For the third time in five days I set off for Glasgow. 2023 Gig Season had got off to an exhausting start! Chauffeured by Boy Child and accompanied by Mr A we set off up the M8, braving the rush hour traffic again as we headed back to the science centre car park.

This time though as we walked across the bridge over the River Clyde we turned right at the end and headed towards the OVO Hydro arena.

Doors were at 6pm and when we arrived at 5:45pm there was a surprisingly short queue.

So, who were we queuing up to see?

Black Stone Cherry!

Ok, technically this is a co-headline tour with The Darkness and Black Stone Cherry but in reality, it was those boys from Kentucky that we were there to see.

Despite Boy Child’s best efforts, we didn’t snag a rail spot but one row off was good enough for me.

There was one support act for the evening, Canadian trio Danko Jones. We hadn’t stumbled across him since he opened for Volbeat back in Sept 2019. With the venue steadily filling up, Danko Jones exploded out on stage with his inimitable attitude. There’s an air of aggression to Danko Jones style but it works. There’s also an air of playfulness at the start of Lovercall. The half hour set disappeared all too quickly, but it was job done. Danko Jones had those present revved up for the evening ahead.

I’m going to confess something at this point. Apart from the obvious two songs, I’ve never listened to The Darkness. Those two obvious songs aren’t among my usual listening but when I watched the Taylor Hawkins tribute show from Wembley, it was two members of The Darkness that caught my eye- Justin Hawkins and drummer Rufus Taylor.

Love them or loathe them, there’s no denying that The Darkness put on a spectacular show. There were fireworks, sparklers, flames and then there was that ball of hi-energy himself, Mr Justin Hawkins.

Dressed in a furry jacket, Justin won the Scottish fans over by opening the set with Welcome Tae Glasgae.

Welcome Tae Glasgae – The Darkness OVO Hydro Glasgow 30/01/23 – YouTube

A couple of songs later, the fur jacket was discarded and stripped to the waist, Justin Hawkins was working that stage. That guy barely stands still!

Solid Gold – The Darkness @ OVO Hydro Glasgow 30/01/23 – YouTube

Oh…and Rufus Taylor then discarded his shirt too…. I may have been distracted for a few minutes…. was there still a rock show going on?  LOL

Mid-set, Justin disappeared off stage for another costume change, re-emerging in a multi-coloured lycra jumpsuit….. words fail me…..

As The Darkness prepared to play their penultimate song, Justin Hawkins asked everyone to put their phones down and their cameras away and to just enjoy a few minutes with the band. The penultimate song was I Believe In A Thing Called Love… and all the phones were out of sight.

The Darkness closed their fourteen-song set with Love On The Rocks With No Ice.

Much to my surprise, I actually enjoyed their performance and could easily be persuaded to see them play live again…never thought I’d be saying that.

As the road crews flocked on stage to turn things around, a huge white curtain was brought down to hide the change over from prying eyes.

Shortly before 9.45pm the lights went down. Shadows were moving behind the curtain… shadows that looked kind of familiar….

As the curtain fell to the opening bars of Me And Mary Jane, once in sight of the ecstatic Scottish fans, the boys from Kentucky were in full flow.

There’s no messing about with these guys. From those first notes, the energy levels had been set and set high.

Since the arrive of Steve Jewell on bass, Black Stone Cherry have a subtly different vibe on stage. The newest member of the group has now been well and truly welcomed to the family and is quickly establishing his personality on stage.  There are moments when he just oozes mischief.

Me And Mary Jane was swiftly followed by Burnin’ from the Family Tree album. An awesome opening pair to kick off their fourteen-song set.

Burnin’ – Black Stone Cherry @ OVO Hydro Glasgow 30/01/23 – YouTube

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen Black Stone Cherry live over the years. They never disappoint!

Tonight’s set was a carefully balanced mix of old and new, with something to suit everyone.

Three of my favourites made their appearance in the first half of the set. Taking it back to Folklore & Superstition, Black Stone Cherry treated us to Soulcreek, followed by the stunning Blind Man then In My Blood from  Between The Devil & The Deep Blue Sea.

One thing that really stands out here is the energy on stage. Its hard to match Ben Wells for energy- he is the human version of the Duracell bunny – but Steve Jewell is giving him a run for his money – a run all the way round the stage. Even Chris Robertson is getting in on the act more than usual.

Presiding over proceedings from behind his drumkit is the one and only John Fred Young. There were a few gremlins in the mix with his set up this evening but he never missed a beat all night.

There was one brand new song on the setlist, and that was the latest single Out Of Pocket. If this track is a sign of things to come off the next album, roll on the release date!

Out of Pocket – Black Stone Cherry @ OVO Hydro Glasgow 30/01/23 – YouTube

Chris Robertson had asked the Scottish fans earlier in the evening if they had brought their singing voices. Of course they had! Cheaper To Drink Alone followed on from Out Of Pocket and Glasgow sang their hearts out along with Chris. The extended live version of this song really is party time and its great to see the boys having as much fun as the fans. The party atmosphere continued as John Fred had his moment in the spotlight. He treated us to a spectacular Animal-esque drum solo. Awesome stuff!

As he introduced the next song, Chris thanked the fans for their support with it on their previous visit to Glasgow, explaining that performing this had helped him to come to terms with the passing of his father. The song….Things My Father Said. There is so much emotion in the lyrics to this song. It’s beautiful and sung straight from the heart. With tears in many fans’ eyes, Glasgow sang clear and loud for Chris and for the late Papa Steve. Tonight’s version was a little harder and heavier than last year’s more mellow rendition and personally speaking that helped me to keep the emotions somewhat in check.

White Trash Millionaire lifted the emotional levels back to stratospheric heights that were maintained by the mighty Blame It On The Boom Boom. The main set was rounded out with the Black Stone Cherry classic, Lonely Train.

There was only time for one song in the encore. Peace Is Free has been retired for this show and we ended the night with Black Stone Cherry’s cover of ELO’s Don’t Bring Me Down.

Nothing could bring us down! Awesome night again in the company of those boys from Kentucky.

Til next time…..