Great music night with Rob Strong

Rob Strong played the Hideout last Friday night and his unique blend of soul and rock was much appreciated by a mix of local fans and regular followers alike.



It was particularly a good gig because the three-piece setup of bass guitar (played by Rob himself, an unusual 5-string instrument), lead guitar and drums made for real music as opposed to reliance on backing tracks and artificial drumbeats, far too much used on the pub circuits these days.

Current operator of the Hideout Martin Myles makes no bones about why he brought the former Plattermen lead singer to Kilcullen: "I thought he was brilliant seven years ago when I first heard him in the Plaza, and I think he's still brilliant today."

Martin also figures that by bringing headliner music to the pub he is helping to 'bring atmosphere back to the town'.



Jeffrey 'Thunderlips' Scully is the drummer with the band and he's been playing with Rob for all of 16 years, and has enjoyed every moment of it because he believes Rob is 'just great to work with'.



"He taught me a lot in the music business; when I joined his band I couldn't even play the drums. Well, I thought I did, but now I can."



Guitarist Anton Morelli says he has worked with a lot of people in the business, but with Rob he is part of a 'great band'. "He's also a good friend," he adds.



Anton plays mostly blues, is a Stevie Ray Vaughan and a Jimmy Hendrix fan. He's played guitar since he was about nine, and has worked for some eight years with Rob. His instrumental pieces on Friday night were at least to Hank Marvin quality. Indeed, I betray my age when I put Anton right up there with the incomparable Bert Weedon, guitarist magnificent of the fifties and early sixties.



The evening in the Hideout was a real great mix, from the opening 'Best of the Blues' through to Rob's own version of 'Mustang Sally' (a much more subtle performance than the one made famous by his son Andrew in 'The Commitments') to his rendition of 'Sitting on the Top of the Bay'' towards the end of the evening. That last was at the point of the night when people weren't particularly listening, but everyone was hearing. The sign of a real professional on this kind of circuit, he didn't require an audience to pay attention, he just sang at his best because that is what he does, and that's what he loves to do.



After some three decades in the business, why is he still doing it? "Well, it's not that I've got a lot of choice," he grins. "What else would I do? I can drive a truck, but I really don't want to be doing that."

There's business to be done, even with the competition from a lot of younger musicians out there. "There's no shortage of good musicians, this island of Ireland has always produced lots of those; but there's a shortage of good gigging bands out there at the moment. I'm out there gigging around Ireland and I'm making a living. I've a few years left in the music business, and I might as well ride it out."



It was great night.

Brian Byrne.

(As usual, we'll run out some more pictures of the night, and the people who were enjoying it, over the next week.)