KK’s Steel Mill – 17/03/2022
What better way to spend St. Patricks Day than with one of Ireland’s best guitarists at my favourite rock venue, KK’s Steel Mill. It’s a perfect combination. We were in the smaller room at the Steel Mill, which quickly filled up and had a nice number of people; in fact, it felt almost like a private party, with the 100 or so in the crowd and with Pat McManus at the helm, the atmosphere was great.
Pat and the band launched into the set with ‘Get Ready to Rock’ and the sound, as it always is at the Steel Mill, was superb. What followed for me, as a guitar player and singer, was a full, near two hour lesson on musicianship, performance and all out star quality. Pat started his career with ‘The Mama’s Boys’ – the band that he and his two brothers John and Tommy started back in the late 70’s. They went on to enjoy huge success in the 80’s, playing huge stages across the world and despite the stage at the Steel Mill being considerably smaller, Pat really worked the stage well. You’d think he was playing Wembley!
The songs kept coming and Pat’s energy never waned, he was almost becoming more energetic throughout the gig, feeding off the collective energy in the room. I have to mention drummer Paul Faloon and bassist Plunkett McCoombe, the engine room of the band, both musicians at the top of their game. All three were having the time of their lives up there and as Pat’s new album declares, it’s ‘Full Service Resumed’ after Covid and it’s great.
We are treated to some great covers throughout the night as well as tracks from Pat’s solo career and time with The Mama’s Boys. I absolutely loved ‘Parisienne Walkways’, and the near thirty second sustained note that Pat holds is spine tingly good. Another great song is ‘Stone Cold Sober’ from Pat’s latest album ‘Full Service Resumed’ – Pat’s voice is amazing and so full of character and his guitar tone, especially in this one was incredible. I didn’t realise a Firebird could sound quite like that, it almost sounded like a hollow body 335! But, hey, that’s me getting technical.
The Mama’s Boys songs were great too, fan favourites ‘Needle in The Groove’ and ‘Gentleman Rogues’ went down a storm but I really enjoyed ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ – a song that was written at the end of the Mama’s Boy’s career and was never performed live by the band, but Pat said he was fixing that on this tour. I think ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ might even be a show highlight for me.
Another highlight was the song ‘Belfast Boy’ – one of my favourite Pat McManus tracks. A song with a real singalong chorus and Pat’s tribute to the late, great Gary Moore. The crowd joined in with gusto as we sang how we ‘miss our Belfast Boy’. Another treat came in the form of some trad Irish fiddle music. Pat played ‘King of the Fairies’ and this was yet another crowd pleaser that had the crowd foot stamping and cheering along!
After a full-on hour and forty five minutes, (where did that time go?) we were treated to a spectacular encore. Thin Lizzy’s ‘Black Rose’ – it was St. Patrick’s Day after all, followed by the arrival of a special guest. Pat welcomed his long-time friend Ali Clinton to the stage and they played a blisteringly good rendition of ‘Messing With The Kid’. Ali is another sublime guitarist who trades riffs and solos with Pat effortlessly throughout. The song draws to a close and I think that’s it, but no, we are treated to one more song. Pat dedicates this one to Ukraine and the band launch into ‘Rockin in the Free World’
What a fantastic night. I was absolutely blown away at Pat’s guitar playing – no wonder they call him the professor and his stage craft was second to none. Everyone needs to see Pat McManus live, he will blow you away and believe me, once you see them, you won’t be able to get enough. I’m already looking forward to the next one!
