Of course I’m too young to have been around in their heyday, but old enough to know who they are – and whether Walk Right Back – The story of the Everly Brothers at The Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham was a fitting tribute.
You see The Everly Brothers were one of the groups that formed the soundtrack to a ride in my late Dad’s car when I was a kid. Along with Elvis and Buddy Holly, all manually changed on the tape deck. That thundering skiffle bass vibrating through the speakers.
So who else could I take along to give me their opinion other than my Mum. She’s not one to mince her words, if it’s not good, I’ll soon know about it.
The show starts with ‘When will I be loved’, my first observation is that the band are over powering the vocals. They just needed a tweak to get them where they needed to be. The Everly Brothers were, after all, famous for their close harmonies, so you really want to hear them. It wasn’t the case all the way through, just on certain songs. I heard a woman saying the same in the toilets during the interval (always a good place for a reviewer to go to earwig on the general consensus.
One half of the lead vocalists, Lars Pluto’s, sound when talking also seemed a little tinny in comparison to co lead, Luke Wilson’s, but it didn’t spoil our enjoyment, and I’ve got to say, I really did enjoy it.
The show is a concert based musical, rather than an acted out story, with Wilson taking the part of Phil Everly, and Pluto that of his brother, Don. They don’t pretend to be the
duo as such, when they do talk it’s as themselves, but they sing the harmonies as the famous brothers would, and dress the part.
Featuring hits such as Bye Bye Love, All I Have To Do Is Dream and Cathy’s Clown, the music entwines the wonderful rise to fame, and also the sad yet glorious story of The Everly Brothers around those trademark harmonies.
The first half delivers hit after fantastic hit, all the songs the (mostly older) audience remember and likely grew up with. The chemistry and banter on stage is light hearted and likeable. By the time the interval comes, and we’ve reached a point in the story where the brothers split, you’re left scratching your head as to what they have left for the second half.
However, we return to eventually see the brothers united after a 10 year hiatus, during which they barely spoke, at a reunion gig at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1983. Obviously their bubble had burst many years before hit wise, so this second half doesn’t pack the same punch as the first (whIch I could have happily watched again) – but that’s life – literally.
What is evident however is what a talented bunch of musicians we have the pleasure of watching and hearing perform in front of us, and how much they appear to love their art, and seem to be really enjoying themselves, despite presumably playing the same tracks hundreds of times as the show tours. I wonder how many of todays tracks we’ll be able to say that about in the future (God, I sound old)
The sound is still fresh, and they are genuinely smiling. The energy is infectious, and the audience can’t resist rising to their feet to join in.
Tribute shows, I find, can be a bit hit and miss. Thankfully, this one is a great big hit, without a dodgy wig in sight.
I was happy, and more importantly my Mum – a real Everly Brothers fan, was happy.
I’d go and see it again, and if you get the chance – you should too.
By Tanya Louise
Editor
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