The Bridgwater-based 2 Tone Rudies opened the proceedings. The band has been around for just a couple of years, but in that time they've played numerous gigs in the local area and built up quite a following, a small contingent of whom appeared to have been brought along tonight.
 | | 2 Tone Rudies |
I had been led to believe the 2 Tone Rudies were a quintet, but instead there were just four members in evidence who proceeded to play 30 minutes of up-tempo ska/punk/reggae. It was clear to see they are heavily influenced by the new generation of ska-punk bands, which is no bad thing, but they didn't really bring anything vastly new or original to the table. It also struck me at times that rather than addressing the whole audience, they were just playing to their group of mates who danced along enthusiastically throughout the set. This made the band appear a little introverted and nervous. I suppose at this point The Palace was still quite empty, which probably didn't help to boost their confidence, but they were pretty good at what they did. With more experience, they could be even better. The Beat Due to the fact that the second support band for the evening had pulled out a few weeks earlier, there was an interminable delay before The Beat took to the stage. I must admit I'm the sort of person who hates waiting. I detest queuing or hanging around aimlessly and so I found it quite annoying, even if the DJ was playing some decent and fitting music throughout.
 | | The Beat |
Nevertheless, this was soon forgotten as The Beat took to the stage. This band formed in Birmingham way back in 1978, and was at the forefront of the second wave of the ska movement, alongside The Specials, The Selecter, Madness and Bad Manners. They released a trio of albums and toured the world with the likes of The Police, REM and David Bowie, yet never really reached the heights they should have. Tonight, nearly 30 years later, is the first time I have actually seen The Beat in a live environment, although as they called time in 1983 and disbanded for nearly two decades (while members went on to form bands such as General Public and The Fine Young Cannibals), that's understandable. Although the lineup has changed somewhat since the early years, with several of the original players (Dave Wakeling, David Steel and Andy Cox) missing, they are still an awesome live act. Opening with the Smokey Robinson song Tears of a Clown, the band proceeded to blast through a set which heavily favoured their classic back catalogue. Within minutes, the dance floor had filled up nicely and everyone was bouncing up and down like over-zealous contestants at a trampoline festival. Ska'd for life Singer Ranking Roger, in a one-piece jumpsuit and looking remarkably youthful, was tonight joined on vocal duties by his son Murphy (also known as Ranking Junior and who also appeared on The Ordinary Boys song Boys Will be Boys). The duo worked amazingly together. Grinning throughout, they bounded around (making full use of the stage), traded lines in a dual vocal attack and encouraged crowd participation while appearing to enjoy themselves immensely. Behind and besides the two vocalists, drummer Everett Morton, keyboardist Dave "Blockhead" Wright, guitarist Neil Deathridge, bassist Andy Pearson and saxophonist Mark Hamilton (who is replacing the recently retired Saxa) provided the soundtrack and showed the youngsters of today how it should be done - tight and fluid, and never missing a beat (!) throughout.
 | | The Beat |
The music sounded as fresh as ever, being an infectious fusion of soul, punk and pop, as well as a bounteous helping of reggae. Numbers included Ranking Fullstop, Get a Job, Big Shot and Rough Rider - the overtly political number Stand Down Margaret (a politically charged social commentary of the 1980s) had its lyrics updated to give modern-day relevance. They were not just content to dish out old numbers and several more recently penned songs (including Muscle Ska and How Do You Do?, the latter of which we were informed was written by Junior). The lads also treated us to their version of Rock the Casbah in tribute to the late Clash front man Joe Strummer. As the band concluded the set with an anthemic Mirror in the Bathroom, I felt they'd cheated us as they'd been on stage for a mere half-an-hour. Glancing at my watch, however, I realised in surprise that in fact they'd a played for twice as long, absorbing me so much in the performance that the time had sped by. A few minutes later they returned for an encore which featured numbers such as Save It for Later, Too Nice to Talk to, Best Friend and Jackpot. Then it was all over, leaving me ska'd for life and looking forward to their new album which should surface sometime next year. | 
