MBM Management Showcase
Icons Show-bar Manchester
April 2024
Producer Anne & Phil Barratt
Reviewer: Mark Ritchie
Icons is a great new venue, a sort of cabaret restaurant which is apparently doing wonderful business. The Compere was singer Scott Welsby, who popped up on the bill quite literally wearing another hat, as a tribute to country superstar Garth Brooks. Mr Welsby arrives armed with a nice voice and a swell Stetson!
Ian Frankl rocked up with his tribute to Jon Bon Jovi. ‘From Jovi’ features Mr Frankl hitting some scarily high notes during his rendition of Bed of Roses, whilst wearing jeans so tight that we could practically read the washing instructions on his undercrackers. The rock chicks will love him!
Edwin Dukes gave us a segment from his soul and Motown set. I loved his resplendent jacket and his winsome and flirty style. Mr Dukes has all the moves too and will surely fill any party dance floor.
I just loved everything about Amy Hannam and her post-modern jukebox meets roaring 20’s jazz style set, which she delivered shrewdly in segued cabaret style. With the look of a trained dancer, the pencil-slim Ms Hannam can never be accused of fat-shaming, as she even gave us a snippet of All About the Bass. In short, a terrific performer
Singer Jahz Duncan gave us a slice of his oddly-named, ‘Tribute to Lionel Richie- In His Prime’. Mr Duncan’s performance, to me, indicated this is clearly a brand-new venture for him and I’m sure he will grow into the act, given time and more work and rehearsal.
I saw and enjoyed singer Kofi Taylor recently at another showcase. His Harry Styles tribute show, known as ‘Harry Styled’ left me with one overriding thought. While on the one hand, I do not blame Mr Taylor one bit for cashing in on the tribute market, a singer and performer of this standard could just conceivably be only a few original song compositions away from his own brand of stardom, meaning others could soon be performing tributes to Kofi Taylor.
Whenever I see an Elvis Presley tribute billed on a showcase, I must admit I expect a ‘much of a muchness’ situation, with so many of them performing the same songs and doing the same jokes. Such jokes mainly allude to the tightness of their trousers whilst performing the hit song Suspicious Minds. Like others on the bill, John White, as Elvis, did not seem to know his music and made a false start or two, for the purposes of the showcase video. The vocal performance was, in my view, unconvincing and not pitched particularly well.
Female singer Cherelle makes a lovely Whitney Houston tribute, although I would suggest some more attention should be paid to the tessitura of the key she chooses to sing in. Cherelle also performs a soul and Motown show and this natural and instinctive singer has an infectious charm, although she too alas did not seem to know her way around her backing tracks.
Marlon Clarks Tribute to Bob Marley is great fun and superbly delivered. A recent hit film and a big stage musical has Marley firmly back in the spotlight and Mr Clark is a real stand-out performer. If I was the agent entrusted with his diary I would not worry about a thing- As Every Little Thing is sure to be Alright.
The evening was truncated due to a couple of No-show’s and a little illness here and there. Closing this enjoyable event out was three-boy act, Soul Station. The crushed velvet, bow-tie and patent leather shoe look, made it clear that these guys meant business. Soul Station have all the moves and will be great fun at any party or function.
Hats off to all involved and a nice midweek early evening finish will have been welcomed by one and all. MBM always mean business, no matter what they do and the very good booker attendance numbers did not surprise me in the slightest.