When was the last time you saw someone crowdsurfing at the Barras…in a rubber dinghy? Got your attention?
This was the party to end all parties – almost sold out, charity gig for the Clutha appeal with 4 or 5 bands… £10, what is not to like on a Saturday night?
CM&D5 are the figureheads for the Yellow Movement, which appears to have spread through Glasgow (and other places) like yellow fever, possibly people engaged by the Yes campaign looking for other things to get involved with after the referendum defeat.
This is party music for party people; BM turned up in the middle of the Girobabies set, pretty good as well. Sound was good, band clearly overwhelmed by the size and reaction of the audience. Most people wore yellow and BM was outed as a CM&D5 virgin by fellow topers – told I would start the evening a boy and end it a man (really?).
The main attraction started with ‘Ginger Girl’, a heartfelt number, with probably around 25 people onstage. This band has at least five Bezes, a female singer actually from Dijon and a lovely array of yellow costumes (woman in the yellow rubber dress not leaving much to the imagination, Betty salutes you). In fact, to coin a phrase, it was all yellow, did someone write a song about that before they become a joke? They are ridiculous, funky, quirky and infectious. The audience was ecstatic and excitable, a real mix of ages, hipster beards mingling with hippies and ska fans.
BM understands this collective developed from a range of previous pub bands, quite a ska influence. The Colonel himself is a showman but lets the others do the real clowning and there is a solid drum&bass section to underpin the madness onstage.
The main set included ‘International Sex Hero’, with a guest vocalist who declared he was the ISH, not anyone else. Another song involved the entire audience moving across to the left, then the right, a real participation number and unprecedented. Even the bouncers were in stitches of laughter.
When the set ended we were straight into the presentation of the posthumous Barras fall of fame star to David Bowie, accepted by ‘Boaby the Barman’ from Still Game. He gave a good speech indicating how much of a fan he was and his recollections of speaking to the great man in Glasgow.
Next was a Bowie cover played by an youngster on the piano, he was really good on ‘Starman’, with the audience howling support, as they had been asked to do by the Clutha Trust chair – BM lost her voice for the first time in a number of years.
Had to leave at this point for the last bus (taxi drivers tend to be former associates, if you get me, and BM is retired) – but this was 11.20 so the usual curfew was well and truly breached, with consent of Barras management and polis, BM surmises. No idea if the band played an encore but do know there was an afterparty on the cards, and was also told they tend to last ’til around 9 the following morning, so probably some sore heads on Sunday.
This gig is already legendary, this band are becoming uncontrollable – whatever next?