Fortune smiled wide last night in Glasgow, for last week it had been announced on Hamish Hawk’s social media platforms that he and his band would be playing a small set in George Square as part of the musical entertainment laid on during the UCI World Cycling Championships that are currently taking place within the city (and elsewhere around Scotland).
The timings were shown on said socials as 5.35pm – 6.20pm. I asked Birdy if she’d like to tag along and contacted Michelle to see if it would line up with her either finishing or starting her working day, or perhaps during a day off. Heck, I even asked the OH if she wanted to come along as well (though these days gigs are really NOT her thing).
The accessibility of this city still makes my jaw drop, it really does. Compared to the all-day affair it would be to go and see something (or someone) in London from the relatively “near” distance of Luton, and mindful that working days applied to Birdy and Michelle and both of them wouldn’t be off shift until around 5pm, the three of us (myself, Birdy and the OH) took the 5.19pm train into Queen Street. The train arrived a few minutes late, we sat near Cowlairs Junction – as we invariably seem to these days when heading into the city…never seems to be a problem when leaving, oddly enough – for a few more minutes and arrived around 5.30pm. I was expecting the square to be HOACHIN’ but it wasn’t! We were in and near the stage within a few mins.
Earlier in the day it had been reported in the local online news media that the headline act had pulled out at the last minute, so it was going to be just the other two acts playing – Sacred Paws and Hamish. I was hoping it would mean a shift in the set times, and it did. When we arrived, Sacred Paws had already started their set and had been playing for about 15 mins when we arrived. There was plenty of their set left to enjoy though and the surprisingly small crowd were lapping them up.
As I say, the weather was glorious! Beautiful early evening sunshine and a gentle breeze. There must have been maybe 500-600 people in the whole of the square, tops. I couldn’t believe how quiet it was.
Sacred Paws have a really good calypso/ska vibe to them. Fun, upbeat tunes that the crowd really enjoyed. I liked the sound of them. But of course I was anticipating the arrival of the man himself.
As I was with the OH, with Michelle and Birdy just behind us and chatting away to each other, I spotted a lady I got talking to at the Blitzkrieg Shop when Hamish was doing his in-store appearance promoting the release of his Angel Numbers album. She was at the barrier and so I went over to her and we got chatting away once more.
The time passed quickly and I was happy with the new place I had cemented for myself having moved there to have my chat with Sarah. A wee bit of soundchecking needed doing. All the guys were doing a pre-tune and then Hamish came on to check his mic. He sang a line from the ‘Mauritian Badminton Doubles Champion, 1973’, which had most of the crowd – not just me – singing back to him “and you call back, Jim dear, it’s living”. Lol. The OH managed to capture it and Hamish’s reaction is so flipping sweet.
If a set can be both blistering quick and slick, yet simultaneously laidback and fab then last night’s set was exactly that. The band once again were superb. We had a new face. We had a different bass player. I didn’t catch his name, I’m afraid, but he was more than up to the task. I am hoping though that it doesn’t mean that Alex is no longer with the band and that he just had other personal commitments or something that prevented him from being there last night. I guess I’ll see about that in Blackpool (if not earlier).
The set was tight. They crammed in around 11 tracks, I think. There’s 11 I can remember them performing anyway, starting with ‘Calls To Tiree’. A quick double check and I had forgotten the new one, ‘You Can Film Me.’ ‘This, Whatever It Is, Needs Improvements’ was performed as well. So, that makes 13 – wow! Slick and quick as I say. All done in one hour. Hot stuff!
The whole thing was just fab, relaxing and chill. Great weather. Good friends. Great atmosphere. George Square was actually relatively quiet. It’s been busier at Christmas in all honesty.
And that just blew me away most of all – apart from Hamish himself being absolutely bloody fantastic again….just to get that calibre of a music act, performing for FREE in George Square on a sunny, chill Tuesday afternoon was fabulous. On top of that, just the ease of getting in and out of the city on the train also – you just can’t top it. Fab, fab, fab!
Next up for me is seeing One Nine Eight at King Tut’s on Sunday night. I’m a little apprehensive that this one might be a rowdy affair. I’ll soon see! Wish me luck!