When a red shirt netted a goal at Oakwell it hinted that this might be a night for something special. And so it was that queues formed outside the Shepherds Bush Empire to hear an album, played live, that is 40 years old and only created minor ripples at the time. The central issue for some was whether what is essentially a studio album could be performed live. We shall come to that later.
When Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone took to the stage the warmth with which they were greeted was palpable. They started by paying their respects to the british r & b roots they came from and put to rest any doubts about whether they could still play. I'm talking proper r & b here boys and girls, not the garbage that passes for it these days. Hrrrmmph!
The gig took a slight nose-dive when they went into Argent mode. It was embarrassing to see the guys trying to emulate Status Quo and "Hold Your Head Up" was at best, workmanlike.
But then...... a string quintet took to the stage and accompanied Colin Blunstone on selections from his solo repertoire. This section was quite simply magnificent. Tim Hardin's "Misty Roses" and "Say You Don't Mind" reached the third tier with a sensitive warmth that was truly uplifting. The string arrangements were stunning.
After the interval an ageing Yank with shades took to the stage to say how he had persuaded his record company in the States to back Odessey and Oracle. Al Kooper (for it was he) takes no small credit for backing the album in the early days.
And then the opening piano figure of "Care Of Cell 44" rang out and we were away. Put simply, this was a triumph. The songs scrubbed up beautifully and great care was taken to reproduce the brass sound on "This Will Be Our Year" and the harmonium on "Butchers Tale". Maybe "A Rose For Emily" could have had a slightly lighter touch but this is a quibble. Overall this worked amazingly well. It was a season whose time had come.
They took a splendidly matter of fact approach to encores. I mean by this that they didn't all disappear for ten minutes while we hollered. They stayed on stage and settled in to play their hugely under-rated single "Tell Her No" and finished with... well I don't need to tell you do I? And although you kind of wished that "She's Not There" was longer than two and a half minutes, or could have gone on for ever, it is of course the fact that it is less than three minutes that makes it so perfect.
On a fresh Sunday morning, walking through Hyde Park with parakeets in the trees after a really good breakfast on Kensington High street it seemed that life couldn't really get much better.
(Thanks Matt for suggesting this; what a great Dads and lads event!)
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