Review & Photography by Ritchie Birnie for MPM
Tonight we are treated to one of Rock’s most underrated voices in an intimate setting that has taken three years to happen but it was worth the wait.
The tour is still called the Snake Oil and Harmony tour but minus Dan Reed and as harsh as it seems I do not think the crowd missed him. I am sorry but this night was just so special and for me it is the second night on the trot at an acoustic show. Last night was john Corabi and the more I think about these two shows the more they reflect each other. Two unbelievably talented musicians with superb voices.
They both stripped back songs I have lived and loved for decades, they both replaced singers in bands I adored and both have gone onto careers I have followed faithfully ever since. It is funny to see the parallels just one day apart.
If I am honest I gave Mr Corabi an easier ride into his career than I did Danny. Motley Crue were this huge band, American and seemed a million miles away from me but Waysted was a different story altogether, I had loved UfO, I loved Pete Way and his singer was Scottish…yeah, Danny had a much tougher job to do to convince me I would even give him a chance but with that voice I had no option and he went onto Tyketto who were one of my go to bands of the 90s.
Tonight was all about the past and the stories. I have seen Danny do an acoustic show before, the last one being in Bathgate and where I actually apologised to Danny for the talking in the crowd. I had heard this was an issue the night before in Edinburgh(I have spies everywhere) but I am happy to say the only time the crowd opened their mouths was to sip alcohol and sing their asses off.
It has been a great week for me for audiences, I had Saxon in Barrowland, John Corabi and tonight and this is the Glasgow Choir as they were known in the Glasgow Apollo…the best damned venue in the world.
It filled me with pride to hear the crowd belt out their hearts to these songs I have loved for years and I for one was also a bit hoarse at the end of the night.
Another lovely touch was that Danny had asked for requests for each venue and named the people on the night which gladly I got my request on “Soldiers and Sailors” which was even more incredible when we were told the story of what it meant and why it was written. This was the first of three occasions Danny had a tear running from my eye.
I cannot imagine this talent hanging up his guitar and never doing what has given so many people so much pleasure. Looking around this room alone, watching faces with eyes closed, singing and memories flitting behind those closed eyes. How could you take that away from the world? That is priceless.
Tonight is also five years to the day that Tyketto first played Winterstorm festival and it was the first time I had seen the band for some time and I sang my heart out that night, shed a tear and relived so many memories.
Talking of memories Danny remembers the venue he is in tonight is part of a club that was in the 90s (The Mayfair). I was at the show but seemingly Danny went to the rock disco later and done some shocking dancing to RATM. I am glad I missed that!
Before we revisit Waysted I asked Danny for a Pete memory but he slid into a memory about both Pete and Fin. Waysted were supporting Status Quo in Glasgow and Pete came into Danny’s room and said Fin had turned up at the show. Fin was in his usual all black gear and a spiderweb top and walked over to Danny and said I heard you sing Heaven tonight…and proceeded to tell him he preferred his own version but his chorus was OK…and after that they became friends. Even now that makes me happy.
So “Heaven Tonight” was dedicated to Fin and boy did this crowd go wild and I think I may even have been in tune. A beautiful version to a song I first heard Danny sing 38 years ago and tonight is just as powerful as the first.
There was a real deep cut for me in “Is That All There Is” and again the crowd stepped right up to the plate and belted it out of the park. This song had a very special meaning to me so I loved the inclusion.
Another stunning inclusion was “The Last Sunset”, a song I was not expecting but I loved it. Then it was the time for the big hitters, the Tyketto tracks that everyone here tonight could sing in their sleep. First up wee got a newer track in “Reach” and then “Standing Alone”, “Wings” and “Forever young” and if ever you needed a reminder of Tyketto’s relevance and brilliance this is it in three songs.
I never miss this man when he is in town and if you have never seen these types of intimate shows please go. Also look out for Tyketto back again next year and the rumour has it another solo Danny album is on the way and with a performance like tonight I will soak up each and every tidbit Danny offers.
