Tuesday 15 June 2010

Joan Jett and The Blackhearts at 100 Club - 14 June 2010



It’s a mixed audience tonight. One third old rocker, one third old punk and one third lesbian. And everyone is rubbing along famously as we await a rare small venue appearance from the rock goddess that is Joan Jett.

Jett is having a bit of a renaissance. There is a well received new film coming out chronicling her early (and scarcely believable) experiences as one of notorious teen rockers The Runaways, and if that wasn’t enough, stadium filling US punks Green Day are taking Jett and her band The Blackhearts on a jaunt across Europe as their special guests.

Oh, and there’s a new Greatest Hits package out...

Jett admits to being 51 but looks at least 15 years younger, much more petite than you would think, her hair shorter, her dark eyes huge. And she is delighted to be here, mentioning at one point that the 100 Club was one of the few places that The Runaways never got around to playing back in the day.

If the current band are not the original Blackhearts, they are certainly the original something- the drummer and keyboard players are Neolithic in rock terms, the latter looking like an accountant who is doing this as an enjoyable vacation from his retirement home in Florida.

However, ignore my ageist jibes – this band is as tight as a pair of leather trousers. These guys ROCK in an utterly unironic and totally butt shakingly compelling way.

The Blackhearts’ sound veers from blues rock to glam rock to punk rock. Joan Jett is adept at whatever it takes to move a crowd. And boy, are we moved.

The set starts with the one-two double whammy of ‘Bad Reputation’ and ‘Cherrybomb’, soon to be followed by the glam stomp of ‘Do You Wanna Touch’ (Glitter rehabilitated for one night only). It’s aces all the way.

The ‘hits’ are disposed of without ceremony; even stadium-sized monster “I Love Rock And Roll” is approached via a segue from another track and well before the encores. The bonehead simplicity of this tune actually makes it one of Jett’s weakest songs, although I am sure that she is happy with the amount that it has contributed to her bank balance down the years.

Runaways material such as ‘School Days’ nestle comfortably with the later anthems like ‘I Hate Myself For Loving You’. Jett also has an eye for a cover version- from the Replacements track ‘Androgynous’ to Sly Stone’s ‘Everyday People’

By the end of the ninety minute set, everyone is wringing with sweat. I’m suffering from a heavy cold and I suspect that I’ve just infected everybody in the place – they’d tell you that it was worth it.

1 comment:

Ryan said...

Gotta like the Runaways for what they were, '77 style punkettes. Was it a sellout from the start? who knows? but the energy could be felt, which may have opened up the punk world for other women, and I can't argue with that, and those who could get beyond the male dominated society (i guess i'm guilty) and create something they felt worth saying in a diy and unorthodox manner. Love the timing and where they were coming from overall.

I know it was a Blackhearts show but just the same, what do you think about the situation?