Edwyn Collins

at the Paradise
by Clarendon Lavorich

Striding to the front of the stage, Edwyn Collins carried an acoustic guitar. No one accompanied him. He began singing his softer songs, such as “Subsistence,” and “Low Expectations”. A group of drunk college boys asked me if this was going to be an acoustic show. I patiently explained that the fact that roadies had just set up a drumset, keyboards and guitar amps usually implies that there’s going to be more than just one person on stage. I stopped to wonder why those types of people would be into Collins so much. It must have been “A Girl Like You,” the Summer Smash Hit (or so say all of them). Let me be clear: These guys were really drunk. Howling, screaming, making total fools of themselves.

Soon, the rest of the band came on, and Collins started rocking. “The Campaign For Real Rock” was one of the first tunes, and I couldn’t help but smile. Either through unintentional self-mockery or careful irony, he had planned his show Neil Young style (acoustic/electric), and he leapt around the stage while he played, posing in the most rock-star kind of ways. After his guitar went out of tune, and he took a few minutes to fix it, one of the drunk guys asked (rather, screamed for permission) if he could somersault across the stage. Collins let him, much to everyone’s surprise, and it proved to be a source of much entertainment. Equilibrium totally off, the poor intoxicated bastard weaved his way, end over end, from one end to another. It’s a pity he probably can’t remember it. That’s probably the closest he’ll get to fame.
What I enjoyed so much about the show (apart from ridiculing the drunk guys) was Edwyn’s voice. His rich, booming baritone is obviously not a product of studio gimmickry. He sang cleanly and fully, sending shivers up my spine. He played around with a keyboard on “Out Of This World” and was able to get some really crazy sounds from it. Paul Cook was also impressive. He’s learned a lot about drums since he left the Sex Pistols.

Eventually, they did play the Summer Hit, but by that time I didn’t care. Edwyn Collins is a consummate performer, and he writes wonderful songs as well. He’s just as good on stage as he is on record, and that suits me just fine.