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When Smokey Sings...
Last night Stu and I went to see Motown legend Smokey Robinson perform at the Royal Albert Hall.

Smokey Robinson has had a long and impressive career in music; in at the ground floor when Motown started and it's vice-president for 27 years until 1988.

Smokey wrote many of the Motown hits including; Mary Wells "My Guy", The Temptations' "The Way You Do the Things You Do", "My Girl", "Since I Lost My Baby", and "Get Ready". He also wrote for the Four Tops, The Marvelettes, Brenda Holloway, Marvin Gaye, and The Contours.

So it was with some trepidation that we went to see him. Had he still got it at the age of 67? Was his voice still up to a big show? Could we even remember more than a few of his own hits?(!)

Well, I have to say we were a little disappointed. His voice was as light as ever. Lighter even. At times he was barely audible. And he had had a hell of a lot of work done so his face barely moved. As Stu said 'David Gest meets Tom Jones'. And some of his choice of songs was perhaps a little poor (did we really need a twenty minute crowd participation version of Cruisin' as an encore?)

But having said all of that it was good to see him. He did many of his classics ("Tears of a Clown" and "Tracks of My Tears" to rapturous applause) and a few nice jazz covers from his new album such as "Night and Day". But I think we'll have to file this particular performer as 'good he's still going... but past his prime'.