Long before The Spice Girls were a glimmer in their parents eyes, The Runaways were doing the Girl Power thing under the watchful eye of their mysterious Svengali Kim Fowley and for a brief moment they flickered brightly before imploding with Joan Jett and Lita Ford going on to achieve significant success as solo artists.
The Runaways may have been around for a relatively short time but their impact on music still reverberates today and that has grown exponentially since The Runaways movie featuring Kirsten Stewart and Dakota Fanning catapulted the name right back into the spotlight.
It’s been almost four decades since The Runaways last appeared in the UK and former lead singer Cherie Currie felt that their music demanded to be heard and The Globe in Newcastle was packed with fans who shared her sentiments.
As American Nights and the cowbell clanking Rock & Roll kicked the show into overdrive right from the start there was little pause for breath as the hits came thick and fast with Is It Day Or Night and California Paradise showing that not only had Currie’s voice weathered the years well, she was singing much better than back in their heyday.
Far from having a gilded Rock and Roll upbringing things have been tough on Currie over the years and the acerbic Dear Mum, the song recorded with Shameless, with its tight Punky riff and Currie’s impassioned vocals told of the pain of rejection showing a dark underbelly to an otherwise uplifting Rock’n’Roll celebration.
Nick Gilder’s Roxy Roller, the lead song on The Runaways movie and one to feature on Currie’s new album sounded purpose built for her. Currie paid homage to her heroes with a spirited take on Bowie’s Rebel Rebel, a song that she used to sing into her hairbrush in front of the mirror like millions of other girls through the years. Even more euphoric was the stack-heeled stomp through the KISS classic Do You Love Me, given a new lease of life by the golden voice of Currie.
Queens of Noise made it like it was 1977 all over again before The Runaways signature tune Cherry Bomb brought everything to a rampant end as one of the ’70s truly great bubble-gum Pop Rock classics fizzed and popped in true party style. Sometimes those simple songs really are the best and when delivered with such energy and enthusiasm by Currie there is no better way to end a show. Welcome back Cherie, please don’t leave it quite as long next time.
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