| Was it a man? Was it a bird? No.... it was Bryn 'SuperPlank' Williams
with MegaSplinter sons Russel and Stuart who, in the guise of 'Johnny Plank
and the Planktones', invaded the Chester Bluegrass
Music Club one Monday in January. Despite the thick invisibility cloaking
shield of water droplets which 'The Tones' had activated, blanket-like, for
miles around, many people still managed to find their way to the venue just
to see if it was true that such a SuperGroup really existed. They came from
Stockport, Birkenhead and beyond Liverpool. From Holywell and beyond Abergele,
even; such is the awe in which these 'Bela Fleck and the Flecktones' look-alikes
are held.
The Showcase Evening, hosted by 'Almost Bluegrass', started off normally enough with a well-attended Beginners Hour. Come 9:00 p.m. the session proper started and built up steam as more pickers arrived and by 9:50 it was really cooking. After a short break the Showcase Guests took their stances and the crowd waited in an air of high expectation. The atmosphere was electric! We were not to be disappointed. Senior Plank made some irreverent comments then away they went with their mostly self-penned offerings. 'Rovin' Rambler' was followed by a parody on 'Five Foot Two'. I must remember to ask Stuart what he greases his strings with to make them play so fast and accurately. I already know what Bryn greases his voice with... he's even written a gospel song about it - 'Greenall's Bitter'!
High spots in the set included 'God's from Widnes', which reveals many little- known facts about the august gentle non-person, and 'Blue Peter', a songabout stage presentation (I must speak to Bryn about that...). We were well surprised by a song in which Bryn, playing ukulele(!), announced to all and sundry his allegiance and subservience to the Crown, offering Her Majesty the opportunity of kissing his donkey or maybe mule. At least, I think that's what he meant... it was called 'The Queen Don't Like Bluegrass'. This culminated in a magnificent finale with the National Anthem, complete with flag-waving, which could not have been played any more out of tune without becoming a different number altogether. Russel did a great job on singing 'Blue Night', with Stuart on banjo. This was followed by 'Jimmy Sutton' with Stuart coping more than ably on fiddle. At The Commercial lives a small group of French technicians. Like all French, they love 'un peu d'animation' so were not disappointed when The Planktones launched into a 'Black Eyed Suzie' parody complete with pseudo-dance routine. The final 'More - Encore' call was silenced by a great version of 'Dueling Banjos' which commenced with an ad-lib intro about holidays in France but rapidly resolved into an incredible, straight instrumental. The French contingent was so impressed by the night in general and the Planktones in particular that they bought drinks all round for all the players and singers present. After another break the evening went out in red-hot style with a picking session lasting to 11:30. A great evening, enjoyed by all. Thanks, 'Tones... please come again! |
