After conquering Sonisphere in 2013, Chas & Dave’s ongoing assimilation into the rock world continues.
Tonight they’re on top form, serving up most of the hits and a smattering of tunes from last year’s excellent That’s What Happens while inciting some truly extraordinary dance moves from a small group of diehards at the front of the stage. One suspects that the duo have seen it all by now, but they still seem touched by a rapturous reception.
Meanwhile, the more things change, the more the mighty Quo stay the same… and yet there is a strong sense that Francis Rossi and Rick Parfitt are enjoying themselves more now than they’ve done in decades. This may be just another show on the band’s annual festive jaunt, and the audience is dominated by diehard fans who plainly regard this as an unmissable fixture on the rock’n’roll calendar, but what could’ve easily been perfunctory trots through classics like Whatever You Want and Roll Over Lay Down somehow bristle with vitality and urgency.
The only iffy moments come when the turgid In The Army Now is wheeled out and, bizarrely, when the band elect to play the execrable Burning Bridges as an encore, but the faithful go mental for those too. Frankly, after 50 years of rocking people’s socks off, Status Quo have nothing to prove.
