Rough An’ Ready | M3

Recorded in Burnley in 2004, this 11-song set sees Whitesnake guitarists Bernie Marsden and Micky Moody joined by bassist Neil Murray, and ex-Magnum’s Mark Stanway (keys) and Jim Copley (drums). Taking over David Coverdale’s role is Stefan Berggren, who, like his colleagues, puts in a creditable performance. But it was never going to be the Cov’, and it isn’t. We get a decent opener in Waiting In The Shadow Of The Blues, and it’s much as you’d expect from then on. A slide-laden Slow An’ Easy, the bounce of Ready An’ Willing, the bluesy Crying In The Rain and a rousing Here I Go Again closer, with old Rainbow cohort Dougie White chipping in. But Don’t Break My Heart again has a risible singalong, the vocoder on Hit An’ Run adds little, and 11 minutes of Ain’t Gonna Cry No More is a tad overdone. One for stalwarts, rather than converts.