Imelda May at the 5 spot

Wow! finally sort of recovered from saturday night.

Imelda is currently out supporting Jamie Cullum on a theater tour. a few weeks back I saw she had a Nashville date. I, and alot of my friends, weren't willing to fork over 50 bucks to see her do a 30 minute set in an utterly sterile theater opening for some guy I don't care about. So, I made a phone call to a mutual friend in Dublin, and after some massaging, and arranging, booked Imelda to do a set at the 5 spot, a small club in east nashville following her set w/ Jamie Cullum.

The show got started about 930, with Atlanta's psycho devilles, who armed with the former bass player from the blue cats, played the best set I've seen them do.

We, (hillbilly casino) followed the psycho devilles, played a quick set leaning more towards the 'billy side of our catalog. It was kind of funny because by the time we started, some of the crowd from the Jamie Cullum show was coming over, and I saw middle aged folks in slacks and oxford shirts squished between our usual crowd of greasers, punks and rednecks. but every one got along famously.

But the night truly belonged to Imelda. by the time she started just before midnight, there were over 200 people packed up toward the stage. And everyone was completely enthralled. I've seen thousands of shows and hundreds upon hundreds of bands, I can easily say this was one of the top 5 shows Ive ever seen. She did a solid 90 minutes plus encore. and I didn't see anyone look even remotely disinterested.

It was really a magic moment. I think everyone in the room realized that they were in the presence of a true star. not some pre packaged marketing gimmick but an honest to god natural talent. I count myself lucky to have seen her in such an intimate setting. I suspect the next time she comes back to nashville, she'll be headlining the Ryman.

from a business standpoint, Imelda, Darrell, the rest of her band and crew were all an absolute joy to work with. Imelda hung out for at least 45 minutes talking with folks, posing for photos, and signing autographs.

and the big surprise of the evening was our own Tommy Maguire showing up and hanging while snapping photos of the show. It was great seeintg you tommy! stay in touch.

I'll just say this. RUN DO NOT WALK, go see Imelda may whenever and whereever you can. you'll not be sorry.

Man, that must have been so awesome!
I hope she'll come to Munich soon!

I hope she comes to Greensboro soon.

Imelda May is up there with the best, her voice ,her look ,stage personna, everything. And her band are brilliant. To me, they are like the Stray Cats ,not just doing great covers but bringing something new and fresh to the music

She's been in Spain a few times and due to tight work schedule, I've always missed her... I'm still counting my days to see her live. She's pure talent.
But on the other hand, I've seen Darrel Higham quite a few times. He is just the rencarnation of 50s rockabilly!

I have recently gotten stuck on Darrel's version of "My One Desire" with Rocky Burnette. Better version doesn't exist.

EDIT to mention: Meet Me at the Moon and Big Band Handsome Man are my FAVORITE songs from Imelda's record. Hope I hear 'em both live a week from today!

Love Tattoo is the top one for me... and Til I Kissed You, duet with Darrel from his No Turning Back LP!

Geoff, I just re-read your review of the Nashville gig - after that and seeing Tommy's photos and talking to her on the phone I am so freakin' thrilled to see her this week!!

Tell her we said hello!