from the next album (The Racket You Trust) and it could almost be a theme song and well wouldn't you trust this racket? I certainly would trust it more than the Temporary Tattoo that is there for Life and sounding great with the guitar in places making like the sound of the needles buzzing over your skin.
I think it was on Wild Women in a Small Town that Dave Wright came back on to add his sax to the mix and to duel it out with Martin. Once that was accomplished of course they would be Long gone even if that wasn't the theme of the song of that name that came up next. They were certainly getting the place going and sounding great.
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Before Lucky, Martin was telling a tale about being in Iceland on the Harrow Road. He made it sound almost as edgy as going into the 7 Eleven that used to be a few yards down the road from it. But not quite. Still, his luck might have run out but we got to hear Lucky with the honking sax breaks and some deft bass playing from Chris who I think I called was something else last time sorry...
They finished with a great go at Bag For Life. That is of course about shopping bags (yeah right), no more about the sort of Bag that can give you a life sentence from it's contents and what they might do to you. I love the song and it's been stuck in my head for a while now as have several Taurus Trakker songs.
They came back for an encore of Gambling Blues that Martin says he is happy to be rid of. Still it's a good salutary tale of what happens when your gambling gets out of hand, played out over a rollicking blues riff. All I can say is go and buy the album or see them live a good night out for sure.
As is the way at the 12 bar they often have bands on after the headline act and tonight it was J.D. SMITH who has been scraping his way around the gig circuit for some time. Once I had finished hanging out in the alley and come back into the gig room he was already well on his way, playing some stunning guitar on a very ornate looking acoustic. His downfall is that his vocals don't match the guitar playing which means that after a couple of songs I just want to hear instrumentals or hear him as part of a band singing back up vocals rather than front and centre. I'm not sure if he's ready to give up some of his independance to work in a group which is a pity for such a talented guitarist.
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