;)
Review of Blow Monkeys at 12 Bar, Westcott Place, Swindon
Sunday, March 8, 2009 at 6:09PM Wow! This night was more fun than a barrel load of monkeys. Actually, it was a barrel load of monkeys, getting up to some corking musical tricks.
For half the crowd - old enough to remember the 1980s - it was a trip down memory lane and the guys did not disappoint, playing all their hits with panache and style, getting the whole room dancing to such numbers as Wait, It Doesn’t It Have To Be This Way and Digging Your Scene.
But for the other half it was a new journey through the new music of The Blow Monkeys. It’s much harder edged, more rocky and bluesy with real punch.
It is a real joy to watch when you have four guys who have been around the block musically, and are still up there creating something fresh, exciting and new.
Dr Robert may look more like Jack Black than the crumpled pin-up picture that once resided on the bedroom door, but he still has a voice to die for, oodles of charisma and a twinkle that outstays mere good looks - and he’s still got great hair.
There is only one guitar yet it was a full sound. The sax was divine and gave a Dave Brubeck meets Curtis Mayfield feel to the jazzier numbers, the bass lines were weaving some intricate patterns and the drummer was top notch.
The medley at the end took everyone back to the hardcore pop of wooden dance floors, chrome fittings and myriad coloured lighting as we jigged and swayed and called for more.
The Blow Monkeys still have stardust in their eyes and they aren’t afraid to sprinkle it around.
- Flicky Harrison - Swindon Advertiser
Selected Press Quotes from 2008
Wednesday, December 31, 2008 at 8:20AM "The warmth and ease...suggest Dr Robert might do a Richard Hawley yet"
UNCUT
"Devil's Tavern is vintage Blow: breezy soul-pop, "proper tunes" and Dr Robert's nonchalant croon intact"
WORD MAGAZINE
"If the Devil's Tavern had a lock-in, you'd stumble out at dawn, blinking, your head heavy but your heart won forever"
RECORD COLLECTOR
"Musicians with fire in their bellies....flashes of brilliance"
MOJO
"Their first album in 18years still finds the frontman in fine voice, Robert
continues to sound like he dresses only in velvet and smokes cigarillos"
Q
“Their political compass still works as well as their pop ear”
The Western Mail
“It’s a great re-invention”
Eve magazine
“Reformed after 18 years, Devil's Tavern acknowledges, as they always did, that resistance can be as much about rising above as fighting against. Rating: 8/10”
The Press Association
“But this is no mere ’80s revival, their music sounds fresh and strong. They made their name with soulful pop with a punky swagger. Now, they’re older, wiser, but still capable of penning excellent pop songs – 8 out of 10”
Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Argus - Komedia Brighton
Monday, September 8, 2008 at 1:45PM 
In just ten years The Blow Monkeys went from being a new wave-influenced band to signposting the house and garage boom in the UK, before they split in 1990.
Now, 18 years later, frontman Dr Robert has remarshalled his troops, and brought the original band line-up back together with a new album, Devil's Tavern.
"I think we moved a little bit too fast for some people," admits Dr Robert, real name Robert Howard, today.
"Looking back we went through quite a lot of changes. I think we were a bit ahead of the line with the house and garage scenes. We split up before they really took off.
"I was the songwriter and I was very open to what was going on around me. I was living in Brixton with a friend who was a DJ, which influenced me. Our last album (the experimental dance-influenced Springtime For The World) confused a few people, but in retrospect now it gets the best reviews."
Getting the band back together didn't prove too difficult, as the original break-up had been quite amicable.
"We felt like the timing was right," says Howard. "We were leaving on a high. It was very friendly - there were no court cases or anything like that."
In their 1980's heyday the band had been more of a cult favourite than a mainstream pop act, although they scored some chart hits with singles Digging Your Scene, It Doesn't Have To Be This Way and Wait, Howard's collaboration with Kym Mazelle.
After the split Howard embarked on a solo career which encompassed eight albums. He also produced the likes of Beth Orton and Paul Weller until he decided to bring his original cronies back together earlier this year.
