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Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band review

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the release of the very first record by the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band . To celebrate, the original band members have got together to do a UK Tour. Iconic was invited to the show at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester on Saturday 11 November.

The hall was full and we noted that up to one-third of the audience were in their 20s and 30s, a younger and more mixed audience than one might expect from a band with such a long history.

The Bonzos are touring a full crew and their own PA and lighting rig so it was no surprise that the presentation did full justice to the band and its music. There are up to fifteen performers on stage and they are well supported by imaginative lighting and visual effects. As if that wasn't enough, there are robots, on-stage pyrotechnics, electric spoons, the Theramin leg and the Rowmonium.

The touring band, led by Neil Innes, includes Roger Ruskin Spear, Rodney Slater, Sam Spoons, Vernon Dudley, Bob Kerr and Legs Larry Smith. Vivian Stanshall can never be replaced, of course, but Ade Edmondson and Phil Jupitus do a great job out front on vocals, narration and general tomfoolery.

The band's performance was musically accomplished, very funny, and chaotic with Jupitus and Edmondson providing plenty of ad libbing and lots of hilarious stage business.

Each concert on the tour is unique. The Bonzos rehearse new numbers each day and vary the setlist so every show is guaranteed to be different. At Leicester, the set included My Brother Makes the Noises for the Talkies, The Equestrian Statue, Mr Apollo, We Are Normal, Trouser Press, My Pink Half Of The Drainpipe, Rockaliser Baby,'Monster Mash, I'm Bored and The Sound of Music. Perhaps the Bonzos best-known numbers are Urban Spaceman and Jollity Farm and both got an airing. The show concluded with The Intro and the Outro during which Innes name-ckecked the line-up there were also a couple of oddball encores.

Unsurprisingly, the audience loved the concert! For once the PR was true pop, vaudeville and surrealism really did meet in this show. Rapturous applause followed virtually every number and the band got a well-deserved standing ovation at the end of the evening.

At Leicester, the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band proved that, after 40 years, they can still put on a really great show.

Story published 17 Nov 2006