Grimethorpe Colliery's reputation as the nation’s premier brass band entertainment stars is one they have lived up to pretty well over the years. 

The lasting popularity of the film 'Brassed Off!' may distort some people’s opinion of them at times, but for the general listening public, they provide a level of easy listening concert fayre that takes some beating. 

Full house

Their appearance here confirmed that popularity, with the full house signs on show (all 401 tickets sold at £20 quid a pop too) well before the day, but with the management still having to turn away disappointed last minute customers.  

Packed with audience enthusiasm and expectancy it was a super example of proactive theatre marketing. You suspect Grimethorpe will be back here once again. 

They certainly didn’t disappoint, even with just the ‘Brassed Off’ encore of ‘Death of Glory’ to leave the punters with a filmatic lollipop taste in the mouth to go home with.

Serious to the sublime

Sandy Smith’s desire to mix and match the repertoire on show from the serious to the sublime, the virtuosic to the comedic, was balanced as well as varied.    

Old favourites such as ‘Softly, Softly’ and ‘Comedy Tonight’ contrasted with ‘Le Corsaire’, ‘The Water of the Tyne’ and the finale from ‘Checkmate’ - neatly picked opposites of the spectrum - whilst soloists Chris Binns (a chilled ‘Fly Me to the Moon’), Jamie Smith (a rapid fire ‘Herje Kati’), Helen Varley (a delightful ‘You’ve Got a Friend’) and Chris Robertson (a classy ‘Carnival of Venice’) all adding to the polish.

The engagingly Danish flavoured, 'The Topped Hen', a suavely played Stan Kenton medley and Shaun Crowther up to his old ‘Cuckoo’  and 'Czardas' tricks added brio and an old fashioned belly-laugh or two, before a serious touch of high quality ensemble work in the excerpts from ‘The Firebird’ whetted the appetite one last time for that ‘Brassed Off ‘ gobstopper.

Malcolm Wood