Aylesbury Waterside Theatre – Sunday 12 February 2023
Reviewed by Sue Portman
5*****
I don’t do tribute bands – at least I didn’t, but I was aware of this band and heard very good noises about them. I have loved Pink Floyd since I was a kid (who hasn’t?) and although my husband saw them live at the London Docklands, I never did.
The thing is, you simply cannot beat live music, and if I want to hear Floyd ‘live’ I need to go where the action is. The world doesn’t stop turning just because they refuse to tour.
Pink Floyd were formed back in 1965 and we have since lost the genius of Syd Barrett and Rick Wright. Roger Waters and Dave Gilmour simply don’t get on and we’ll not see them perform again. The great thing about their music in my view is that it is timeless and as relevant today as it has always been. Dark Side of The Moon is the third best selling album of all time, and with albums such as The Wall, Animals and Wish You Were Here the mighty Floyd have given humanity an everlasting gift.
The UK Pink Floyd Experience are now in their 17th year and were founded by David Power who was a schoolboy in 1973 when Dark Side was released and it seduced him immediately. I was wondering though how they could please so many Floyd fans? You cannot play their
catalogue in a couple of hours. It was testament to the skill and experience of the band then that they managed to cover a good many favourites, playing excerpts to please the happy throng who were sat glued to their seats at the Waterside Theatre.
It seems appropriate to provide the set list – or at least I am pretty sure
this was the set list.
In the Flesh
The Dogs of War
Seeing Emily Play
Shine on You Crazy Diamond Parts 1 – V
The Great Gig in the Sky
One of These Days
Sorrow
Wish You Were Here
Brain Damage/Eclipse
Interval
Pigs on The Wing
Echoes
Hey You
Young Lust
Money
Keep Talking
Mother
Happiest Days / Another Brick in the Wall Part 2
Comfortably Numb
The songs were played with an astonishing professionalism and as the light and sound filled the theatre I let myself go in the moment – now I know why they put the word ‘experience’ in the band.
Let me attend immediately to the players, fretting and strutting their stuff about the stage.
Emma Street’s vocals on The Great Gig In The Sky was sensational in every sense of the word. I mean, it is the best that I have ever heard, and I include the DVD’s I have seen of the actual band. What a gift of a voice. Not many would even dare to try to carry that off but I could listen to it again and again. It is this that separates humans from other animals – the ability to deliver something so beautiful, so unforgettable that you want to bottle it forever. I rather think that the original Floyd ladies should do a tribute to her!
Francesco Borrelli, the Italian on drums was bang in rhythm, leading the band from the back, so to speak. Sometimes gentle and other times frenetic he demonstrated a skill, doubtless honed over thousands of hours of practice. Great timing, he kept the band tight, and with a smile too.
David Power is obviously the ‘father’ of the band and he managed to enjoy the limelight himself, but defer to his band mates to give them their moment also. That’s testament to the man, I suspect. He has nothing to prove, after all. He had a lovely, easy going rapport with the audience, and I felt as if the band were playing just for me at times. He is an awesome bass player and as he filled the hall with that deep thumping resonance that Echoes brings I was literally on the edge of my seat, drawn in as the track built steadily, then soared majestically. Oh, it was wonderful.
Mike Bollard was first-class on guitars, stepping in and out of the gaze of the spotlight, clearly enjoying himself, and when there was a technical hitch late in the second set, he calmly and ably rectified it and played on.
David Power and the audience agreed that this is what makes ‘live’ music so personal – things can go wrong, but so what? The audience were with the band and happy to wait for them to go again and do it as they would have wanted to.
I enjoyed watching Rick Benbow on the keyboard, clearly having a whale of a time with his fingers flying around the keyboard in a blur of activity. How does he remember all those notes? His enthusiasm was infectious and I smiled and relaxed sitting as I was way up in the gods near the back of the theatre.
Paul Andrews was front and centre on lead guitar and vocals. In a way who on earth would try to stand in front of an audience and replicate Dave Gilmour’s guitar work? Well he did, and he did it extremely well and in his own style – well done. At times I was lost in his fretwork – especially during Comfortably Numb. The best compliment I can give him is at times I simply enjoyed the music and it could have been Gilmour himself. Andrews is no replicant however, and I reiterate that he stamped his own mark on the songs, weaving and bending like a dandelion in the wind as he drew the best out of his guitar.
Jo Paterson-Neild played a massive role on Tenor and Saxophone and once again we had another band member who has mastered her craft playing beautiful soaring notes on an instrument that I have always loved. There are parts in Floyd’s music where the Sax makes the whole thing come together and she weaved her magic powerfully and confidently. Superb.
When David Power introduced the band he also quite rightly mentioned the lighting and sound engineers and thanked the staff at the Waterside and the audience. Nice touch – duly noted.
The video images on the screen behind the band were very apt, with various politicians, dictators and other ne’er do wells being shown during Money and Dogs of War. Social injustice was vividly portrayed with the have’s and the have-nots of the world. Millionaire politicians on the one hand and street children with little hope on the other. It is truly thought provoking as it is meant to be, accentuating as it does the mindlessness of humanity. The lighting was clever, especially around the video screen and I didn’t mind the fact that one errant green light kept on shining in my eyes at the back of theatre. The synchronicity between the mixing desk, the band playing, the visuals on screen, the lights and sound effects must have taken a very long time to hone and they have it spot
on – so well done again.
As individuals they are all excellent musicians. However, this does not always mean that collectively a band will gel, but there was no fear of that here. The whole was as good as if not greater than the sum of its parts. Like a Mozart symphony that would be ruined if there were one note too many or too few, so this band should retain this line up and keep doing what they do best – delivering Pink Floyd music to their fans.
Shine On You Crazy Diamond made me cry (we buried a lifelong friend to that during Covid) and the The Great Gig brought me out in goose bumps.
Watching the band cruise through the songs with energy and obvious passion brought back many memories over a lifetime. People, places and experiences all seem to have a Pink Floyd Connection.
Is there anything can be picky about? Not really. Certainly not in terms of the band and the delivery. I would say that I was a tad disappointed in the quality of the £10 programme in that I think some of the images don’t do the band or the experience justice but that’s being a bit pedantic. It’s just my view. I played the CD when I got home – one that they made during Covid-19 lockdown, and I am so glad they did. I now have something of permanence from this band.
The best compliment I can give to this band is not only that the ‘real’ Pink Floyd would be (and surely are) proud of them but that in so many ways these are not a tribute at all but a superb band in their own right, that plays tribute music, delivering a sublime mix of quality music that people still crave.
The bad news for many is – this was one night only. However, they said they will be back in 2024 and you’ll have to keep scrutinizing their web site for information. You can find that here: https://www.ukpinkfloydexperience.com/
My final comment then is this. Rather aptly the final track they played for us was Comfortably Numb and that’s precisely how I felt when the lights faded and the smoke cleared. I drove home (with my programme and a CD) happy, impressed and most importantly wanting more!
I don’t award 5/5 very often (because there is always room for improvement) but I am clear, that in this case, it is totally justified.
Keep shining on, you crazy diamonds.