INTO THE SHADOWS
Nottingham Arts Theatre

For anyone who loves the sound of the Shadows twang, the Hank Marvin Stratocaster and Fender, the drumming of Meehan or Bennett, then you would have loved the show put on by Into The Shadows, Unfortunately only 35 people turned out to witness an evening of classic instrumentals and Cliff Richard classics.

John Haden on rhythm guitar also provided the vocals for the Cliff numbers, Colin Evans drummed up a storm, especially on classics such as "Apache", John Clayton provided some chunky bass lines, showing his prowess on the jazzy "Nivram" and finally creating that Hank twang was Rob Fellows on lead guitar, with too many highlights to choose from.

Into The Shadows played so many of Cliff and The Shadows songs and mixed it up nicely with the well known hits as well as some album tracks, B sides and rarities, proving they knew their stuff with some educational historic facts along the way. I enjoyed the backdrop showing some of the old Cliff and the Shadows single labels, album covers, old clips from films and stills, giving you something to watch while your ears enjoyed the brilliantly recreated music of the 60's and the occasional stray into the 70's.

Music quality wise it was crystal clear thanks to "sound guy" Paul Spicer. A really professional approach to the show had the four musicians dressed in suits and even a slight sound hitch during "Guitar Tango" with Rob's guitar did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of the small audience. The only downer was the temperature in the theatre which all four of the guys took comical swipes at, but many a true word said in jest,and it really was cold in there tonight.

If Into The Shadows venture from the West Midlands to the East Midlands again, and you are a fan of quality music of the Shadows variety, please make sure that you support them and get a ticket, because you will definitely get your money's worth with this show.