THE GODFATHERS + FAT COUNTRY TED – PRINCE ALBERT, BRIGHTON 12.11.19
Tonight’s proceedings up at The Prince Albert in Brighton commence with Fat Country Ted. I must confess that because of their name, I didn’t hold high hopes for this band. But I was very pleasantly surprised! They play punchy rock ‘n’ roll that is strongly reminiscent of Rockpile: Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe’s band from the late 1970’s. They also seem to very much enjoy what they are doing, which is a rather infectious attribute to have. They get the prize for the most unlikely and imaginative cover version that I’ve heard in a while too: ‘Popcorn’ by Hot Butter. It works better with a two guitar, bass and drums line-up than I could possibly have imagined!
I first saw The Godfathers at Reading Festival in 1987. They were an extraordinarily good live band then, and remain so today, notwithstanding the fact that singer Peter Coyne is the sole remaining member from then.
In many ways it doesn’t matter who is in The Godfathers as the band’s identity remains largely unchanged. There’s a malevolence not far beneath the surface which seems to be conjured as soon as they begin to play. I’m right at the front, but I try to avoid eye contact with Peter Coyne as for some reason I’m worried about how he may react! He seems okay though – we clink glasses later in the set. There is a definite air of passive aggression though. That’s a good thing. The audience is given the impression that the band are not specifically there to entertain. The Godfathers’ calling is far higher than that.
The Godfathers do entertain though. With a setlist packed with riches like theirs how could they not??? There aren’t many bands that could dispense with a classic such as ‘Cause I Said So’ as early as the second song. We have a tour of their back catalogue from their first album ‘Hit By Hit’ to ‘A Big Bad Beautiful Noise’ from 2017. There are too many highlights to mention, but ‘Walking Talking Johnny Cash Blues’ certainly hits the spot, and ‘Hup 2 3 4’ by Godfathers’ forbears The Sid Presley Experience is certainly unexpected.
Unsurprisingly the set finishes with the classic ‘Birth, School, Work, Death’, and after a very few minutes the band are back for three encores culminating with The Stooges’ ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’. This has certainly been a stunning display of raw power. In some ways it’s darkly hilarious that a band this good are playing in a room above a pub. They deserve a lot more. They play their traditional St Valentine’s Day Massacre at Camden Dingwalls on 14th February, and also play Guildford Suburbs the day after. Do yourselves a favour and go and see them.
Find out more about The Godfathers HERE and further info on Fat Country Ted can be located HERE.
Visit and ‘LIKE’ our ‘What’s On – from Brighton and Hove News’ Facebook page HERE.
