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DAVE
EVANS, The Gaff, London 26 May 2010
Dave Evans
is probably still best known as the guy who handled vocals in the first
incarnation of AC/DC, back in Australia in 73/74. He sang on their very
first single 'Can I Sit Next to You Girl', the primitive video of which
can be easily viewed on You Tube and various bootleg DVDs. It makes
pretty entertaining viewing. Evans made way for Bon Scott towards the
end of '74 and the rest, as they say, is history.
Evans himself went on to make a couple of albums with Australian band
Rabbit in the 70's, but after that band split in '78, his musical output
appears to have been pretty sparse, save for a single album with Thunder
Down Under in 1986.
It hasn't
been until recent years that his musical career has got back on track,
sparked into life by an appearance with an Australian AC/DC tribute
band, Thunderstruck, at a Bon Scott tribute concert, which spawned a
live album in 2001.
Since then,
as a solo artist, he has released two albums - Sinner in 2006 and
Judgement Day in 2008. It's the UK release of the Judgement Day album
that brings Dave Evans to these shores for his very first UK tour all
those years later.
With the chequered history that Dave Evans' musical journey has had, I
wasn't too sure what to expect from tonight's show. The answer, I'm
pleased to say, was one hour of top-notch kick-ass rock'n'roll in true
Oz Rock style.
The set was
pretty much entirely made up of material from the Judgement Day album,
and if the album's half as good as these live versions, its going to be
an album worth listening to.
Tracks like Headbanger and You Talking to Me are gritty, in-yer-face
rockers very much in the vein of classic Aussie rockers Rose Tattoo, and
Evans' voice does bear a similarity to that of Angry Anderson.
Aint Gonna
Do You To Me Anymore, a song about a relationship beyond salvation, is a
great bluesy boogie and the raucous Band Molls (apparently the
Australian phrase for Groupie) hits the rock'n'roll spot once again.
The title
track of the album, Judgement Day, moves the sound in a more metal
direction and Shoot On Sight sounds like a Brian Johnson-era AC/DC
track.
There isn't a duff moment with any of the new material, but it's the set
closers that finally get the crowd moving. Inevitably we get a great
version of Can I Sit Next To You Girl, that first AC/DC single which of
course Bon Scott went on to re-record on High Voltage.
Baby Please
Don't Go, the Them song that was a staple of AC/DC's early live shows,
gets the audience singing along and is another stonking version.
The final
song of the night, which Evans dedicates to Bon Scott, is a high-octane
cover of Whole Lotta Rosie which brings a highly enjoyable set to a
close.
Review
and photos by Jim Rowland
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