THE GREEN RAY   -   LIVE 2 DVD SET
Effigy Music – EFDVD002

DVD 1 – with BARRY “THE FISH” MELTON @ The Patti Pavillion Swansea 15/07/05
DVD 2 – “Rockin’ @ The Rayners 03/06/05

So, will these go someway to addressing two “burning questions of the day” that some table as regards The Ray in recorded format ?

Question 1 : The studio takes on the CDs to date don’t seem to capture the Live fire of the band.

Question 2 : For those not blessed with living within of “spitting distance” of their usual Live jaunts such as The Plough – this is their opportunity to see how the band come across in the Live environ.

As stated above, one of the sets is with Barry Melton in tow and very comfortable bed-fellows they make.  Reference is made to Ken last meeting Barry back in 1975 when he formed part of the Rockfield backing band for Barry’s “The Fish” album, which also had Dave Charles in tow.  The main jest being as to where had all Ken’s long blond mane gone over the years. There is also the “added poignancy” of this gig taking place @ The Patti Pavillion.

The other set is drawn from a run-out from Rayners Lane in June of last year, which is probably a fair stab at a live document of our heroes.  There are only a couple of tracks that get duplicated across the two sets.  These being the glorious “Swedish Detective Movie” and their “signature cover” of Julie Miller’s “All My Tears”.  So, in terms of value for money there can be little to quibble over.

The Patti set begins with The Green Ray easing into “Really”.  Barry Melton appears before the end of what turns out to be a warm, mid-paced “loosener” with some great sympathetic work by Simon Whaley.  You could almost say that the “west coast” vibe was deliberate to make Barry feel at home. Anyway, this slips effortlessly into “Swedish Detective Movie” – one of The Ray’s own contemporary epics.  During which Barry adds some tasteful slide. It is interesting to both watch and listen to Barry & Richard with their respective styles of playing.  Next up is “Silver Ring”, one of the shorter punchier Ray offerings.  We then enter a run of four Melton tracks, namely “Love”, “S.O.S.”.  The latter of which has you thinking that Treece and Melton are regular sparring partners.  The highlight of this part of the set has to be the magnificent “Mojo Navigator” – the end of which is greeted with genuine warm and heartfelt applause.  “Love Machine” kicks in with a menacing intro before they hit a great groove.  Talking of “hitting grooves2, we then get a great version of The Green Ray’s “signature cover” namely Julie Miller’s “All My Tears”.  Matters draw to the close with a fine rendition of the Melton/Robert Hunter “Jesse James”.  They encore with “Butchers Boy” which enabled Barry to dispense a blistering finale.

So, did it work and was more than an effective time piece ?  Damn right it did to these eyes and ears.

OK – what does the 2^nd instalment hold in store ?

This set was culled from one of their support slots to Man on one of their London sojourns.

The proceedings get underway with a confident “Swedish Detective Movie” and I would rate the sound quality on this disc slightly ahead of the previous disc. One definite bonus is a far more uncluttered view of Richard with plenty of shots of his dexterity.  A fairly “rocked up” version of The Helps’ pastoral hymn “Running Down Deep” follows and is giving a very competent outing. Another plus for me is the coverage of Simon’s drumming which is always a treat to witness.

Matters get off to a bit of a shaky start vocally for Simon “H” on “Now” – thankfully this state of affairs is soon remedied and a pretty solid airing ensues. Like previous efforts from Simon this gels far more now – definitely benefiting from sustained performances.  One of the stars of this set follows – namely a great version of “Morning Song”. Richard’s vocals have definitely become more confident over the years. His playing on the riffs and runs really come to the fore, ably supported by some great vintage bass playing from Ken.

Next up is one of the slower paced numbers from “Back From The Edge” in the form of “Ghosts”.  As a showcase for the bluesier side of Richard’s playing it works – although I’ve come to prefer the faster funkier paced middle section.  Quite interesting to see where the tempo and feel of this section could be taken on some newer material.  As an aside, the same could may be said of the fairly commercial approach and structure of “Silver Ring” – after all, nothing is going to be sustained by merely revisiting the past.

Apologies for that little detour – back to the facts and the tracks.  Next up is their funky little country flavoured rocker of “Swains Green”.  A clever amalgam of very English lyrical sentiments and American country mid-paced swing.  Some fine punchy drumming drives the whole affair along in fine style.

A pleasant inclusion is to be found in the form of “Alley Cat”.  Although a feature of The Green Ray’s set from a few years back, its’ only recorded version previously has been on Help Yourself’s “5^th”. So, for the completists among us, this is an interesting curio.  I fact, I reckon this is a far more confident version than The Ray have previously displayed. A fairly gentle paced tempo, giving lots of time and space for Richard to go off on a few excursions.

To wrap things up we get another swaggering romp through “All My Tears” – a thoroughly enjoyable conclusion to how they sounded back in mid 2006.

So, if you feel that your disposition towards the Ray falls into the two questions tabled at the head of this review I can but recommend that you contact Effigy (www.effigymusic.co.uk) and dabble.  Better still, try and make a veritable pilgrimage - Thou shalt not be disappointed.

Richard Gould.