Who…What…The S&M Band Deliver
More soul, funk and Motown and this time from The S&M Band (Soul & Motown if you really wondered), a local band no one had heard of until they appeared and then the penny dropped…The What playing their favourite S&M covers.
Two sets, the first of 27 tracks devoted to S&M and lasting nearly two hours and the second taking us through until just short of 1 a.m. of traditional What covers mostly of The Beatles etc. Since most of us are acquainted with those I’ll concentrate solely on the S&M set.
Opening with Otis Redding’s “I Can’t Turn You Loose” and quickly followed by “Sweet Soul Music” from Arthur Conley and then R Dean Taylor’s “There’s A Ghost In My House” was an excellent start and Ellie obviously likes Freda Payne’s “Band Of Gold”. These were ensued by Wilson Pickett’s “In The Midnight Hour”, “The Onion Song” from Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, “Rescue Me” of Aretha Franklin, Sam and Dave’s “Hold On I’m Coming”, “Private Number” from Judy Clay and William Bell and yet another Aretha Franklin track “A Natural Woman”.
All classic S&M songs with a surprise “You Really Got A Hold On Me” from The Miracles and the first Blues Brothers number “She Caught The Katy”, Eddie Floyd’s “Knock On Wood” just had to be selected as was “It Takes Two” from Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston. The Temptations “Get Ready” and Dobie Gray’s “Out On The Floor” was leading us towards the end of the set but not before “Soul Man” from Sam and Dave, “Twist And Shout” from the Top Notes and later popularised worldwide by The Beatles and to close this set there could only be one choice, Solomon Burke’s “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love” in the style of The Blues Brothers.
A fantastic night thoroughly enjoyed by all the regulars, The What fans and new S&M Band fans:-)