There’s nothing like a tribute act, and happily, The Stylistics are… nothing like one.
What the 1970s Philly soul legends are is the real deal. Well, at least in soul legend terms. With two members of the original lineup in place and on stage in Glasgow that’s not a bad average, especially when you compare them to contemporaries like the Four Tops, soldiering on despite sadly losing sole remaining member Ali Fakir earlier this year. Or The Drifters, whose lineup and even name is a matter for the courts.
But we have pop royalty in Airrion Love and Herb Murrell, right in front of us and launching straight into ‘People Make The World Go Round’. This is just the first of a dozen top 20 hits the band had in the space of a couple of years.
Resplendent in spangly suits, they spearheaded the soul revolution that took over the UK charts in the mid-1970s, and their sharp style echoes that era. We might be as at home sat at cabaret-style seating as we are in the midst of a packed Pavilion Theatre, the band greeted by a fervent and, it must be said, well-refreshed crowd.
However, this is no stop-off on the chicken in a basket circuit. Instead, The Stylistics were and are driven by quality songwriting, mainly from the pen of Tom Bell and lyricist Linda Creed, who also worked with Johnny Mathis and Dionne Warwick. Easy listening it might be, but their brand of nostalgia is supremely comfortable on the ear and goes down vey well with their hard-core following – “Better than the Temptations” says one punter behind us.
Despite a sound softer than, say, The Temptations – closer to the Detroit Emeralds or Spinners – among the easy-listening there was a period, perhaps too early for the Bee Gees-inspired revolution, where The Stylistics joined the disco bandwagon. And it’s never too early for a Glasgow crowd to get up and dance to ‘Heavy Fallin’ Out’ or
‘Sing Baby Sing’ as the stewards struggle to control the rush of bodies down the front.
Our two living legends – 75 years old, they inform us later – are joined by Jason Sharp, part of the now-trio since 2011 and having moved to pin-sharp lead vocals, a fact which emphasises the act’s versatility, Sharp’s bandmates also moving between bass and baritone wherever required.
The Glasgow crowd are (present company included) largely of a ‘certain age’ – old enough to recall seeing the band on Top of the Pops, but young enough to heed the calls to get up and mimic – albeit with less coordination – the trio’s coordinated dance moves as they shimmy in time to the seven-piece Style Orchestra’s expert backing.
It would be easy for any band of this era to ride on their reputation – show up, play the hits, move on. However, The Stylistics are more than that – there’s clearly a considerable ‘fan club’ in attendance, and the band – particularly Love and Murrell – are more than happy to engage with them. The former embarks on a lengthy spiel which starts with detailing their globe-trotting career, via relating tales of fans whose offspring have been conceived to their songs, onto a bizarre but fulsome endorsement for Viagra – “it’s working right now!”
Well, none of us are getting any younger and all artificial aids are welcome – the band happy to credit their backing singer who unobtrusively boosts the vocals of these elder statesmen of soul. Love and Murrell are more in charge of the entertainment side of things – the latter counts on his fingers, then moves to his toes – 56 years in the business, he informs us. However, the bulk of the set comes from that jam-packed ’70s sweet soul spot – ‘Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart), ‘You Are Everything’, ‘You Make Me Feel Brand New’ – such is their back catalogue that they can afford to toss these mega-hits in mid-set and still have plenty of ammunition left for an encore.
And following a barnstorming ‘Rockin Roll Baby’ contrasting with ‘Na-Na is the Saddest Word’, and the orchestra playing the frontmen offstage, we realise that there is indeed one mega hit left. And on cue, they segue into ‘Can’t Give You Anything But My Love’, their biggest UK hit, which the band keep going as the trio press the flesh with a crowd well-satisfied and clearly looking forward to their next visit, and the next instalment in The Stylistics story.
Also chief newshound at Jockrock
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