Wednesday, February 13, 2008

From The Jam Drops in on Stumptown

Late in January I had the chance to catch the reunion tour with the UK's original Jammers Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler and their touring outfit known as From The Jam. Along with Dave Moore (guitar and keyboards) and Russell Hastings stepping up for The Jam's vocalist and front man Paul Weller, the power and energy of FTJ was captivating as they rocked through anthems of my youth. Without a doubt, Hastings took control and properly filled the shoes, vocals and guitar duty Weller left behind over 25 years ago. When I closed my eyes, the band's audible energy (and vocals) filled the small confines of Portland's Aladdin Theater as if I was listening to The Jam live. Note for note, their performance was great.

From their set list they nailed The Jam's greatest hits - "Going Underground", "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight", "The Eton Rifles", "Strange Town", "Town Called Malice" and one of my favorites, "Smithers Jones." It was an amazing evening not soon to forget. Thanks for the heads up on this one Chris!





3 comments:

Cucumber Jones said...

Sounds like From the Jam rocked Portland. I have seen them perform on the UK tour last December to a sold out London Forum. The band blew my mind, mainly because I really didn't think they were going to hack it without Paul Weller.

However, they proved me wrong, and in fact, I'd go as far to say that the new incarnation of the Jam sound a zillion times better than the original line-up.

Apparently they will be releasing a live DVD in May and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

Shrewgy said...

Thank you BK and Sproulzie, I didn't know about these guys and now, I do.

Kilwag said...

Aaarrgh. I got all stoked to see the show, found out I was a week too late. Kicking myself for not being on top of this. My buddy Neil saw them in Chicago, he said it was an incredible show, and he's seen the original lineup back in their day.