With doors brought forward to 6pm, it was an earlier than usual train to Glasgow for Miss Rose Wine and I last Monday night. The weather Gods weren’t too happy about it either.
We made it to the O2 Academy just as they were opening the doors. Whew!
So, who had we rushed up to Glasgow to see?
The incredible Blackberry Smoke.
The rail Gods were in a better humour than the weather ones and we managed to grab a rail spot for the evening. Happy days!
There was only one support act for the evening, Bones Owens. Having read a recent article about him, I was keen to experience his live set. Based in Nashville, Bones Owens, accompanied by Sonny Remliger on drums and Doy Gardner on bass, delivered a solid opening set. Bones Owens is a larger than life, tattooed presence on stage and he treated the growing enthusiastic Scottish crowd to 45 minutes of heavy rock and roll with a strong blues influence. Unfamiliar as I am with his music its hard to pick out a standout track but Goin’ Back Where I Came From was one of them.
Goin Back Where I Came From – Bones Owens @ O2 Academy Glasgow 09/09/24 (youtube.com)
Look forward to seeing a headline show soon from these guys. (Hint)
Great start to proceedings.
This was my fifth Blackberry Smoke show and while I don’t want to dwell on the difficult journey that the band have had over the past couple of years, it would be wrong not to mention it. Their late drummer Brit Turner was diagnosed with a rare form of brain cancer (Glioblastoma) about two years ago, My heart broke for them when I heard this news as it was the same diagnosis my late husband received four years ago. I said my final farewell to him last autumn; Blackberry Smoke said farewell to Brit in the spring of this year.
Blackberry Smoke last played Glasgow in March 2023 and Brit was well enough to play that show. It was an emotional night with many fans not fully appreciative of the situation. I was….
As the band stepped out on stage at 8:30pm, you could feel the emotion in the air. The boys from Atlanta, Georgia were given a huge warm Scottish welcome by the capacity Glasgow crowd. They opened their two hour long set and the first show of the tour with Let Me Help You (Find the Door) only to find a few gremlins in the works with front man Charlie Starr’s guitar. Throughout the opening number, Charlie, ever the professional, kept the song going but he did look a little “lost/naked” without a guitar in his hands for a few minutes.
The gremlins were finally beaten into submission during the second song of the night Good One Comin’ On, when the guitar tech resorted to a good old-fashioned guitar lead. Modern technology! Good One Comin’ On was merely a hint of the great set that was to follow.
The band’s 19 song set was a finely balance mix, drawing on their back catalogue and their recent album Be Right Here. Four tracks from the latest album made the cut.
With Blackberry Smoke you know you’re in for a good night every night. Their distinctive sound lives up to the almost cliched “too rock to be country; too country to be rock” slogan that adorns some of the tees from the merch stall but after just shy of 25 years on the road, these boys have truly found their niche.
Several of my personal favourites were given an outing over the course of the evening including Pretty Little Lies, Crimson Moon and Sleeping Dogs.
Pretty Little Lie – Blackberry Smoke @ O2 Academy Glasgow 09/09/24 (youtube.com)
Crimson Moon – Blackberry Smoke @ O2 Academy Glasgow 09/09/24 (youtube.com)
The most emotional moment of the night came in the latter half of the show. Having introduced the fans to Brother Paul Jackson on guitar, Brother Benji Shanks on guitar and mandolin, Brother Brandon Still on piano, Brother Kent Aberle on drums and Brother Richard Turner on bass, Charlie Starr declared that the next song was for Brother Brit Turner. The cheers were deafening, and the tears were flowing on and off stage as the boys played the beautiful Azalea, from the current album.
Azalea – Blackberry Smoke @ O2 Academy Glasgow 09/09/24 (youtube.com)
I can only imagine how difficult it is for them to perform night after night.
The main body of the set was rounded out a few songs later with an extended version of Ain’t Got The Blues.
After a few moments off stage Blackberry Smoke returned to the stage for the encore. Looking resplendent in his hat, Charlie and the boys opened their four-song encore with Old Scarecrow. Another one of my favourites made an appearance – the gorgeous One Horse Town. Love that song. The night was brought to a climax with Little Bit Crazy. Awesomeness!
What a show! Possibly the best one I’ve seen them play yet.
Hurry back to this “One Horse Town” soon, boys.
the525toglasgow 