#crossgar

The message said: “Four years seven months of hell, yesterday our company was cleared of corporate manslaughter in court. We can now move on with our lives. Still amazed that this went to court and still feel this was a witch hunt by NMD Council. Onwards and upwards.”

It’s amazing what you find to do when taking a few days away, here I found myself wandering down leafy lanes, 20 miles South of Belfast, looking for the Shortcross Distillery, on a blazing hot Sunday afternoon. All the passing traffic, seemed to be heading in the same direction, where I eventually found a courtyard, full of folk, lazing in the sun sipping gin cocktails. Ronnie Greer was on site, with his band, and about ready to roll. I had, about 18 months back, reviewed a blues and jazz album by Ronnie, so new the journey down would be worthwhile, I was about to be proved right.

(Ronnie’s Jazz, comes from that fuzzy circumference, where blues, blurs with many planetary genre, soul, swing, and jazz, it fits in nicely)

Sitting in a cauldron of heat, within the walled courtyard was simply a, ‘No Brainer’ as Ronnie, Anthony Toner, Peter Mckinney, Nick Scott, and John McCullough, kicked off. A cool instrumental, to sip with the cocktails. Ronnie delivered a slick Robyn Ford blues, appropriately, ‘Start It Up’, to get up to speed

Chicago blues of Jimmy Reed, vied with a chilled Charley Mingus colouring Times Square. Anthony’s Telecaster chipping in next to John’s organic key board.

Ronnie had also invited along Ken Haddock, who has made his mark around Northern Ireland, with his blues and Americana music, here, he was taking a vocal slot, cradling a well fingered acoustic guitar, voicing a very nice version of Van Morrison’s ‘Into The Mystery’.

Ronnie Greer himself, also toting a Telecaster, dipped into his Jazz Projects, album, before Ken delivered an excellent reworking of ‘I Shot The Sheriff’, Nick on bass and Pete, brushing the drums. A superlative Dylan, ‘Crush On The Levy’, seared across the hot flagstones, with John barrel rolling his piano with nimble fingers.

The piano keys rattled, Anthony worked a glass slide up the Fenders neck, for a burning hot, Robert Lockwood Junior, ‘ Take A Walk With Me’.

Ronnie’s own, ‘Going Down To Clarkesdale’ gritted out, Ronnie on his guitar, name dropping all those Blues giants of past years, stitched together in this great little song from A Lifetime With The Blues. Ken stepped back up to take vocals for an impassioned, ‘I Can’t Quit You Baby’, following up with U2’s, ‘When Love Came To Town’, finding both Ronnie and Anthony into a BB King groove.

Everything warming nicely, the ladies defied the sun and were starting to move, whilst there partners basked under their Panama hats, we were melting down toward the end, but not before Ronnie fired up a splendid, ‘Rock Me Baby’, switching vocals with Ken, as the band, still looking cool under the shadows of the copper stills, sent out shockwaves of rhythm to fan the air of their heated listeners.

The Shortcross Distillery session had been hot in every way, except maybe the chilled gin cocktails, blistering blues cooled by long iced drinks, a heady cocktail indeed. It had been worth the long yomp to find such a warm Ulster welcome from Ronnie and his brilliant band. My thanks to Anthony Toner, who dropped me back into Belfast following such an exceptional distillation, no not the gin, good as that may be, but the spirited musicians who provided the perfect tonic.