Tonight was a tough call. did I go to the Chilli for the regular Wednesday night with Dave and the guys? Did I go to The Cluny for guitar hero Allan Holdsworth? Or did I go to Newcastle College for the Gerry Richardson Trio?In the end I opted for the latter and it was a wise choice; TWO guitar heroes in the form of the Rod Sinclair/Jim Birkett Duo. Rod and Jim played a fine acoustic opening set that included material from Eddie Lang to Pat Metheny via Django Reinhardt. In particular, Albert Harris' "Dedications" hit the spot.
Rod stayed on for the next set thus making the trio a quartet - Gary Linsley (alto), Gerry Richardson (Hammond/vocals) and Paul Smith (dms) completing the line up.
This was a rocking blues set with Gerry playing out of his skull on the Billy Preston composition "Mission Statement" that had the B3 smokin'! His vocal on Gil Scott-Heren's "Lady Day and John Coltrane" didn't take any prisoners either.
The final set brought Jim Birkett off the bench for some kickass funk/soul that was greeted enthusiastically by the predominantly student audience.
"Ornithology" began with a rather unusual rhythm but once into the normal groove moved along a bit.
Rod and Jim both had a good blast on a Freddy King rocker whilst, through it all, Gary Linsley kept his cool and soloed effectively and tastefully.
Paul Smith, always an impressive drummer, ensured things swang.
A good night and it was free!
NOTE: The gig at the college by Gerry Richardson's Big Idea, scheduled for Thursday 30 Oct is now on Monday 10 Nov and entrance is £7 (£3.50 conc.).
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