Review: Living Legend Performs at the Winchester

A crowd gathered around the stage at last night, anticipating an intimate evening with the legendary Ian McLagan.

The 66-year-old, British-born pianist, lovingly referred to as ‘Mac,' has toured with The Rolling Stones, and has laid tracks for nearly all of the greats from Bob Dylan to Bruce Springsteen; although he is probably best known for being the keyboardist in the English rock groups Small Faces and the Faces.

The show was very intimate, with Mac performing solo for the vast majority of it; only a couple songs featured Jon Notarthomas, of Mac’s Bump Band, on the bass guitar. In between songs, Mac regaled the audience with tales of his exploits as a leading session man back in the heyday of rock’n’roll.

Despite what some fans had hoped, the show didn’t feature any of Mac’s hits from his time with the Faces and the Stones; instead he played his own original songs, ranging from the sounds of British rock, to the occasional poppy ragtime bit.

A man so steeped in the tradition of the time couldn’t help but to sound a little like the Beatles, the Stones and, of course, the Faces, all rolled into one, but the quality of his songwriting was really quite good, and apart from being able to easily pick out influences, nothing ever came across as sounding old or too dated.

The real attraction was Mac’s legendary piano. This man can really play, every time he gave his voice a rest his fingers picked up the slack, cascading bluesy riffs over poppy bass lines in ways that left your jaw on the floor. And while his technique was unquestionable, his taste was unsurpassed. Never did a lick fail to please the ears, and at no point could you even try to feign disinterest.

It really was a treat to get so up close and personal with such an important piece of rock ‘n’ roll history, and if you’re interested in seeing what ol’ Mac has been up to lately, check out his website for tour dates, bios, albums and more.           

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