A couple of years back Y&T made a triumphant appearance at the touring Monsters Of Rock festival, opening the show for Gary Moore and Whitesnake. The common consensus opinion of that tour was that Y&T blew everyone clean off the stage during their short, yet celebrated, opener set.
The fact that Y&T were returning to the U.K. for their own headlining tour was greeted with great anticipation and this was clear by the large turnout at the Academy. Newcastle has always had something of a soft spot for Bay Area’s finest since their incendiary live shows supporting AC/DC and their own headlining performances at the legendary, but sadly now defunct, Mayfair Club and The Academy was well up for a night of Rocking.
“Open Fire” is as rampant of an opener as you’ll hear and “Hungry For Rock” sums up the attitude of the crowd perfectly. Before the show, lead singer and guitarist extraodinaire Dave Meniketti had mentioned that he was suffering from a heavy cold, but a quick dose of cough mixture obviously did the trick as he was in fine voice throughout the night.
“Dirty Girl” still kicks big time after all these years, and Meniketti riffs like a madman beneath his mane of wild curly hair. Meniketti really is the star of the show and is not only a fantastic guitarist blessed with a sense of melody and technical dexterity, which at times is astounding, but also possesses a fine voice that evokes at times the legendary Montrose.
With a band comprised of original member Phil Kennemore on bass and new guys John Nymann and Mike Vanderhule on guitar and drums, respectively, Y&T certainly can still pack a punch. The crowd pleasing set list, which included classics such as the rampant “Meanstreak,” a menacing “Black Tiger,” and the brooding epic “Winds Of Change” were performed with energy and passion. “Midnight In Tokyo” was the perfect blend of light and shade and featured some fine Lizzy-esque harmonies from Meniketti and Nymann while “Hurricane” more than lived up to its name.
Over their recording career, Y&T have unleashed a number of bona fide gold-plated Hard Rock classics including “Forever,” “I Believe In You,” which features some screaming fretwork by Meniketti, and the timeless “Rescue Me,” which simply stole the show tonight, being a long-time favorite with the Newcastle crowd, having featured heavily in local Rock clubs and Rock radio back in the early ’80s.
Closing the show with the Poptastic “Summertime Girls” may not have matched the rather cold Northern weather outside, but left the crowd with a warm, satisfied glow.
Y&T were welcomed back to Newcastle with open arms and delivered a set of great songs, fantastic tunes, and impressive musicianship. The after show buzz amongst the departing crowd and the genuine feeling of excitement was a sure sign that there is still a thriving market for quality music and live performances of this caliber.
Be the first to comment