Tom Robinson

King Tut's Wah Wah Hut

By Stewart McConnell

PUNK rocker-turned radio DJ Tom Robinson steps out onto the stage at King Tut's as if he had come straight from 1978, still with an attitude and a real feel for the anthems which shook up the establishment.

Fresh from critically acclaimed performances at both the Glastonbury and Rewind Festivals, the veteran musician is in dazzling form as he performed the Power In the Darkness album in full with his band, evoking memories of the late Seventies.

We begin with Up Against The Wall, the opening track from the album which features some spellbinding riffs and such cutting edge lyrics as: Teenage guerillas on the tarmac

Fighting in the middle of the road

Fascists marching on the high street

Carving up the welfare state".

As he ends the song Robinson quips: "Not bad for a 67-year-old and one wag quips: "More like 27!"

Grey Cortina follows and is also timeless like its main subject: Elbow on the windowsill

Eight track blazing Brucie Springsteen

Bomber jacket, dressed to kill."

Other songs performed include Too Good To Be True and The Winter Of '79.

As he works his way through the album Robinson reminisces about the good old days when he used to share studios with the likes of the Sex Pistols and recalls how John Lydon would scream through a microphone for a number of his tracks.

The gay icon, who ended up becoming happily married, also speaks about how homosexual rights have improved.

However he also laments concerns about growing poverty and how a nurse he knew ended up having to rely on a foodbank to survive and about poor direction in Government, which is something he was concerned about four decades ago when he burst on to the scene.

We end with Glad To Be Gay - directed at Prime Minister Theresa May - and a storming version of his signature song 2 4 6 8 Motorway.