"I fancied being in a band again," he says. "I got in touch with them and talked about getting back together, then went away and wrote the songs quickly with the band in mind. The main thing was to do something new. I didn't want to get back together and just play all the old songs."
There had been no real problems settling back into their old roles.
"We were never a band that socialised together," says Robert. "We always got on well though. We are like a family."
To record the album the band asked their fans to pre-order the record to help fund the end product in the same way cult favourites Marillion did with their 2001 release Anoraknophobia.
"It seemed to make sense," says Howard. "We could see if there was an audience out there, and it seemed like a good way to fund the album without a middleman.
"And it was nice to know somebody was going to buy it!"
The live show will feature the majority of the album, which was recorded in Howard's home studio in Spain, as well as new arrangements of some of the old favourites.
"I think we will keep together," says Howard. "We are thinking about touring in America and Japan, and then doing another record.
"We are enjoying it, and we'll carry on with the band as long as people turn up!"
The Star - Leadmill Review
Thursday, September 4, 2008 at 3:12PM It can't be easy making a comeback after almost two decades off the scene. Your original fans are likely tohave moved on, and finding new ones can prove to be problematic.
But The Blow Monkeys - perhaps emboldened by recent signs of a 1980s revival - have done just that. During that decade they were one of the most underrated acts, with a concoction of soul, pop and indie that livened the charts. As Spinal Tap would have it, their appeal has become more selective. Which is hardly surprising when you last released an LP 18 years ago. But there is still a keen fanbase - their new album, Devil's Tavern, was recorded and released thanks to contributions to their website.
Although the material is more subtle than their bestknown hits, it is welldelivered live. Unlike some revived acts who rely on old material, the Monkeys have made an effort to move on. It's just a shame that this material is unlikely to be heard by anyone who isn't already familiar with the band. Because it is very likeable, although you have to hear some of it more than once for it really to sink in. And these days, when immediacy is all, it may be unfairly disregarded.
New songs made up much of the set - no place for numbers like Out With Her or Wicked Ways - but there was room for singles like Digging Your Scene, Wait and their best song and biggest hit, the wonderful It Doesn't Have To Be This Way. They were called back for two encores, ending with an excellent version of early single Man From Russia. So Monkey business continues. Let's hope they hang around a bit longer.
Monkey Magic There - The Cluny - Newcastle Chronicle
Monday, September 1, 2008 at 2:58PM The Blow Monkeys at The Cluny, Sunday, August 31, 2008. After an 18-year break, The Blow Monkeys made an energetic return with two performances in one day on Sunday. The group started its mammoth day with an appearance at Glasgow’s Retrofest then travelled down to Newcastle for a highly appreciated gig at The Cluny.
Local band The Vaudeville Class entertained the crowd before the main event and I have to say, look out for this band, it is on the up. But the night belonged to The Blow Monkeys who previewed songs from new album Devil’s Tavern (released next Monday) and also entertained with some classic tracks, including It Doesn’t Have To Be This Way. In the 80s, this band was one of the first to write about Aids in Digging Your Scene but time has seen the band – and its writer and lead singer Dr Robert – mellow somewhat. Gravel-voiced Robert remains deeper than your average songwriter and the new songs still have some of his trademark reflection. However, new song Travellin’ Soul, dedicated to Robert’s wife, really shows his softer side.
The packed set-list really demonstrated the variety of the band’s tracks and showed how, more than 20 years after success in the UK and America, there is still no other band like it. The original line-up of Dr Robert, Neville Henry, Mick Anker and Tony Kiley still blend together in a beautiful way. I particularly loved Neville’s
saxophone playing. During Heaven I actually felt as though I was ascending with them. In the intimate setting of The Cluny, there was a real connection between the band and the audience. It seemed rather obvious that The Blow Monkeys have retained their loyal following even during their long hiatus. However, the band is not all about ballads, as the lads picked up the pace for the finale. It’s safe to say The Blow Monkeys blew the roof off The Cluny!
