Selecter & The Levellers at UEA
Question; what do you get if you take The Levellers and put them on a tour with The Selecter? Answer; nostalgia, my friends, nostalgia. And also one of the most polarized gathering of fans I’ve ever seen. I went along to see what all the fuss was about, as two very different groups combined forces to draw a sell-out crowd to the UEA on this Saturday night.
Of the two, The Selecter was first up. Now, I made a promise to a friend in attendance at the gig that I wouldn’t make any Levellers-based jokes about dogs on string or crusty jugglers, and I mean to keep that promise, but let’s just say that you could tell who was there to see who, and the excitement from a large section of the crowd made it apparent that a fair share of the audience had come along predominantly for some two-tone action, and they were not disappointed. Billed rightly as ‘special guests’ (to call them a support band would be a mistake) it became abundantly clear from the moment that The Selecter took to the stage that, despite officially calling it a day in 1982, they’d kept their hand in.
With their current line up fronted by original vocalists Pauline Black and Arthur Hendrickson, they stormed through a set of classics including ‘Missing Words’, Three Minute Hero’ and ‘On My Radio’. The energetic performance was impressive to say the least, the crowd lapped it up and everyone was having a great time. If anything, the set was a bit short, but if you were one of those people left wanting more, don’t panic. The Selecter is returning to tour the UK in February and March next year.
After a brief interlude, folk rock legends the Levellers took to the stage, launching straight into a set comprised of classics from their 25 year career. With the timely release of their greatest hits album, the mood was of a crowd eager to celebrate a band that have been somewhat forgotten of late. They were not disappointed as each familiar tune was greeted with cheers of recognition and enthusiasm, usually exploding into sing-along crowd participation.
The Levellers clearly knew their crowd and were happy to provide as the audience were treated to pretty much every Levellers song that they wanted. Later Hits such as Beautiful Day and This Garden sat next to favourites from the first two albums, such as ‘Liberty’, ‘Carry Me’ and, stand out crowd favourite, ‘One Way’. As if this wasn’t enough, the band even threw in their excellent version of ‘The Devil went Down to Georgia’, and just to really put the seal on the evening, provided an encore that included my personal favourite ‘Just the One’. Throw in a great light show and a neon didgeridoo, and it really was a night to remember.
All in all, it was a great night. It was clear that, despite their musical differences, both bands were pushing the other to perform at their highest calibre. Both groups of fans had a great time, both were treated to the songs they wanted and both got the performance that the ticket price deserved.
Smiley
