THE FORBIDDEN CITY

And so the fans would tell the reporter as they filed into the theater in Bath, about why they traveled from far and wide to see Stackridge in 2007. Some were there from Belgium and Germany, some had seen the band 50 times in their lives. After seeing the concert you can see why. This is not the esoteric or abstract, this is the music of people's everyday lives. Here in America we have our own version of the Stackridge experience.he is the folkie Arlo Guthrie. He travels the States and the world with his musical family singing great songs and telling amusing stories. I have seen him many times for the same reason these people said they'll suffer long journeys to see Stackridge. You just can't get enough.

It's a really great show for the fans of British folk and humor, the band reaching for material all the way back to their heyday with favorites like Friendliness and Syracuse the Elephant. I believe there are four members from the old days plus a few newer ones, including two young ladies on violin who added some needed youth and spark to the performance. The band still sounds great on every level even if they look like grandfathers now instead of the long hairs they use to be. They had sufficient personnel on stage to really recreate the album experience without sounding too thin, which was nice. The material from the Friendliness album was the real treat for me, sounding right on, the vocals only occasionally sounding a bit strained. Sound and video were good putting you right in the front row. The only downer was that for some reason the volume dropped off between songs, so hearing the funny banter between the songs was quite difficult. But when the music started the volume was fine. The DVD is no doubt a 4-5 star must-see for the Stackridge fan, I'm sure they'll all be in heaven watching this. For the wider prog site it's a "good but not essential" viewing. 6/10