The Bonnie Mac Blues Band
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I had seen them once before at The Hop near the Canary Wharf, but unfortunately had to leave early been that it felt like a sickly and thick mucus wanted to protrude out of my mouth and over some bystander swaying and grooving to the music , but last night my attention was focus dominantly on the band and what a band it was. Sat in the confines of The Owl pub in Rodley I had the severe need to get bombed been that I hadn't touched a drop of alcohol in weeks , but after a few swigs of the amber nectar which tasted like pure angels quiff I was soon drawn in by the power of the Bonnie Mac Blues Band and there sheer dedication to the Blues which I felt at to a certain degree had fallen on deaf ears in the Leeds community. The section we were sat in had a small , but big enough stage to fit the band on with instruments behind them plastered on the wall, several guitars, a trumpet and many others while a sign at the back painted on which read out Live music at the owl. As the band set up including Jeff Waddington on Guitar, Craig Jackson on bass, John Sharpe on drums, Ian Scaife on harmonica and the slick and mesmerising vocals of lead singer Sheila Mac. They started off with the first half of Blues Is My Buisness a signature number that I had heard them play once before, I believe the necessary reason why they played the first half was to check the set up and see if there were any EQ problems , yet it was all on the ball and the music so tight not a whiff of air could seep through, this was going to be a good night I told myself, vacating briefly to smoke a cigarette. Quickly making my way back inside I was glad to see the band had not started performing yet been that the audience members handed out there presents been that it was the lead singers birthday , but after a barrage of thank you's to everybody that showed up they progressed into As The Crow Flies a number made popular by Rory Gallagher yet there version had a veritable and striking touch of Chicago blues as Scaife howled on his harmonica with the dirty, distorted and rich tone of the mic which was plugged into a Laney amplifier, the band played with strength and the sheer sene that they knew how to handle the blues as well as knowing the lengths of which it could be taken. As Waddington stretched and ran his fingers along his Ibanez fretboard I discovered what a mesmerising guitarist he was, yet his playing was diverse enough to play the blues with valour and consistency , but also an avenue to add in different subtexts and speeded lines that many other would not dare to do been that some people have a very tight view of blues as just been depressing and nothing more which Sheila commented on later that evening. This in all manner of tribute was the defining essence of blues, almost as if it had been snatched from a late night Chicago club and then placed here at the Owl with all the spirit and heartfelt groove of the blues, needless to say I was in heaven been that I have spent most of my life cherishing and listening to The Blues and understanding all the worry, all the joy and the misplaced love or lost love that it entails so naturally seeing a band like this has kept me aware that the blues is not dead despite what others think. Now been that my memory is somewhat of a disaster I have forgotten which order the songs were performed in , but my mind will probably jump start as it always does and I will remember something so spectacular and feel like an idiot that I had forgotten it. The band soon slid into Big Mama Thorntons Hound Dog with a swing that somewhat was misplaced from The King of Rock N Rolls version, then through To Love Me like A man which Sheila dedicated to one of the audiences members, Jimi Hendrix' Road House which I found exciting been that this might be a showcase for Waddington's guitar playing , but my attention from that was toppled over by the sheer sting and force of the harmonica. Soon the band played The Doors Roadhouse Blues which had tell tale signs of the original version and the Status Quo version which I found delightful. Another highlight of the evening was Waddington and Mac written number The Flood a profound and mature blus number that proved the worth of this band and necessary they are as the passionate and dedicated Mac revealed was been released as a single. The set rolled on into a magnificent encore including The House Is A Ricking by SRV which I was excited to discover was in the set been that Stevie Ray Vaughn is a hero of mine, Walking By Myself and Robert Johnson's Sweet Home Chicago which had the majority of the audience (including myself) singing along to. To be frank this was the most striking and lasting session UI ever seen from a Leeds based band and there dedication to wards the music not at least the amazing rhythm section of Craig Jackson and John Sharp. Yet writing this and trying desperately to add in the excitement of the group and the sheer force of there performance into this short piece about them cannot compare to seeing the group themselves, so naturally it doesn't matter what I say the main reason for this is that if you live in Leeds and ever get a chance to see them live then do so, you will not be disappointed by this true and powerful entity that should be equally placed along with other blues men such as Little Walter and Muddy Waters.
Photo by Zephyrance Lou