While this time of year often provides opportunities to see The Sweet at various provincial theatres around the country it is always nice to see the band at a proper dedicated rock venue. And the Robin in Bilston, near Wolverhampton, is packed out with Sweet fans from across the UK and further afield.
Tonight the band are going to “heavy it up” declares Andy Scott, following a deluge of requests from fans in the run-up to the gig. What this means, therefore, is that as well as those unforgettable Sweet hits, the audience also get a taste of the band’s brilliant 1974 rock album Sweet Fanny Adams, with ‘Set Me Free’ and ‘Into The Night’ from that album making a welcome appearance on the setlist, alongside ‘AC-DC’. The band produced some excellent hard rock back in the day and it’s nice to see that side of the band being properly celebrated, in addition to the more obvious but still equally wonderful glam rock side. It certainly hits the spot as far as the audience are concerned.
Of course, before The Sweet even began churning out those glam anthems, they had a run of ridiculously cheesy but inanely catchy bubblegum, hits penned for them by songwriting due Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman. For many years, the policy of Messrs Scott and co was to forget these even existed but in recent years they’ve made their way back into the setlist. But now the ephemera of the bubblegum era is completely stripped back and they are re-invented as chilled-out, folky, acoustic sing-alongs. Surprisingly, it works – and the audience lap these up, too.
Of course, no Sweet gig would be complete without those glam mega-hits: whether it’s the Chinn-Chapman covers like ‘Hellraiser’, ‘The Six Teens’ and ‘Wig-Wam Bam’ or the self-penned hits like ‘Action’ and ‘Fox on the Run’. Add in some majestic versions of ‘Lost Angels’ and ‘Love is Like Oxygen’ and the inevitable ‘Blockbuster!’ and ‘Ballroom Blitz’ for an encore and it’s a perfect Sweet mix.
There are numerous 70s pop-rock bands ploughing the 70s circuit, many of them continuing to offer a night of nostalgia and guaranteed fun; even if, like Sweet, you will only find one or two original members these days. But few, if any, offer the degree of perfection, professionalism and top class musicianship as Andy Scott and his colleagues, Pete Lincoln, Tony O’Hora and Bruce Bisland do.
Sadly, I never got to see the classic irreplaceable Sweet line-up of the 70s. But I’ve seen numerous line-ups over the past quarter of a century and this is undoubtedly the strongest since then.
Glam rock and hard perfection. Keep at it boys
Setlist:
Action
New York Groove
Hellraiser
The Six Teens
Set Me Free
Into The Night
AC-DC
Lady Starlight
Lost Angels
Co-Co / Funny Funny / Poppa Joe
Teenage Rampage
Wig-Wam Bam / Little Willy
Love Is Like Oxygen
Fox On The Run
Blockbuster!
The Ballroom Blitz
Photo credits: Eileen Handley
Related posts:
Sweet at Bilston 2014
Sweet at Dartford 2015
Blockbuster – origins and influences
I can’t recall if we were talking about Sweet on this blog or another one. But apart from “Ballroom Blitz,” “Fox On The Run,” and “Love Is Like Oxygen,” Sweet were minor players here in the States. I don’t recognize any of those other songs at all. But I like those three! 😉
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I recall the conversation. I think it was on the post I did about Blockbuster. Yes, Sweet’s penetration in the States was patchy compared to UK, European mainland and Australia but if you like those tunes I recommend exploring some of the albums, particularly Sweet Fanny Adams, Desolation Boulevard and Give Us A Wink.
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No question I’ll do that. That band is a kick. Thanks.
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My favorite is the proggier Leavel Headed which contains Love is like Oxygen.
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For the proggier side of Sweet that is indeed an excellent album, as is the later period Sweetlife from the early 00s
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Those were the best albums we love them here in Australia
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I knew the singles as a kid in the 70s but I didn’t start listening to the albums til I was 15 in 1981. My dad picked up Give Us A Wink second hand and then I pretty much bought them all myself not long after.
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Cracking review and really keen to see this version of the band, having only seen the Mal McNulty line-up a few years ago at the Underworld.
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Cheers. Well worth catching up with. The best since the original in my view.
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I saw the original line up in Perth Australia in 1975, still got my ticket, Brian and the boys were amazing. Have love their music for decades. My favourite album would be ” Give us a Wink. This marked the big change in the groups direction, Level headed was awesome to. I have most of their albums, and still today play their stuff.
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Nice one Tez. Love Give Us A Wink
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Generating Steam Heat glam special show featuring cameo from Alan Merrill streaming here
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cheers Mark!
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