From the Jam Perfectly Preserved

Last night Wednesday 1st June, Irene & I went to the Villa Marina to see 'From the Jam,' featuring original band member, Bruce Foxton but not Paul Weller (though apparently the latter has worked on their new album.)

I had worried that this gig wouldn't be too successful, having been moved from Saturday and being held on a TT Practice evening, so when we arrived to a near empty hall, not long before 9pm, it seemed that perhaps those fears had been realised.

We had met up, purely by chance with our friends Marie & Murray Lambden, therefore, it seemed sensible to go and buy another drink before the performance, so it was during the queuing process that without fanfare, the noise levels rose and by the time we returned to our spot by the stage the band were in full swing, belting out their old Kinks cover, David Watts and the Royal Hall was packed with a very decent crowd.

It's a long time since I've been to a concert in the UK or further afield but is it a purely 'Manx thing' that everyone just happily lets you go past with your drinks back to your place right at the front? Later on, when things really got rocking, my memories are of being literally crushed in the surge forward but despite the dancing (otherwise known as pogo or jumping up and down) becoming quite animated, I was still able to prevent Irene being jostled too much.

Unfortunately, I suspect it's more of an 'age thing,' as it seems most of the acts we get to see are groups with remnants from the past and you could perhaps describe most of the audiences similarly.

Back to the music and it was excellent as unlike the aforementioned Mr. Weller, they played all their old hits in addition to a few album tracks and only one or two songs from their new material.

Without my glasses on, I probably wouldn't have noticed that Russell Hastings wasn't the Modfather and that Bruce Foxton had aged 30 years since I last saw photograph of him.

During the encore, they really built to a crescendo and I'm sure most of the people watching thoroughly enjoyed the night.

Before you come across on holiday, it is an idea to pre-book any of the shows that you want to see, as it can usually be done online. This year's highlights include Tom Jones 26th July and Cast on Saturday but you can check out who's on at concerts in the Villa Marina and Gaiety Theatre or organised with them as ticketing agents https://www.villagaiety.com/