Showaddywaddy ready to get Swindon crowd dancing (From This Is Wiltshire)

Showaddywaddy ready to get Swindon crowd dancing

3:50pm Thursday 18th February 2010 in

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WHEN Showaddywaddy take to the Arts Centre stage at 8pm tonight, there won’t be an empty seat in the house.

Not until people get up and dance, anyway.

In its chart heyday, the band scored 23 UK top 40 hits, nine of which reached the top five and one - Under the Moon of Love - took them to the top of the charts.

The band may no longer be a chart fixture but demand for its live shows, which are based around the outfit’s trademark nostalgia for classic early rock’n’roll, is still going strong - as is Leicester-born lead singer Dave Bartram, now 57.

“We’re stalwarts of rock’n’roll,” he said. “We put our success down to good old fashioned entertainment.

“We did our apprenticeship in smoky pubs and clubs, and we saw some hostile audiences and friendly ones, too.

“At the same time we learned our trade and developed a level of live music that has carried us through God knows how many decades!”

The band performs about 100 shows per year for audiences all over the country, as well as at oldies festivals across Europe.

There are also bespoke commissions, with the band brought in specially to play at private gatherings.

Many of its fans have been loyal since the days when scarcely an edition of Top of the Pops was complete without a Showaddywaddy appearance.

Dave said: “I certainly think there’s a nucleus of fans who have stuck by us through thick and thin. There’s an incredible loyalty to the band.

“When people mention us they almost always smile. I think we have an uplifting quality.”

Showaddywaddy may owe a great deal to nostalgia - both for old time rock’n’roll and for Showaddywaddy itself, but that doesn’t prevent it from putting out new material.

The latest CD, called The Sun Album in honour of the legendary Memphis studio, showcases 18 classic songs.

Further information about the band and its touring schedule is available at www.showaddywaddy.net