The Lowry Centre is Manchester’s leading arts venue and it was here the Rhythm Kings’ current UK tour came to its conclusion. The usual suspects were all present and correct (Albert Lee, Georgie Fame, Mike Sanchez, Beverly Skeete) to fully entertain an 1800 strong capacity audience.

Albert Lee’s playing was as fluid and smack on as ever. His forty-odd years in the business have seen him attain legendary status and his biting county style both compliments and acts as the perfect foil to the mainstream approach of the other band members. A living guitar phenomenon if ever there was.

If Albert’s a phenomenon, then Beverly Skeete is a downright revelation. It was the first time I’d seen her perform and she used her strong, soulful voice to great effect on an intense and emotive slow burn reading of the Screamin’ Jay Hawkins classic “I Put A Spell On You”, and then showed she was more than capable of burning rubber by delivering a blistering version of Jackie Wilson’s “I’ll Be Satisfied”.

Georgie Fame was, for the most part, content to let his organ (if you’ll pardon the obvious and tacky pun) do the talking, although he did showcase on several numbers, most notably on the Mose Allison classic “Days Like This” and a Ray Charles medley.

In contrast the Rhythm King’s other keyboard practitioner, Mike Sanchez, wasn’t content to adopt the role of anchorman, choosing to lead from the front in his usual demonstrative manner.
Equally at home on vintage ‘50s r&b, rock’n’roll or Chicago blues, he gave a master class on how to work an audience, highlights of which were scorching renditions of TV Slim’s “Flatfoot Sam” and Jerry Byrne’s “Lights Out”. It also fell to Mike to lead the closing segment by way of and extended version of Slim Harpo’s “Shake Your Hips” that featured the obligatory crazed prowl through the audience by the ex-Big Town Playboy. Despite the presence of his illustrious colleagues, he stole the show in a manner that would have made Dick Turpin turn his mask and pistol in if the infamous highway robber had still been around to ply his trade today.

And so what of the man whose name the Rhythm Kings go under the banner of? As he was in his Rolling Stones days, Bill Wyman appears, visually, to be the epitome of physical minimalism. Appearances though, as the old saying goes, can be deceptive and he’s actually an authorative overseer – the hub of the wheel around which the whole musical merry-go-round revolves.
Bill grew up listening to a rich roster of rock’n’roll / r&b artists who left their indelible mark on the ‘50s before bloating and distorting his roots with The Rolling Stones during the rock excesses of the late ‘60s and beyond. Now, with the Rhythm Kings he’s come full circle and returned to the music of his youth.
Isn’t there a message about musical durability to be learnt from that?

-Pete O’Gorman