- photo courtesy of Simon Whitehouse
Vini Reilly marked Tony Wilson’s passing with the remarkable “A Paean for Wilson” LP. With a nod to AHW’s baldly stated appraisal of Vini’s vocal talents, the work was entirely instrumental and allowed Reilly to deliver some of his most emotive and accomplished playing to date.
It was only right and proper then, that the band should find themselves in Tony’s home town, on the 24th of January, no less, performing the album in its entirety in a quasi-classical atmosphere.
The band assembled for this performance was Vini accompanied by Durutti stalwarts Bruce Mitchell and Keir Stewart alongside returnees Tim Kellett and John Metcalfe with Poppy Morgan on keyboards.
Durutti fans will be familiar with the informal and occasionally chaotic nature of some of their gigs with Reilly’s self-deprecating humour and occasional bum note juxtaposed with his astonishing virtuosity. Tonight was something different. From the opening, jolting, looped sample of Wilson’s voice to the dying echoes of the final notes, this was an intense, focused and polished performance and stands as much a tribute to Reilly and Mitchell and their utterly unique band as it does to the mercurial Mr Wilson.
The recording itself is lovely: one of those nights were the PA sound, the mic position and the audience all work together to create something very special.
Stream “Requiem”:
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Download complete show in mp3 format (click here)
Setlist:
Or Are You Just a Technician?/Chant
Stuki
Along Came Poppy
Brother
Catos Revisited
Quatro
Duet With Piano
The Truth
How Unbelievable
Requiem
If you download and enjoy this music, we would fully expect you to support the artists by delving into their back catalogue and attending their gigs. Further Durutti info can be found at the following, excellent, website: www.cerysmaticfactory.info and several of their releases can be bought directly from www.kookydisc.co.uk.