Having been favourably reviewed at the time by Classic Rock, Francis Rossi’s document of his seventh solo performance in a landmark London church sounds like the work of a man on top of his game.
Starting with an effortlessly jaunty good time shuffle arrangement on Caroline, Rossi explores his catalogue carefully. The country roots of Claudie and the ballad Tongue Tied aren’t his typical 12-bar blues boogie, while the welcome addition of female singers and son Nicholas on guitar keeps it from becoming a little too blokey and venerable.
Evidently these are the songs Rossi rates, and the audience howl approval when he kicks into Twenty Wild Horses and the word riffing Diggin’ Burt Bacharach.
The Quo’s slick Fender style isn’t ever far from the surface – Marguerita Time and All We Really Wanna Do being guaranteed to please the Rossi army – but the overall feeling is of an artist showing that his repertoire isn’t just about showmanship and sweat.
