The Quireboys

You know that you are in the company of The Quireboys when frontman Spike jokes that after the gig, folks are required to stay on and drink with the band into the wee hours – because it is the law! Then again, the band has every reason to celebrate into the small hours, law or not. With a couple of new albums under their collective belts and a 30th Anniversary UK still in full swing, the Boys had a phenomenally successful year.

That feel-good factor became crystal clear during the band’s recent gig at the Glasgow Garage, when an ecstatic crowd welcomed The Quireboys in the packed out venue. Spike (sporting a Scots tartan jacket) and Co. went straight into some favourites, including ‘Tramps And Thieves’, ‘There She Goes Again’, and ‘Too Much Of A Good Thing’. After a brief breather and a “Hello Glasgee, it’s good to be back… it only feels like yesterday” the next set followed with more of the band’s greatest hits, and of course the dead catchy ‘Hey You’.

Energetic and delivered in grand ole gutbucket fashion, the sound was more on the edgier rock ‘n’ roll side and less on the mellow ‘n’ melodious, with a few exceptions such as ‘Mona Lisa Smiled’ and ‘I Don’t Love You Any More’. As always, the fact that the band oozes an infectious and very evident on-stage chemistry only contributed further to the dynamic vibe. Whilst Spike performed near circus tricks with the mic, Guy Griffin and Paul Guerin performed magical riff-work on their guitars… crankin’ it up for all that’s worth. In this case, extra kudos ought to go to Mr. Guerin who churned out chords despite a bandaged finger. Rounded up by the accomplished keys-player Keith Weir, the rhythm section consisted of Nick Mailing on bass and native Glaswegian Dave McCluskey on drums. Indeed, Dave seemed to have brought his very own fans along, with one (intoxicated) muppet relentlessly shouting “Keep on banging that drum, son!”

It goes without saying that The Quireboys performed a cross-section from their various albums. Selected songs from their more recent, rather exquisite albums ‘Beautiful Curse’ and ‘Black Eyed Sons’ were received with much applause and hurray. As Spike remarked: “The best hurrays are the Glasgee ones”, adding that whenever he and band tour the States, he needs to point out to the Yanks that he talks about Glasgow, Scotland!

The show went on in the same relentlessly rockin’ fashion as it started, with barely a moment of what we may call a slower pace in between all the drive and noize. The band just kept on going and going, spicing things up further with various solos thrown in. Only one minor hiccup occurred during one of the songs (which shall remain unnamed here), namely when the audience sang along to a certain song while our frontman lead the chorus, but mixing up the right order of the words in the process.
Clearly, the tense touring schedule took its toll on the lead singer – echoing some of his very own lyrics “It's never gonna be that easy when your living duty comes from your heart.” Is it any wonder?
After the final chords of ‘Homewreckers And Heartbreakers’ began to fade, Spike, Cheshire cat grin across his face, teasingly asked the punters “What time is it, Ladies and Gents? WHAT time is it?” and got the prompt reply “It’s time for a paaarty!” Cue for ‘7 o’clock’ and everyone joined in and sang along. It wasn’t party time just yet mind you, for the band was called back (and loudly so) for an encore. Only after the final song ended were The Quireboys ‘released’ from duty and free to party on. This is rock ‘n’ roll! Cheers!

(Please read my interview with Quireboys guitarist Guy Griffin in the ‘Interviews’ section)