Devil's Tavern - Scottish Sunday Express
Monday, September 1, 2008 at 1:48PM 4 out of 5 Stars
;)
With an album funded by fans desperate for new material, Dr Robert’s mob are back after a 18-year gap. The smooth pop-soul sound of the Eighties is now a little looser – courtesy of Dr Robert’s folkier forays in his solo output, plus his helping out Paul Weller over the years – but they still have a way with a tune, especially first single Bullet Train. Let’s not wait so long for the next one.
17 Seconds Blogspot
Thursday, August 21, 2008 at 1:43PM Eighteen years after they last played together, this year sees the return of The Blow Monkeys. The four members, Neville Henry, Mick Anker, Toney Kiley and their charismatic singer the legendary Dr. Robert are back together and...it's fantastic.
With reformation albums (and you can probably ask the Verve about this), there are going to be difficulties, surely? Well, no, not here. Because whatever those flies on the wall witnessed, the end result is fantastic. The band are certainly not retreading old ground, but producing fantatsic songs that genuinely can add to their canon. There are no re-writes of 'Digging Your Scene' 'Choice?' or 'It Doesn't Have To Be This Way' but rather, songs that came together without the machines taking over, as Dr. Robert himself acknowledges happened in the eighties. He says that songs like the gorgeous 'A Momentary Fall' and the fabulous single 'Bullet Train' take them into areas they've never been before. To listen to a song like 'Wait' now reminds you of how they investigated new ground, but also that they were machine driven at the time, and they sure as heck are not now.
So is there still a 'glam jazz swing' element to their music? Well, it's there, in part, but it feels fresh because they are making something new, rather than treading new ground. And that's the best you would want from any band, especially eighteen years since their last album. They always mixed up a huge variety of influences, and that continues.
Good to have you back, guys. Don't leave it eighteen years next time.
Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Saturday, August 16, 2008 at 9:10AM 8/10
Eighteen years on, The Blow Monkeys’ original line-up is back together. But this is no mere ’80s revival, their music sounds fresh and strong. They made their name with soulful pop with a punky swagger.
Now, they’re older, wiser, but still capable of penning excellent pop songs.
Q Magazine
Tuesday, August 5, 2008 at 9:02AM 3 Stars
Impressive Return from Polticised '80s Dandy
It has been 24 years since The Blow Monkeys' debut, Limping for a Generation, an elegant pop-soul confection influenced by both Bryan Ferry and The Style Council. Singer Dr Robert was all pseudo-sophistication, his voice latte-smooth, while the band's career highlights (Digging Your Scene, It Doesn't Have To Be This Way) oozed arch poise and biting polemic. Their first album in 18 years still finds the frontman, now 47, in fine voice and though their songs are milder beasts these days, Robert continues to sound like he dresses only in velvet and smokes cigarillos.
Nick Duerden
Mojo reviews Devil's Tavern
Friday, August 1, 2008 at 9:06AM 3 Stars
Fan-funded sixth album, recorded in Motril, southern Spain.
No longer the chartbuster he was when he first fronted The Blow Monkeys (Top 20 singles in Digging Your Scene and It Doesn't Have To Be This Way) Dr Robert still has no need to reunite his '80s band. His solo work - the majestic Realms of Gold or his collaboration with PP Arnold Five in the Afternoon - confirm a musician with fire in his belly, able to craft beautiful, soulful folk or translate his jazz and soul influences into '80s pop. Devil's Tavern falls somewhere between those two campes, but has neither the exhilarating dancefloor thrill of the Monkeys nor the meditative musings of the soloist. There are flashes of brilliance - a sinister The World Can Wait, a propulsive The Bullet Train - but this is for deep-pocketed fans only.
Lois Wilson
Uncut Magazine
Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 8:58AM Smooth operators return, funded by fans
The Blow Monkeys were very much of their time. Their early art-pop style soon evolved into a smooth-swinging blend of jazz-pop and glam-soul, fronted by Dr Robert's stylised croon and as identifiably '80s as the soulder pad. Reunited after 18 years, the Monkeys sound very much less mannered, their songs less glossy and carefully (over-) worked. "I Don't Mind" and "Save Me" may recall Weller at his faux-soul worst, but the warmth and ease elsewhere suggest Dr Robert might do a Richard Hawley yet!
