Some kind of wonderful

Most came for a night of nostalgia, some for their first glimpse of 'the essential group to dance to' and all came away entertained.

King Rat and the Soul Cats staged an impressive comeback to a packed Dave Ferguson Hall at Beau Sejour last Friday.

You could have been forgiven for thinking that the clock had been put back 20 years to those heady days when a gig by some UK headliner at Beau Sejour had pulled in a capacity crowd. But this was a local band who hadn't played in 15 years, 20 since the first official split and the crowd welcomed them back with open arms and dancing feet.

There had been nerves among the band prior to the gig in the week leading up to it and that was understandable. Holidays and commitments meant the group had to squeeze in a week of practising in the run-up to the gig, with a last-minute addition of Jim Delbridge guesting on the Righteous Brothers You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling.

Moments prior to the band taking to the stage on the Friday at Beau Sejour, a large number had been milling about the bar and concourse, most catching up with old friends. With only one door to enter the hall, this caused a bottleneck as punters jostled to get in as the first number, Otis Redding's Can't Turn You Loose, had started.

Inside, the band never let up as hit after hit, together with four originals, came thick and fast. The pace was up and the adrenaline must have been too as the crowd lapped up the soul classics. It was one of the gigs where the audience's excitement was palpable. This must have spurred the band on no end and any nerves must have soon disappeared in the sheer thrill of the performance. Two big screens on either side of the stage projected a live video feed, which gave the gig a real professional edge.

'They are going to have a break, aren't they?' I heard one punter say. No chance. Dancing In The Street, Harlem Shuffle, Soul Man – the songs kept coming.

The three-piece brass section of saxophonist Ged Kelly, trumpet player Martin Thomas and trombonist Andy Coleman belted out the standards as drummer Sav Russo, bassist Pete Creed and guitarist Monty McMonagle together with keyboard player Roy Wileman provided the backing for vocalists Chloe Whitmore and Susann Hatcher with King Rat Chris Dean on top form.

Speaking to Chris a few days later I asked him how he felt the gig went.

'Fantastic and mind-blowing. If I never played another gig, I could live off the memory of just that one. All the work that has been put in over the last few months has been worth it and every member of the band played their part in making it truly memorable.'

Ged Kelly said it had been a great night after not playing live for a good few years. 'Particularly being part of a horn section again was a big buzz and my fellow horns, Andy and Martin, also agreed. We'd put a lot of work in as a section and it seems to have paid off.

'The audience turnout and response was fantastic and we're looking forward to doing it again.'

By pulling in so many people of a similar age group who, let's face it, don't go out as much as they used to, it was inevitable that many there on the night were meeting up with old friends.

This made it a special night.

One person was overheard saying it was like Liberation Day.

So how do they follow that? There is talk of a Christmas gig.

Keep an eye on the Press music pages for any updates.