Mick Ronson's Memorial Concert

Brooker shines at Celebrity Concert

It is hard not to criticise this double CD album without it sounding like a criticism of the late Mick Ronson, a gifted guitarist and performer. But exactly a year after his untimely death, this tribute concert was recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon (or the Labatts Apollo, if you can bring yourself to say it) in London.

Classic songs aren't exactly massacred here; let's just say they're smothered with too much affection by the likes of Joe Elliot of Def Leppard, the Spiders from Mars (minus Bowie ... and Ronson, of course) and Ian Hunter. Ronson was lucky enough to have played a part in classics such as Ziggy Stardust, White Light White Heat and All the Young Dudes, but I wonder what he'd make of these, er, interpretations, particularly Hunter bludgeoning his classic Once Bitten Twice Shy to death.

I know I'll be accused of being a Procoholic for saying that Gary Brooker's solo performance of A Whiter Shade Of Pale (a particular fave of Ronson's) is head and shoulders above anything here, but it has to be said that it is particularly fine. It's also the most moving moment of this 2 CD set, which was originally broadcast on BBC Radio One. Gary then joins Willy and The Poor Boys (with Bill Wyman and Andy Fairweather-Low) for Mystery Train, but the only other point of interest is Steve Harley's contribution.

A collection of Mick Ronson's finest studio performances would make a far better tribute to him. But then we might have missed out on what I believe to be the only live solo version of Pale.

Many thanks to davelee for sending this review to BtP