Sharon O'Connell
Record Collector
Friday, July 11, 2008 at 4:14PM 
Sometimes, it’s a problem of perspective. How are you viewed? Take the Blow Monkeys: by consensus, a successful 80s pop band fronted by the charismatic Dr. Robert, who hit big with the jazzy ‘Digging Your Scene’ in 1986. But opinion might be divided thereafter. This writer would claim, for example, that while ABC win accolades in the file marked “intelligent 80s pop”, the Blow Monkeys were actually the real deal. It was Robert who repeatedly attacked Thatcher’s government, who worked with black music legends Curtis Mayfield and Kym Mazelle, who successfully embraced House, and who matched the gravitas of, say, Nick Cave on the Blow Monkeys’ dramatic debut, Limping For A Generation. However, this might be a minority view, since news that Robert has placed his solo career on pause to emerge from his retreat in Southern Spain to reunite with his old pals hasn’t exactly attracted the headlines.
But it should do. This isn’t some sad 80s revival tour on a bill with, yes, ABC or Howard Jones. Instead, the Blow Monkeys offer Devils Tavern as proof that, like a fine wine, they have matured well with age, its classy bar-room cool suggesting a return to the prowess of Limping... ‘The World Can Wait’ is a glorious opener: all West Coast dreaminess and double bass twangs before building to a glowing, orchestrated chorus. Its sets the scene (you dig?) for a trademark punch of powerful strings, “diamond-in-the-rough” saxophone, and soaring melodies with the odd chaser of blues, funk, jazz and, in the lengthy ‘Save Me’, straightahead pop. If the Devils Tavern had a lock-in, you’d stumble out dawn, blinking, your head heavy but your heart won forever. But I guess that’s just one perspective.
Dr Robert & PP Arnold, Jazz Café, London
Monday, January 1, 2007 at 8:22AM In the mid-Sixties, PP Arnold came to Britain with The Ike & Tina Turner Revue and left The Ikettes to become the First Lady of Immediate, the label set up by the Rolling Stones Svengali Andrew Loog Oldham. She worked with the Small Faces and The Nice, recorded the definitive version of Cat Stevens's "The First Cut Is the Deepest" and the Chip Taylor composition "Angel of the Morning", but hasn't managed a second act on a par with Tina Turner's stellar Eighties comeback. She's kept busy, though, most notably as guest vocalist with dance acts Beatmasters and Altern 8, and was most recently seen touring as backing singer with Roger Waters of Pink Floyd fame.
Robert Howard shone briefly in the mid-Eighties as the frontman with the gospel-influenced Blow Monkeys and was a thorn in Margaret Thatcher's side with the album She Was Only a Grocer's Daughter. He's worked with Paul Weller, is as much a soul fan as the Modfather, and has form indeed, having recorded with Kym Mazelle and the late Curtis Mayfield.
His collaboration with Arnold came about when both met at a party in Spain, where they both live, and made good their promise to work together. Their first London show as a duo is to introduce Five in the Afternoon, the album they recorded near Granada.
They perform the first five tracks in the same order as on the album, easing their way in with the gentle sway of "Nothing But Love" and trading lines throughout "Be My Judge" and "What Am I Gonna Do?". The magic really starts to work on the deceptively languid title track as the crack backing band build a Norman Whitfield-like groove, while Dr Robert plays jazzy guitar licks and Arnold caresses the vocal.
She tears it up when they go back to her Sixties catalogue for "Angel of the Morning" and "Though it Hurts Me Badly", the song Mick Jagger produced for her. Dr Robert has his moment in the spotlight with "The Coming of Grace" and "Digging Your Scene". He must be commended for not taking the Eighties package tour route. He's matured as a songwriter and addresses the passage of time and the passing of loved ones on "Shape It for Me" and "Stay Now". He can't help kicking at the corpse of Thatcherism with "(Celebrate) the Day After You", the single he recorded with Mayfield that was banned by the BBC in 1987.
Arnold has the voice of a soul diva and plenty of grace. Her partnership with Dr Robert more than fulfils its potential. Class is indeed permanent.
* * * *
By Pierre Perrone
Tuesday, 25 September 2007