Billy Cobham’s Time Machine @ Cheltenham Town Hall - May 3

Billy Cobham (drums); Gary Husband (keyboards) Rocco Zifarelli (guitar); Victor Cisternas (bass); Bjorn Arko (saxophones, EWI), Antonio Baldino (trumpet);  Andrea Andreoli (trombone)

Billy shuffles slowly on to the stage, assisted, he climbs up slowly onto the drum riser. He’s 80 this week and has recently had hip operations. Some things, however, cannot hold a good man down. His thumbs up acknowledged by the rest of the band and he counts us in. Time falls away for Mr Cobham as he begins the first of many rampages around the drum kit accompanied by a popping bass and a big brass sound. There’s a bit of squelching keys, deep roaming sax; Cobham plays like a man who knows he has only an hour plus change to impress us; he’s all over the kit. There’s a lovely bit of fret shredding guitar wailing. This is a hot, tight band and the forceful funk of Times of My Life suits them down to the ground.

A full band wall of sound opens the next piece, a slab of ‘70s' soul/funk. The bass solo dances, sings, ties itself up in knots before the trumpet and trombone try to blow the roof off and it’s onto the sax before the baton is passed back, up and down the line. Zifarelli’s guitar punches and rolls out a field full of notes; everything at a furious pace. At the back, Cobham’s fills develop into a full solo.

Total Eclipse is smooth and mellow prog-jazz that settles into a solid groove; Arko solos on the EWI. It’s all knotty prog riffs, changing rhythms and time signatures before it mellows back into a beachside groove behind a ringing guitar solo. A short piano piece from Husband falls away before Cobham counts them into the next piece with the guitar leading in and the brass responding. It’s the sort of music that was always over-produced in the 70s and 80s but glows when played live. A sparkling sax solo leads to a reply from the guitarist. Cobham takes it all down and back into the opening riff and the others stand back for his solo. A rattling snare and then his mallets on the tom-toms play an ominous dance. As the snare comes back there’s a large suggestion of proper R ‘n' B in there. Some thunder in the bass drums, it’s really swinging as well. There’s some high stepping funk splashed over with colour from the cymbals. The steam train slows and then it all explodes again; it’s the biggest, most soulful sound of the day. Husband’s keyboard solo is all punches jabs and leads into a duel with Cobham’s drums, each firing the other on. The sax wails though another solo that builds and builds with bass and drums adding energy and heaving it all forward. A guitar solo of shards and splinters, of frantic scrappling fury. His long blues notes scythe through the hall; Cobham’s rapid fire drumming is hammering over everything.

We are invited to clap along as Tinseltown opens. A bit of punching bass then it’s all in. It’s big, Hollywood, soul with the tenor adding the glamour of street life; the bass is chuckling and fly stepping like Ali. A final display of bottom of the fretboard fireworks as Cobham fills in with shuffles and rimshots.

Quite outstanding; three gigs into the Festival for us and I think we have a winner. Dave Sayer