Love Pirates at Arlene's Grocery

Gass Wild

In 1978, Chrissie Hynde was looking to form a band that would become the Pretenders. Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead told her to look for Tom "Gass Wild" Edwards, a drummer from Hereford, England. Wild in turn introduced Hynde to his Hereford buddy Pete Farndon and for three months the three musicians rehearsed together most of what became the first Pretenders album. Wild drummed for the Hitmen in 1979 and sang in the Lightning Raiders from 1980 to 1982. When the Raiders folded, Wild then formed Mannish Boys, writing, singing, and playing guitar from 1983 to 1987. Relocating to New York City, Wild formed Love Pirates in 1989. Presently, Love Pirates consists of vocalist/guitarist Wild, lead guitarist Seth David Isaacs, bassist Mitch Rock, and drummer Josh Johnson.

Gass Wild looks like Mick Jagger, dresses like Keith Richards, and brings an unmistakable Rolling Stones vibe to the Love Pirates performances. At Arlene's Grocery tonight as part of Tommy London's Rocktober series on Wednesday nights, Love Pirates played long-haired rock and roll the way it was always meant to be, with attitude, panache, and a solid rhythm and blues base. Johnson's strong and sturdy backbeat provided the push, Rock's thumping bass held the bottom, and David's wailing lead guitar filled all the space between Wild's gritty vocals. The set provided little breathing space; the hard driving rhythms locked into a groove and ran like a locomotive. Fortunately, Love Pirates normally performs in venues with an open floor, because the music demanded swaying hips and dancing feet.