Buddy Holly And The Cricketers – St George’s Hall

FOR ONE night last week at the Bradford concert hall, five musicians had the eager audience spellbound.

They were led by John Stirling as their leader Buddy, wearing the famous black-rimmed glasses, his cheeky face lighting up every moment.

He loved his endearing numbers as much as we did.

And so did his four cavorting colleagues: guitarist Jim Newman, who engagingly introduced the show’s opening, bassist Andy Ingram, pianist and saxophone player Neil Nicholas, and drummer Darren Barnes at the rear.

Buddy Holly’s style is as distinctive as other great performers like Elvis Presley or Queen, and his personality is part of the act.

Joe gets as much pleasure from performing as audiences derive from what they saw and hear.

His audiences are not let off lightly either. We were promised the aisles and that’s what we got.

The final surprise was the of the saxophonist’s voice, especially in Twist And Shout and Great Balls Of Fire. Altogether, never a dull moment!

• Coming up at St George’s Hall on Sunday will be singers Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbott, performing one of several concerts added to their UK tour following phenomenal demand for tickets.

Soul Legends will come to St George’s Hall on December 5, in a production from the same team as the hit tribute show Magic of Motown.

The new show features Gwen Dickey, from leading 70 soul band Rose Royce, performing hits like Car Wash, Wishing On A Star and Love Don’t Live Here Any More.

Popular tribute show Thank You For The Music returns to St George’s Hall on December 12 with hit songs from both Abba and the Bee Gees, including Waterloo, Dancing Queen, Stayin’ Alive, Super Trouper, Night Fever, Islands in the Stream and Chain Reaction.

Visit bradford-theatres.co.uk or call 01274 432000 to book tickets.

John Pettitt