Indigo at the O2 LIVE REVIEW – The Real Thing, Heatwave and Odyssey

Bruno Mars and his Uptown Funk may have been playing in the main arena, but the three vintage acts at the O2’s smaller venue were keeping it funky and surprisingly fresh for the slightly older crowd.

Show openers were Odyssey, the band started by Lopez sisters Lilian and Louise, who, along with male vocalists Bill McEachern and Tony Reynolds, had a string of classy dance hits in the Seventies. As with so many acts of the era, this version of Odyssey has none of the original members; the Lopez sisters having died in the last few years. Lillian’s son Steven Collazo now runs the band, and with two female singers, keeps the Odyssey flame alive.  

Looking fit and fly, Collazo energetically led the group – backed by an incredibly tight and funky band – through a smooth greatest hits set of songs including Native New Yorker, Going Back To My Roots and Use It Up, Wear It Out, which was played with a hip-swinging Latin groove.  Odyssey also covered disco classics Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now by McFadden and Whitehead, and Taste Of Honey’s irresistible Boogie Oogie Oogie. But the standout number for me was the classic ballad If You’re Looking For A Way Out, delivered with the emotion and urgency of Lillian Lopez.

Next on the bill was Heatwave, now led by Keith Wilder, brother of original lead singer Johnnie who died in 2006. Americans Keith and Johnnie teamed with Cleethorpes-born keyboard player and songwriter Rod Temperton and created a run of memorable singles – Too Hot To Handle, Boogie Nights, The Groove Line (with it’s classic, fan-friendly “whoop, whoop” refrain) and ballad Always and Forever. 

Today’s Heatwave, accompanied by the same fantastic musicians as Odyssey, delivered the hits, plus a few cover versions, with verve and style, though Johnnie’s sweet and tender vocals on tracks like Always and Forever were missed. 

In the second half of the show, bill-toppers The Real Thing were very much the real thing, still featuring original vocalists Chris and Eddie Amoo and Dave Smith with their new musicians. The Seventies sharp suits were gone, replaced by sportswear, worn with, in Eddie’s case, a huge baker boy cap that made his look like a 13-year-old street urchin, so well has he kept his boyish, cute looks. 

He’s still kept the sweet soul voice, too, and brother Chris’s sexy, slightly gravelly tones have been unharmed by the test of time as he took the lead on You To Me Are Everything, Can’t Get By Without You and You’ll Never Know What You’re Missing, penned by the brothers themselves. 

Like the other acts, they peppered their appearance with some cover versions, including the second version of Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now of the night (maybe a bit of co-ordination beforehand?), and a touch of rap and reggae. I could have done without the rap – these guys are pure class, and really hold up their songs vocally, even after all these years.

The audience, having danced and sung themselves hoarse, went happily into the evening, mixing with the crowd leaving Bruno Mars and realising that we’re just one nation under the a groove, no matter how old we are.

• GRT Entertainments brings Jaki Graham, The Three Degrees and Gwen Dickey, the voice of Rose Royce, to Indigo at the O2 on October 12 2017.

Details: theo2.co.uk/events/detail/sheila-ferguson-of-the-three-degrees / GRTEntertainments.com