Best known for his role as the gleefully violent, out of control medical student Vyvyan in the legendary British comedy series The Young Ones, over the years, Adrian Edmondson has proven himself to be very much the Renaissance man. Actor, comedian, writer, author (who could forget his priceless tome How To Be A Complete Bastard?!?), director and musician, he’s a man of many talents.
His Corner Hotel show was very much the man in musical mode as part of his venture The Bad Shepherds. Brilliantly assisted by partners in crime Andy Dinan and Troy Donockley, the show was a challenge to his audience, which was a strange mix of lovers of folk music and die-hard fans of his work in shows like Filthy, Rich & Catflap, The Comic Strip Presents… Bottom, and, most notably, the aforementioned Young Ones.
With its ballsy and unashamed attack on British life under the Thatcher government, what made The Young Ones such an astounding success was its ability to engage an audience on an intellectual level and make them both think and laugh at the same time. Edmondson showed that he still has that unique skill in abundance during his performance.
Although peppered with some highly amusing banter, such as Edmondson’s comebacks to shout outs from audience members, the show was definitely about the music. Utilising instruments such as mandolins, the bouzouki, whistles and the uilleann bagpipes, the set consisted of some of the angriest and in your face punk and new wave songs of the late ‘70s and early ‘80s.
In the hands of Edmondson and his merry men, songs like The Sex Pistols’ “Anarchy In The U.K.”, The Clash’s “I Fought The Law” and PiL’s “Rise” – songs the majority of the audience knew inside out – were completely deconstructed and recast as folk tunes. As unlikely as this description sounds, it worked brilliantly. Take away the noise and the bluster of the original incarnation of the songs and they are, at heart, folk songs.
From early pioneers such as Woody Guthrie right through to modern day troubadours such as Billy Bragg, Bruce Springsteen and The Dropkick Murphys, folk music has always been primarily inspired by artists and musicians taking aim, in lyrical form, about what is wrong with the world, whether it be on a global level or a personal one. Edmondson gets this completely, as shown by his unexpected and wildly different takes on songs like Ian Dury’s “What A Waste” and The Adverts’ “Gary Gilmore’s Eyes”.
An aspect that made this gig disarming was the refraction of something familiar in a completely alien way, like light through a prism. Some of the younger audience members may not have had much exposure to folk music. Here was someone they admired being beautifully subversive by introducing a musical genre to people who normally wouldn’t go anywhere near it.
It was a surprising and highly entertaining night, and truly gratifying to see Edmondson not resting on past glories and regurgitating his past. He‘s an artist who refuses to stand still, exhibiting a crazy kind of genius in making audiences see some of their favourite music in a completely different light and context. Adrian Edmondson – still punk after all these years, god bless.
