I recently bought ‘100mph’ by Vardis online, a great band I had forgotten about but thought would be good to revisit, and you know , I wasn’t disappointed.

I saw Vardis live 40 years ago , shortly after leaving school, back in June 1981, at the Douglas Hotel, Aberdeen, about the time they released their cover version of Hawkwind’s ‘Silver Machine’ as a single. This was just before they were the opening band in the ‘Heavy Metal Holocaust’ at Port Vale FC’s stadium in August of that year, Motorhead and Ozzy Osbourne being the headliners at that festival, others being Riot, Triumph and Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush.

That must have been quite a festival, as Motorhead were at the top of their game, their ‘No Sleep ’til Hammersmith’ live album having entered the album charts at number 1, something unheard of in those days, a rock band going straight in at the top spot, whatever next? On the bill were the revitalised Ozzy Osbourne in his new post -Sabbath band, also Riot and Triumph were very much up and coming acts from across the Atlantic. Anyhow, that’s for a future blog, at a later date,

Vardis were a great live band, back in the days when club and pub gigs were a regular thing for us rock fans in Aberdeen and indeed everywhere else. ‘100mph’, which aptly describes guitarist Steve Zodiac’s solos, captures the raw energy of the band and is really as good a live album as I remember it, Vardis were (and are ) a real bluesy boogie band, a cross between Motorhead, and Hendrix was what I said to friends back then, and I think my comparison was quite accurate, even 40 years later. ‘Out of the Way’ , ‘Let’s Go’, ‘100mph’ are all superb , with Zodiac’s incredibly fast soloing, somewhere between Hendrix and Johnny Winter , who he actually resembled ; the rhythm section of Alan Selway and Gary Pearson hold things together really well also, as they power their way through the live set. The track ‘Move Along’ sounds to these seasoned ears like a lost Link Wray work which might fit in well on a movie soundtrack. Its a shame they never reached the dizzy heights of other NHOBHM bands of the time, like Iron Maiden or Def Leppard, but what the hell, good music always stands the test of time, and this does for me.

I will be re-buying more from this band soon, but for now, I am transported back in time to a gig in Aberdeen , by way of the Vardis Tardis, to 1981, with this excellent live album!!

Now for ‘The World’s Insane’ and ‘Quo Vardis’, if I could turn back time , as some singer or other more famous than I once sung.