Childline Rockz
London Greenwich IndigO2
1st June, 2009

View: stage-left, mid-tier

‘Whispering’ Bob Harris introduced the instant-CDed gig, kicked off in acoustic duo fashion by The Pretty Things, before Sons Of Albion delivered three Chilis-meet- Reef numbers. Uriah Heep hit the stage with apt new cut, Overload, complemented by three classics, including the stomping Gypsy Queen and uptempo Easy Living. Thunder had the less than sell-out crowd on their feet for their four-song stint, beginning with Back Street Symphony. Gimme Some Lovin’ had all voices raised, and I Love You More Than Rock’n’Roll showed the quintet still cut it. Hot Leg do that with aplomb, despite Justin Hawkins hobbling with crutches and plaster cast. I’ve Met Jesus was restrained but the falsetto on Chickens was squawktastic, and Cocktails completed their foursome in punchy fashion. The Storys’ Steve Balsamo was joined by most of Thunder and Jon Lord for a couple of turns, notably Purple’s Child In Time, before Glenn Hughes led a rousing You Keep On Moving, a wailing Mistreated and a belting Soul Mover, with Danny Bowes aboard. Hawkins returned to lead Thunder on The Darkness’ I Believe In A Thing Called Love, then Steve Harley did a two-song turn including Come Up And See Me, and the cast joined together for cracking closer Smoke On The Water, bringing down the curtain on over three hours of class rock.

Reviewed by Tim Jones
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