The Almighty – Manchester Academy: Live Review

By Mike Ainscoe on 3rd December 2023 • ( Leave a comment )

The Almighty, Balaam & The Angel – Manchester Academy – 1st December 2023

Ricky Warwick is one busy man. Not content with running his solo career, rebooting Thin Lizzy and heading the Black Star Riders – the latter a particular fave of ours At The Barrier – he does retro too! It’s an evening of heading back in time. Even one of the pit security staff members at Manchester Academy is excited – making sure he got the shift at this gig to relive his youth. Like many, if not most, of those in attendance, he’s buoyed by the chance to see “for one final time”, the myth, the legend that is The Almighty.

He talks about his memories of a band that might not have been the most popular or who sold the most records, but as one whose fanbase was a particularly fervent and loyal one. Which probably goes to explain why the three shows in Glasgow (naturally), Manchester and London get the chance to see (for one final time remember…) the spectacle of The Almighty. The Barrowlands, The Forum and The Academy are chosen specifically for their atmosphere and crowds. All are all sold out and the packed Academy is a most welcome haven as the temperature outside plummets.

Sounding like a showboating boxing ring MC, For the first time in over thirty years at least since last night, the original line up of singer/guitarist Ricky Warwick, drummer Stumpy Monroe, bassist Floyd London and lead guitarist Andy ‘Tantrum’ McCafferty grace the stage. Thirty odd years on, the quartet look the part – road warriors with decades of miles under their bonnets – yet looking all the better for it. Match fit, looking like they’ve never been away and the muscle memory still intact for four album’s worth of songs ripe for rejuvenating and firing out of the huge stack of Marshalls on the backline.

Power, Addiction, Destoyed, Wrench – titles that are straight to the point – delivered with venom by a band that’s similarly straight to the point. Even if it’s not a single word, it’s the same message that comes from Blood, Fire & Love and Welcome To Defiance as the quartet and audience – some more enthusiastic than others as they come over the barrier in the first couple of songs – connect in a joyous pleasure in playing these songs. All sorts of thoughts are spinning about why it’s taken so long when there’s such clear chemistry and more importantly, are we witnessing the start of something fresh from The Almighty? And is this the place that’s Ricky’s spiritual home? “Good to see you!” he says. “It’s been a while!” like we didn’t know, and on the understanding that it might be ‘a while’ until we get this again, the most is made.

In over twenty songs, there’s barely a let-up bar Little Lost Sometimes, by which time a breather has been earned with a man of the match nomination for Full Force Lovin’ Machine – but feel free to disagree – and the last song of the main set, Free ‘N’ Easy. The latter breezing along in the thrill of the moment, never mind thoughts of what has and what might happen with The Almighty.

Whoever said “never say never” should take a bow. The claim on the band’s website – “for one time only – the original lineup reunited” might need to be rethought as well. Surely there’s a demand here for a job to be done for The Almighty. While they finale with Wild & Wonderful, we reflect on the fact that we may be in the back end of 2023, but these three Almighty dates may have given most of those in Glasgow, London and Manchester their gig of the year.

Balaam & The Angel are an apt selection as a support act with the Scottish connection and another band who’ve weathered the years. They’ve also been out of the scene regarding product – the twenty year recording absence before 2019’s Not The Real World, not dissimilar to that of the headliners.

The set remains rooted in the late Eighties – the glory days of The Greatest Story Ever Told whose namecheck receives waves of recognition. “Hello. How are you?” says Mark Morris in a friendly Scots burr. “It’s f***ing freezing but we intend to warm you up,” as they launch into the friendly chorus of the chugging New Kind Of Love. They have enough in their own locker to remind us that like their headlining partners, they’re a band that in hindsight, were unlucky not to break into bigger ponds. He also says a hello to Beatrice who “wouldn’t normally be here – she likes Taylor Swift,” adding a comfortable familiarity in between a set that swings and swaggers and chimes with some searing guitar lines.

Long Time Loving You’s “Hey now girl take a look at me now, I’m a long time loving you,” sees them channelling the sound of Free or Bad Company and given the occasion, there’s almost an unwritten message in Running Out Of Time and the rousing stomp of I’ll Show You Something Special. Yeah, it could even be G’n’R or The Darkness (especially taking a look back at the promo video of the time) but Balaam & The Angel tick the mission accomplished box for warming up for something that’s promised to be “loud and obnoxious.”