Although relieved that at last we were getting a decent helping of Ian McNabb playing live, we were initially a bit puzzled by the choice of venue as we are, by now, used to the more cheap and nasty places around Brum where Ian has more traditionally played in the past.
However, I am happy to report that the occasion was one of the best McNabb gigs I've had the pleasure to attend, after having got over the initial shock of the ticket prices and the bar bills!
We arrived early to ensure a good view. As it happened, we were first in there and we were shown to a clothed table right at the front of what is quite a small and intimate room. It was just so unlike any other venue we'd ever been to - sitting down at an Ian McNabb concert for God's sake - what the hell's he thinking of?
First of all, we had to wait till around nine o'clock for the resident jazz combo to appear on stage. They ambled through their set (which I'm sure would have been a lot more appreciated if they'd had a room full of jazz fans and not a load of McNabb fans). They disappeared at 9.45pm and we were, by then, dying with anticipation waiting for the man himself to come on at 10pm.
Much applauding.... obviously quite a few of us loyal ones in there.. but at first the gathering was a bit subdued it seemed (probably due to the warnings on the tables about excess noise from patrons and the threat of removal!). A meek "we're not worthy" was heard as the welcome died down, to which Ian replied "You're right .... you're not."
He opened with two new, typically McNabbesque songs, each telling a long and melodious story. Both were instantly likeable. During the first he stopped and told some annoying "non-followers" that he was trying to do a gig here and if they wanted to talk they should go somewhere else. Quite right, don't they realise this is our musical hero?
From then on in it was a complete about turn to the more traditional stuff. In fact, it was the first time that I've seen Ian doing old Icicle Works stuff without seeming a bit "reluctant." He really let rip and did all the old favourites like "Hollow Horse," "Understanding Jane," "Love is a Wonderful Colour," etc., interspersed with some more of his solo stuff.
He alternated between his acoustic and that much envied Deluxe Gibson Les Paul (which he took delight in telling us "you would not believe how much this guitar cost"- -as if we're not all green enough with envy). His voice seemed to be better than ever and the excellent speaker system at Ronnie's was a perfect platform for the man alone with his beloved guitars.
Faced with a list of something like 50 songs on the play list, he said he was having a hard time choosing. "Play 'em all," I interjected. No doubt we would all gladly have sat through them...twice.
Apart from the obvious draw back of having to sit still when listening to those brilliant classics, I think the atmosphere was a lot better and it seemed to rub off on Ian himself as he adopted a much more relaxed demeanour and was happy to crack jokes and interact with the various calls and comments from the audience.
Reluctantly we let him go off at 11pm, assured by the the promise of more to come later. Whilst waiting, we were treated to the amazing vocal talents of a girl called Carina Round. She was an odd mix of obvious talent, nervousness and a very dry sense of humour which actually managed to get most of us through to the next dose of Ian McNabb at midnight.
During the break, I managed to 'nabb' the guy himself on his way to the bar and asked him if I could have his plectrum when he'd finished. "Yeah," he said and disappeared. I must admit I was 100% smug when he came back from the bar and, passing by, asked "what was it you wanted, my pleck?" and he went and fetched it off the stage for me. (I have tried it out on my own guitar but, alas, still shite!). My three companions were utterly gob-smacked and all shook Ian's hand with murmurs of "I'll never wash this hand again..."
And so to the second set. Once again a mixture of electric and acoustic numbers, most of which were from his solo albums. We had the unedited version of "Merseybeast," which was a nice added bonus. The "musical friends" promised on the RS promo failed to materialize, the only accompaniment being his good "musical pal" on the Roland synth to "You Stone My Soul" and again for a few of the later encore numbers.
We were also treated to a wonderful rendition of "Little Bit of Magic" played by Ian on the piano. Gee, what a talented guy he is!
No way were we going to let him escape with an "early night" and he got the usual uproar for a first encore during which he did a perfect performance of "Cortez the Killer." He did two other numbers and then tried to escape again. I don't think "resident jazz combo compare type guy" expected him to come back but we were prepared to dream and, sure enough, our determination paid off as back he came and finished on a high with "Magic Bus." Woohoo!
And then, sadly, he went off slowly down the stairs, guitar still in hand playing and softly singing "goodbye" with each step like some bizarre Andy Pandy type of ending. Time to go home......
The house lights went up and then we realised it was finally over. But no complaints, it was 1.30am by then. So off home we all trotted with all those classics still ringing in our ears, happy to look forward to the next tour......