Allowing plenty of time for roadworks and rush hour traffic, I headed up the M8 towards Glasgow on Wednesday. First stop, apart from traffic jams, was Shields Rd then a quick trip on the subway out to Hillhead, before a short chilly walk to the venue for the evening, Oran Mor.

The weather Gods were being semi-kind – it was dry, but it was bitterly cold. Having met Mr D at the venue, we formed a disorderly queue with a friend of his down at the basement door into the venue. No idea why but the rest of the queue stayed up at pavement level….one of life’s mysteries.

Doors were late as everything was running behind schedule. One bonus though was that we got to hear the bands sound checking from outside. It was almost 7:30 before the doors finally opened.

So, who was I freezing to death to see? The incredible Dirty Honey.

The perfect rail spot secured (thanks to Mr D) there wasn’t long to wait before the opening band took to the very crowded stage.

There was only one support act for the evening and for the second time Danko band from Falkirk had the honour of getting things going. These boys had been the support band in January 2023 when Dirty Honey last played in Glasgow at SWG3. The small stage was cluttered with so much gear that there was precious little room for the Danko band. The lack of space and headroom curtailed the Pete Townshend style moves of the band’s bass player somewhat.

Having told the growing audience that they were from Falkirk, the rowdy drunks behind me starting shouting “For the wheel” and “For the Kelpies” whenever there was gap in and between songs. That joke very quickly wore thin and certainly detracted from my enjoyment of Danko band’s set. From the shout from the back “to be quiet” about the Kelpies and the wheel, I perhaps wasn’t the only one feeling this way.

Did they set the world on fire with their half-hour set? Probably not. Did they warm, up the crowd for Dirty Honey? Yes, I guess they did.

I’m sure “the wheel” and “the Kelpies” appreciated the adoration too.

At 8:45 with timings back on track, Dirty Honey stepped out on stage to kick off their UK tour and their set with the title track from their recent album Can’t Find The Brakes.

Front man Marc LaBelle is super skilful at working a crowd. Wearing a sheepskin coat (Scottish temperatures in February are a far cry from their hometown of LA) and his trademark hat and shades, he had the capacity crowd in the palm of his hand from the very first note.

The superb California Dreamin’ followed and was definitely one of many high points in the band’s sixteen song set.

This was the third time I’d been fortunate enough to see Dirty Honey in an intimate venue. (Oran Mor’s capacity is 550). The chemistry on stage between Marc LaBelle, bassist Justin Smollian, guitarist John Notto and drummer Jaydon Bean is oh so sweet.

Dirty Honey are a finely tuned machine.

Scars, from their first record, was another highpoint of the set for me. An extended intro with a hint of Eastern promise saw the stage flanked either side by Justin Smollian and John “Fuckin” Notto before Marc LaBelle stepped up front and centre. The sheepskin coat had been cast aside a couple of songs earlier, freeing Marc up to move more fluidly around the stage.

Scars – Dirty Honey @ Oran Mor Glasgow 07/02/24 (youtube.com)

Tied Up is always a firm fan favourite. The Scottish fans didn’t need much encouragement to sing their hearts out on the chorus to this one.

Next came another of my personal favourites, Coming Home from Can’t Find The Brakes. Love this one! It was real treat to hear it played live. It was somewhat marred by the eejits behind shouting over Marc’s heartfelt words about the song and the intro and first verse as they tried and failed to get John Notto’s attention. Coming Home is a beautiful song and was sung straight from the heart. This one is just a little bit special.

Coming Home – Dirty Honey @ Oran Mor Glasgow 07/02/24 (youtube.com)

This gig was flying by way too fast.

Dirty Honey played two cover songs during their eighty-minute set. With an inspired Southern/country vibe (think Duelling Banjos), the Scottish fans were left spellbound by the boys’ rendition of Honky Tonk Woman. Each member of the band is oozing talent but John Notto’s playing on this one blew me away. Stunning stuff.

A few songs later, Dirty Honey delivered a spellbinding cover of Prince’s Lets Go Crazy. They truly owned this one before moving swiftly into another fan favourite The Wire.

The Wire – Dirty Honey @ Oran Mor Glasgow 07/02/24 (youtube.com)

The boys from LA rounded out the main body of their set with When I’m Gone. The capacity crowd, by now slightly hoarse and more than a little out of tune (blame the beer), sang along enthusiastically.

The end was nigh… but Glasgow didn’t disappoint. The small gap between the boys’ departure from the stage and their return for their two-song encore was ably filled with by the fans chanting “Here we, here we, here we fucking go” If only Dirty Honey had played along and joined in…next time perhaps.

Dirty Honey returned to the stage to a rowdy welcome and powered straight into Won’t Take Me Alive. Cue more passionate out of tune, crowd singing.

Won’t Take Me Alive – Dirty Honey @ Oran Mor Glasgow 07/02/24 (youtube.com)

The final song of the night began with the band introductions and solos. First up was the funky bass solo from Justin, this was followed by Jaydon’s blistering drum solo (love me a good drum solo) then finally John Notto held everyone spellbound while he played a mind-blowing bluesy solo. Oh, that was good for the soul, sir. Solos and introductions complete, Dirty Honey brought proceedings to a climax with another of my favourites, Rolling 7’s. Safe to say Dirty Honey blew the roof off the place.

Rolling 7s – Dirty Honey @ Oran Mor Glasgow 07/02/24 (youtube.com)

What a show!