February 19th 2009... MAC BAILEY and DESPERADO
It was inevitable that Mac and his colleagues would return to our club following their great show last year but this time, following Roger's retirement from the music business, the bass player was Chris, an excellent replacement. The format of the concert was as before with plenty of old songs, self written numbers and the occasional instrumental to boot. Tonight they featured Johnny Cash's, Tennessee Flat Top Box and Ballad Of A Teenage Queen, a song I cannot recall hearing here before and one of my personal favourites. Others included, Lyle Lovett's, Farther Down The Line, Bill Monroe's, blue Moon Over Kentucky, Moon Mulligan's, Cherokee Boogie, George Jones', She Thinks I Still Care, Johnny Preston's, Running Bear, The Shadows, Apache, Ned Miller's, From A Jack To A King, Alan Jackson's, Chattahoochie, Ernest Tubb's, Waltz Across Texas and Chuck Berry's, Johnny Be Goode. Vocals were super, instrumentation excellent, worthy of special mention, all contributing to another splendid concert. Cyril Insley
February 21st 2008... MAC BAILEY and DESPERADO Making their first appearance at our club, this West Midlands Trio is made up of three seasoned musicians, amassing over a hundred and thirty years experience in the music business between them.
Mac is the lead guitarist and shares vocals with Roger, bass guitarist, each harmonising with the other as required, and Mick supports on drums. All have played in various combos, and Mac and Roger's roots are with Rock 'N' Roll, a genre they still like to play. Mac formed Desperado thirty years ago and since that time has concentrated on country.
Their programme consists of various types of country music, popular songs, Cajun music, a little Bluegrass, plenty of Country Rock, Rockabilly and several numbers written by Mac and recorded in Nashville, Tennessee.
Starting tonight with George Jones', Billy B Badd, they proceeded with the first of lots of Bill Kirchen / Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen songs, Lovin' Cajun style. Other songs from the latter's catalogue included, Big Mamou, Tina Louise, Kentucky Hills Of Tennessee, the wonderfully titled, I Took Three Bennies And My Semi Truck Won't Start and Rockerbilly Funeral.
Continuing, Mac introduced the self - written , Two Broken Hearts and included several of his own compositions, Pocket Change, Two Left Feet and Cajun Queen, which reached No 3 in the Cashbox Country charts.
The instrumentels, like all the songs, were enthusiasticaly received, Sugar Foot Rag, a hit for Bob Wills' and Santo and Johnnyy Farina's, Sleepwalk, a No 1 chart topper
from 1959
Lots of more popular songs permeated the show including, Pick Me Up On Your Way Down, Big River, Walk On By, Neon Moon, and Copperhead Road amongst many.
Other songs i had not heard for a long while included Butch Hancock's / Joe Ely's, She Never Spoke Spanish To Me, Cigareets, Whusky and Wild, Wild Women, a hit for the Sons Of The Pioneers in 1947, Elvis's, I'm Left You're Right She's Gone, Carl Perkin's, Turn Around, Chuck Berry's, You Never Can Tell, ( C'est La Vie), a hit for Emmy Lou Harris, Fats Domino's, Blueberry Hill, and to bring this wonderfull evening to a close, Eddie Cochran's, Twenty Flight Rock.
It was quite a few years ago I last saw Mac and Desperado, and their performance is still a joy to behold. Excellent instrumentation and vocals throughout, all appreciated by dancers and listeners alike.
Cyril Insley
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