SOMETIMES it’s the simple things that are the most effective musically: a straightforward three chords, a rock solid four on the floor, a rasping vocal. Job’s a good’un…

Put together they can be as effective as a smack in the chops with a grubby shovel.

And there’ll be a lot of that going on tonight (no-nonsense R&B, not shovel swinging) at the Royal Exchange on Portland for the first gig in almost 20 years by Stupidity, four aficionados of the primal noise that is Dr Feelgood.

They last played together back in 1994 and as Marco Rossi, a former curator of this page who will be appearing in the role of drummer The Big Figure this evening, tells me: “I first saw Dr Feelgood in February 1975 on a Saturday morning TV programme called The Geordie Scene. Wilko and John B Sparks careered back and forth as though tethered to their amps by bungee cord.

“And Lee Brilleaux’s suit looked as if it had been rolled along the pavement, with great deliberation, all the way from Canvey Island to South Shields during a deluge of sump oil and Woodbines, with him still inside it.

“Their music was uncommonly terse and unsentimental: flinty, nervy, pomposity-pricking R&B, punched out with glowering, stoical brio. This was long years before I had developed any kind of taste for alcohol, but it nevertheless somehow put me in the mood for a pint.”

Inspirational stuff indeed, and joining Marco at the Exchange tonight will be Smudger Smith doing his best Wilko chops, Rod Teague on bass and Mark White on vocals, harmonica and crumpled suit.

They’ll be revisiting some of the Feelgood’s greatest tunes including Milk and Alcohol, Down at the Doctors, Roxette, She’s A Wind Up and many many more.

So if you like your music mean and dirty, and your shovels grubby, I’ll see you there.

And talking of things R&B, make a date in your diary for next Saturday, July 12 for the visit of The Barcodes to Dorchester Arts Centre for the latest DA Blues session.

They’re regulars on the UK blues circuit and also familiar items in supermarket bagging areas across the country.

 

 

The biogs of Bob Haddrell (vocals, piano, Hammond organ), Alan Glen (vocals, guitar, harmonica) and Dino Coccia on drums read like an A to Z of the Blues, from Art Themen and Jeff Beck to The Yardbirds and Zoot Money.

Tickets for next Saturday are £13 from the box office on 01305 266926.

Right that’s it for this week, I’m off to polish my shovels...

TONIGHT (4)

Stupidity (Royal Exchange, Portland)

Hustle (Finn’s, Westham Rd, Weymouth)

Ska Night (Edinburgh House of Sounds, Weymouth)

The Vetarans (Lugger, Chickerell, Weymouth) Boytits (Royal Oak, Quayside, Weymouth)

The Leggomen (Lazy Lizard, Esplanade, Weymouth)

The Beat Cats (Wyke Regis Working Mens Club, Portland Rd, Weymouth)

Jam Night (The Lounge, Colwell Centre, Weymouth)

Billy Solo (Wellington, Weymouth)

The Dinnerladies (Café Jagos, Dorchester)

Slipstream (Tides Inn, King St, Weymouth)

Laurence (The Rock, Abottsbury Rd, Weymouth)Bowie tribute

Dr Robert (Chickerell Steam Fair)

The FB Pocket Orchestra (Beach and Barnicott, Bridport)

Kathy (Duke of Cornwall, St Edmund St, Weymouth)

Fargo (Moby Dick’s, Weymouth)

Howling at the Moon (Tom Brown’s, Dorchester)

Open Mic Night (Centenary Club, Weymouth)

Acoustic Session (Victoria Inn, Knights in the Bottom, Chickerell) A night of Americana.

