"There was quite an unusual gig at the Sailors Home last Saturday, not musically speaking, it was just that the band that played, The Low Rider City Rockers, don't usually play on the music pub circuit and, as far as I know, have never played at the Sailors Home before. They are very well-known in the region as a band that usually plays in clubs, halls, theatres, rock'n'roll revival events, and supporting touring bands from that 1950s-60s era such as Hermans Hermits, Marty Wilde etc. That is not to say we don't know them as individuals, or at least some of them. Band leader Dave occasionally plays at the Sailors Home Thursday Night Music Sessions, and bass-player Nick is a regular at the sessions. In spite of being familiar with Nick and Dave as musicians I've never seen the Low Riders as a band, so this was a first for me.
The Low Rider City Rockers concentrate on the pop music and rock'n'roll from the 1950s and 60s, with some straying to later years. They played more than a staggering forty five songs in the course of getting on for three and a half hours. The following, necessarily partial, list will give you some idea of what they played;
Frankie Ford's 'Sea Cruise', The Drifters'
'Save The Last Dance For Me',
', Buddy
Holly's 'Maybe Baby', and 'Peggy Sue Got Married', medleys of 'All Shook Up' - 'Blue Suede Shoes' - Don't Be Cruel' - Jailhouse Rock' and 'Shake Rattle And Roll' - 'This Old House' - 'She's So Fine' - 'Reet Petite'.
Then there was Richie Valens's 'Oh Donna', Carl Perkins's 'Matchbox', Jackie De Shannon's 'Every Time You Walk In The Room', The Drifters and later The Searchers' 'Sweet For My Sweet', The Stones' 'Out Of Time', The Equals' 'Come Back', Beach Boys' 'Help Me Rhonda' a clutch of Beatles' songs: 'Eight Days A Week', 'Can't Buy Me Love' and 'Obla Di Obla Da', Tony Christie's 'Amarillo', Dave Edmunds' take on Khachaturians 'Sabre Dance' (not heard that in many years - here it was a set-piece instrumental by Dave on guitar). Dave and Nick swapped
instruments for Nick to play guitar on The Stones' 'The Last Time'.
, then there was
Norman Greenbaums's 'Spirit In The Sky', Suzi Quatro's 'Devil's Gate Drive', T Rex's
'Hot Love'.
"', Bryan Adams's 'Summer of '69'.
It was a proper knock-down-drag-out of a party. A right ol' hoolie of a Saturday night. Hard to beat.
Emma, Katy and Brad were behind the bar
- and boy were they needed - so huge thanks to them.
Because, as I mentioned earlier, The Low Rider City Rockers, don't usually play the pub circuit, I don't know if they will be back at the Sailors any time soon. It would be a night not to miss if they do."