Shropshire Star

Soul legends turn back the clock in Shrewsbury

Soul legends Ben E. King and Jimmy James had Shrewsbury swinging as they played for more than two hours to a thrilled audience.

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Soul legend Ben E King on stage at the Buttermarket, in Shrewsbury, last night. Pictures: Laura Dutfield

Hundreds of music fans packed out The Buttermarket nightclub last night as the singers visited Shropshire as part of their ongoing Superstars of Soul tour.

Jimmy James & The Vagabonds opened the evening with songs such as You Are The First, My Last, My Everything and My Girl.

King then took to the stage and got the audience dancing to classic songs such as This Magic Moment, On Broadway and Spanish Harlem.

After a 20-minute break, James returned to the stage to continue the party with tracks including I'll Go Where Your Music Takes Me, Red Red Wine and Just My Imagination.

Hundreds of music fans enjoyed the evening

King then returned for the second part of his set, with the 74-year-old former Drifters singer performing Save The Last Dance For Me and Don't Play That Song.

The evening ended with the pair singing together and leading the audience in rousing renditions of Mustang Sally and You Are My Sunshine, interspersed with King performing his most famous hit Stand By Me.

After the show King hailed his fans in Shrewsbury as "awesome".

He said: "I've had a wonderful time performing at The Buttermarket, it's an amazing historical concert venue and the atmosphere was electric. The audience was awesome."

The visit of the two musicians to Shropshire delighted those who had travelled to the nightclub for the show. Jackie and Phil Moore, from Newport in South Wales, said they had enjoyed a fantastic evening.

Mrs Moore, aged 59, said:"We came with not a lot of expectation and were absolutely blown away."

Friends Cathy Milenkovic, and Julie McKinnon, both aged 54, said the show had been "absolutely brilliant".

Organisers described the event as a success. Martin Monahan, owner of The Buttermarket, said the venue was full "almost to capacity".

He said: "It was a brilliant night, and to have two soul legends on stage for over two-and-a-half hours was fantastic. The crowd was absolutely lapping it up."

Revellers also took to Twitter following the concert, describing it as a "fun" evening.

It is the latest high profile concert at the venue in Howard Street.

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