NINE BELOW ZERO
A great evening from a true-great live act.
Currently on a tour, and celebrating 45 years since the release of their iconic debut album 'Live From The Marquee', South London R'nB rock outfit Nine Below Zero returned to the UK, following a series of dates in France. They are at Norwich's Waterfront Studio on a cold Friday night, only to find that fellow British punk-rock-blues artist His Lordship is playing on the same night at Norwich Arts Centre. It might help explain why the upstairs Studio venue is not sold-out, but those who have nailed their colours to the NBZ mast are a a loyal crowd, and they enthusiastically welcome the band on stage for the first half of their two-set show.
With founder members Dennis Greaves (guitar and vocals) and Mark Feltham (harmonica and vocals) still in the line-up, Dennis' son Sonny on drums now injects a brand new generation of Nine Below Zero DNA into the band. And so, with Anthony Harty on bass completing the quartet, the band begin the evening with a driving up-tempo version of the old Canned Heat song, 'On The Road Again'.
This is my first time seeing Nine Below Zero live, and I am here partly because a fellow Outline reviewer (who is a big fan) is unable to attend, but I am straight away impressed by the intuitive playing, and almost telepathic connection, that exists between Dennis Greaves and Mark Feltham. Harty on bass is solid and reliable, and young Sonny on drums is excellent, both technically and interpretatively. This cohesiveness becomes even more evident when, after playing an old BB King song and a version of Muddy Waters' 'I'm Ready', the band launch into an harmonica-led instrumental jam that kicks off with the Old Grey Whistle Test theme tune (Stone Fox Chase by Area Code 615), meanders seamlessly into The Champs' 'Tequila' and eventually turns into Deep Purple's 'Smoke On The Water'.
Covers of sixties soul standard 'Sonny', and the lively 'Rockin' Robin' follow, the latter giving Mark and Sonny an excuse for a most impressive harmonica and drums virtuosic spin-off session. A Marvin Gaye song and a super-slow and soulful version of Lightning Hopkins' 'Last Night I Lost The Best Friend I Ever Had' steer the first half to a conclusion, but not before closing with a heartfelt song written by Greaves for his wife Helen, entitled 'A Little Understanding'.
In the second half we get to hear some of those classic songs from 'Live At The Marquee', songs that truly cemented Nine Below Zero's reputation as a legendary British r'n'b band. 'Riding On The Line' is preceded by a harmonica solo of Strauss' Blue Danube Waltz which, in turn, morphs into the Match of The Day theme (and also prompts a prediction from Dennis about the next Norwich-Millwall football score); 'Pack Fair and Square' and 'Wooly Bully' keep the audience well onside; and 'I Can't Do My Homework Any More' reminds me what a great band Fleetwood Mac were back in the days of Peter Green. The second set concludes with 'Got My Mojo Working' and 'Watch Yourself'.
We shout for, and receive, an encore and, after being wrong-footed by a cheeky little 'Whole Lotta Love' Led Zeppelin riff, Nine Below Zero deliver their own monster of a hit 'Eleven Plus Eleven' (the song that memorably featured in the band's live appearance in 'Demolition', the very first episode of 'The Young Ones', first broadcast back in November 1982), and they close with another 80's classic 'Three Times Enough'.
It was a night intended to celebrate 45 years of the band's live r'n'b classic album, but additionally for me, it ended a 43 year wait to hear Eleven Plus Eleven performed live. A great evening from a true-great live act.
And, yes, there was ice on the car when I got back to it.