Rockaholics (Belvedere, Weymouth)

Ali (Weymouth Working Mens Club, Mitchell St, Weymouth)

SATURDAY (5)

Chesil Rocks (Higher Farmhouse, Langton Herring)

Storm, Hustle Stereoironics, Howling at the Moon, Ansell and Gretal (Damers School, Dorchester) It’s the school’s Damerfest

Jolly Boys Outing (Chickerell Steam Fair)

Tripod (Finn’s, Westham Rd, Weymouth)

The Leggomen (Lazy Lizard, Esplanade, Weymouth)

Mama Feelgood (Sailor’s Return, St Nicholas St, Weymouth))

Elvis 56 (Edinburgh House of Sounds, Weymouth)

Robert Brown (Lugger, Chickerell, Weymouth)

Tom Caulfield (Royal Oak, Quayside, Weymouth)

Brian Donne (Conservative Club, Weymouth)

ACBBs (Wyke Smugglers, Weymouth)

Replay (Wyke Regis Working Mens Club, Portland Rd, Weymouth)

Blue Rock (Duke of Cornwall, St Edmund St, Weymouth)

Billy Solo (Wellington, Weymouth)

Skint Imperials (Upwey Cider festival)

BJ McCabe (Bridge Inn, Preston,Weymouth)

Gut and Steel (George Inn, Chideock)

Somethin’ Else (Centenary Club, Weymouth)

Amy Mayes (Belvedere, Weymouth)

State of Undress (Tom Brown’s, Dorchester)

Steve M (Weymouth Working Mens Club, Mitchell St, Weymouth)

Sheryl Lee and Friends (Park, Weymouth)

SUNDAY (6)

Diva Lea (Park Hotel, Weymouth) 6pm.

Fluke (Three Compasses, Charminster)

Martin Freed (Edinburgh House of Sounds, Weymouth)

Karen (Royal Oak, Quayside, Weymouth) 3pm.

Ricky Solo (Sailor’s Return, St Nicholas St, Weymouth) From 3pm.

Jam Night (Sailor’s Return, Nicholas Street, Weymouth)

Mark Stacey and friends host this regular Sunday acoustic jam session. Music from 8pm.

Finn (Duke of Cornwall, St Edmund St, Weymouth)

Skint Imperials (Boho, Weymouth) 4pm.

Johnny Mac and Frankie Finn (The Star, Weymouth) 7pm.

Bitter and Twisted (Wyke Smugglers, Weymouth) 4pm.

Gut and Steel (Old Ship, Upwey, Weymouth) 2.30pm

MONDAY (7)

Lucy’s Ukulele Night (King’s Arms, Portesham) 8pm.

TUESDAY (8)

Dougie Cooper Jazz Quartet (The Star, Weymouth)

WEDNESDAY (9)

Boytits (Yates, Weymouth) Martin Freed (Duke of Cornwall, St Edmund St, Weymouth) Dave P’s Open Mic Night (Rendezvous, Weymouth) From 8pm.

Jam with Mark (Wellington Arms, St Alban Street, Weymouth) Mark Stacey hosts this regular acoustic jam session.

Wessex Folk Night (Sailors Return, Nicholas Street, Weymouth) Acoustic folk, here every Wednesday.

THURSDAY (10)

Chloe and Tom (Stables, Weymouth) 7.30pm.

Martin Freed (Edinburgh House of Sounds, Weymouth)

Open Mic Surgery (Tom Brown’s, High East St, Dorchester) All backline provided, come on down and have a play.

Steve’s Singalong (Duke of Cornwall, St Edmund Street, Weymouth) Steve hosts this session, with guests joining in.

Traditional Tune Session (Cove House Inn, ChiswelI, Portland)

Ukulele Sessions (Sailors Return, St Nicholas St, Weymouth) Strum on down from 8pm.

FRIDAY (11)

Jolly Boys Outing (Finn’s, Westham Rd, Weymouth)

Ricky Solo (Edinburgh House of Sounds, Weymouth)

Finn (Lugger, Chickerell, Weymouth)

Lauren Bannon (Royal Oak, Quayside, Weymouth)

Jam Night (The Lounge, Colwell Centre, Weymouth)

Billy Solo (Wellington, Weymouth)

No Country For Old Men (Beach and Barnicott, Bridport)

Ben Lambert (Weymouth Working Mens Club, Mitchell St, Weymouth)

Blue Rock (Wyke Smugglers, Weymouth)