Local ska fans enjoyed a real treat last Sunday at the third Reading Ska, 2-Tone and 60s Soul mini-festival at Colorz Bar. Four bands, four DJs and a sell-out crowd combined to almost take the roof off the Reading venue. Arriving at 6pm, three hours after kick-off, I was greeted by the sight of a fine variety of ska and soul T-shirts and sweatshirts, some very crisply pressed striped shirts and the odd trilby and pork pie hat. I was also one of the males with 'longer hair' compared to most - and believe me, I ain't got much! The ska boys were clearly out in force for this one. DJ Smiler ("Steppin' Out"), one of the organisers of the event, was setting the mood with the first tune I caught, The Spencer Davis Group's 1967 classic I'm A Man.  | | Jurassic Ska Bandits |
Unfortunately, I'd missed the first band on the bill, Reading's very own Jurassic Ska Bandits, but I have it on very good authority that they were excellent, as I would have thought after catching them at The 3B's the previous Saturday. Relatively new on the scene, the seven-piece Jurassics belie their tender years, playing a very fine set of tightly-orchestrated tunes, with an excellent four-piece brass section blowing hard. Not only do these boys know their stuff, they also appreciate that live music is both a visual and aural experience, entertainment to be enjoyed. With any luck this lot should be around for many more enjoyable gigs in years to come. Next up on the bill (and introduced by the other main player behind the event, Chris Manning) were Essex guitar four-piece RT4. Formerly The Purple Hearts, they cranked up the atmosphere with a mixture of Purple Hearts classics, Sixties covers and newer material, which went down well with an increasingly sweaty crowd, including one passionate fan who appeared to have come from the Far East especially for the event! With Smiler keeping the crowd on its feet with the assistance of Dan ("Rude"), Lee ("DRC") and Del ("Uptight"), it didn't seem long before Ian Page & The Affair took the stage. Originally Secret Affair, they are one of the acts that spearheaded the British mod revival with a string of hits, including Time for Action and My World. They also played their first-ever gig supporting The Jam at Reading University in January 1979. The five-piece band featured original member Dave Winthrop blowing a pulsating sax, while Ian Page himself is still a natural front man, pleasing the crowd no end with a great vocal performance and some fine use of his trademark silver cornet. With the temperature rising steadily, The Skangsters took the stage. Now a nine-piece thanks to the recent acquisition of a trumpet player, the band further enhanced their growing reputation - and burgeoning following - with their trademark set of ska and reggae tunes, ranging from UB40's One In Ten, to a string of 2-Tone hits, including Madness, Specials and Bad Manners numbers. Combined with sixties classics such as Desmond Dekker's Israelites, Dave and Ansell Collins' Double Barrel and Max Romeo's Wet Dream, the band had the whole place skanking heartily with a meaty set of tunes which culminated in Madness' Night Boat to Cairo and - finally - Enjoy Yourself. Those who were there certainly did. With the live music over, the crowd slowly drifted off into the night, leaving Smiler knocking out a set of Northern Soul shimmy shakers for a small but truly appreciative group of punters before midnight came around all too soon and the music stopped. If you want to catch any of the local acts, the Skangsters are at Stewart's Cafe on Shepherd's Hill (A4) in Earley on 20 May, the Jurassic Ska Bandits are next on stage at Reading School, Erleigh Road on Saturday 7 May and Smiler is joined by fellow spinmasters Dan, Keith and Jim for Club Rude at the Afro Ba, Merchant's Place, Reading on Tuesday May 31.
Catch 'em if you can! |
