Legendary Two Tone band The English Beat played to a packed audience Saturday night August 11th. From the entrance all the way to the stage was nothing but packed bodies waiting in anticipation for Dave Wakeling and friends to emerge. Wakeling came on stage commenting about our (rare) sunny day and thanking us for it, before lighting into one of their well-known hits, the old Smokey Robinson song “Tears of a Clown.” Several more of their hits followed such as “Twist and Crawl,” “Hands off She’s Mine” and “Stand Down Margaret” (a scathing condemnation of PM Margaret Thatcher).
Wakeling is a very engaging performer, always smiling and joking with the audience and even threw in some political humor by stating he couldn’t imagine Eddie Munster sitting in the White House (referring to Paul Ryan’s resemblance to the sixties TV character).
Meanwhile, the very charismatic, Antonee First Class kept the crowd energized by spouting rhymes about the band members and adding to Wakeling’s vocals. Antonee pranced around the stage with a certain swagger during Sooner or Later while sax player and only horn player Matt Moorish created the smooth blend of RB, Soul and pure, unadulterated ska that make The English Beat unique. Occasionally he’d trade his sax for a tambourine and sometimes he played both simultaneously. Toward the end of “Save It For Later,” Wakeling interjected Pearl Jam’s “Better Man” (a response to Pearl Jam inserting “Save It For Later” when they performed “Better Man” at their shows).
When everyone sang along for “Stand Down Margaret,” Wakeling expressed his appreciation for everyone’s beautiful voices, then mentioned that Margaret Thatcher has no recollection of having been prime minister (Alzheimer’s) and that maybe some day he’d have no recollection of having written a song called “Stand Down Margaret.”
A couple times during the evening people were dancing so much I could feel the floor heave with their rhythm. It was as if the music was so infectious even the floor danced along.
When the band performed their cover of Andy Williams “Can’t Get Used To Losing You,” Wakeling whistled the last bit without missing, well, a beat.
Toward the end of the show a handful of people from the audience got on stage and danced. I’m thinking they won some sort of contest as they waited in the wings for their cue, danced to one song, and returned into the crowd. Wakeling referred to them as “The Seattle Interpretive Dancers.”
After a two-hour set, the moment everyone was waiting for — the song “Mirror In the Bathroom.” Everyone sang along exuberantly.
For a two-hour set (no encore), the show never once dragged nor got boring. Although Wakeling is the sole founding member of the current line-up, this was still The English Beat and this was a fun show.
Opening the evening was Seattle’s foremost ska band, Natalie Wouldn’t, complete with a trombone player who plays barefoot. Natalie Wouldn’t plays highly skilled ska with a heavy dose of rhythm and blues tossed in. Although they were scaled down to six from their usual eight members, they still sounded fine. Trumpet player Ric Penttila only stays in one spot while playing his trombone. At all other times he’s dancing from one side of the stage to the other and igniting the audience into a dancing frenzy.
Although the lead vocals were a bit weak, the rest of the sound was exquisitely mixed as I could hear each individual instrument. Natalie Wouldn’t did a great job warming up this crowd. They played a great version of “King of the Road” and if that wasn’t enough fun, they later played the Spider Man Theme. By the end of their set there was barely a still body in the house. Natalie Wouldn’t just gets better and better each time I see them. They are a must see for any ska fan.
All photos property of Holly Homan, all rights reserved.
