Given their official ‘retired’ status, this is effectively a lap of honour for the cockney rock troupe. Having decided to maintain activity by continuing with their annual Christmas shows, The Baubles Are Back In Town (we shit thee not...) is the latest recorded product of this Thunder brainwave.
It’s an amiable set of sway-along rock‘n’roll, at its best in feel-good piano-led highlights (such as Everybody Wants Her), driving Santana-esque guitar moments (Just Another Suicide) and no frills romps (You Can’t Keep A Good Man Down). All of which goes some way to compensating for pace lost in innocuous, drifty ‘plod-rock’ points.
Punctuated by Danny Bowes’ shouts of “Bloody marvellous!”, it remains a cheery affair. How do they end this festive live return? With bloody Slade – Merry Christmas Everybody, that’s how.
Corny? Christ yes, but difficult to induce anything other than eye rolling and fond smiling. Sure to delight the Thunder massive.
