Aberdeen has a strong tradition of welcoming tribute artists to its stages, and as people returned to theatres after lockdown, the classic tunes of the musical world’s most famous faces found audiences all too eager to join in with glitz, glamour and feel-good singalongs.
Abba, Tina Turner and The Rat Pack rank especially high in popularity as in-demand tribute artists, and we were lucky enough to catch up with some of the people behind the legendary, larger-than-life acts.
Steven Galert (Benny Andersson)
With Abbamania due to hit Aberdeen’s Music Hall stage next Sunday, Steven Galert, AKA Abba’s keyboard player Benny Andersson, is delighted to be returning to the Granite City with the band.
As the world’s longest-running Abba tribute act, the band has been in the business since 1999 with the tour taking the musicians, crew and supporting cast across the world.
With such a huge production to run, Steven, as musical director, has his work cut out for him. However, the former session musician, producer and audio engineer had all the skills needed to get the band up and running after being approached by a brewery to create an act to perform at its venues.
Auditions were held in Scotland, and between himself and wife Ewa (Agnetha), the two created the iconic ABBA tribute show. And from the start Steven knew what the act should deliver.
“We’ve never tried to emulate ABBA, exactly,” he says. “You’re looking for this party atmosphere to happen at every show, which seems to have worked for us.”
So which was more important when casting: the ABBA look or the voice?
“Neither,” he states. “If people were proficient and professionals, then Ewa would mould them into what we needed them to be, which she’s very good at.
“Costumes are fine but there’s a fine line between that and parody,” Steven adds. “There won’t be a dodgy wig and a false beards ‘cos it could go the wrong way. It’s a tribute to ABBA – you’re trying to make it as authentic as possible, not a comedy show.”
Paying tribute to such musical greats is quite a responsibility, he admits, especially as fan expectations can be high.
“Personally, I get stage fright every night, but over the years I’ve learned that audiences are there to have a good time. They’re not looking to see if it’s exactly the same as ABBA.
“People are enjoying the show before they even get there! I think it’s post-Covid – everyone is really up for it. There has been an influx of a younger audience, as well. We are seeing a lot of people in their early 20s and they seem to know how to let their hair down.”
Positivity and happiness in every show
Currently on their Christmas tour, Abbamania decided to scale back touring after lockdown, realising that a year-round schedule left limited time for personal lives. But one thing is non-negotiable.
“We made a conscious decision after being all over Europe and the world, to always come back home to Scotland at Christmas time, so it built up over the years to really be a Christmas party,” says Steven.
And next weekend Abbamania will be back live at Aberdeen Music Hall.
“This’ll be our sixth year,” he says. “And it’s my birthday!”
“Partying and loud” is how he describes the north-east audience, adding that they are quick to embrace the mood. “They get into the singalongs, definitely. You shouldn’t be sitting in your seat, you should be on your feet!
“There’s nothing there but positivity and happiness, and that’s what it’s about.”
Abbamania may have scaled back the touring schedule but have no plans to hang up their platform boots just yet.
“I love it all coming together,” says Steven. “I love the build-up, getting to the gig to seeing their faces, people standing, singing along and actually having a fantastic night.
“And at the end of the night, you’re packing up your stuff and thinking, how good was that? There’s not a job like it.”
For tour details go to abbamania.co.uk
Justine Riddoch (Tina Turner)
As a highly acclaimed, award-winning Tina Turner tribute artist, Liverpool-born Justine Riddoch, 50, cut her teeth in the entertainment industry as a self-employed singer from the age of 19.
For the next 15 years she appeared at holiday camps, clubs and on the cabaret circuit before finding herself on the hit TV show Stars in their Eyes in 2002, appearing as American singer-songwriter Anastacia – and winning.
In 2011 she decided to try her hand at Tina Turner.
“I settled on Tina mainly because I sounded like her, and so it was a natural progression for me,” says Justine. “And I’d got loads of mad curly hair, so I thought, let’s go for it!
“It took a few years to get off the ground and build our audience, and we pushed like mad to have a theatre show that was actually making money. But we believed in the show and the material we were putting forward.
“As far as we were concerned, we were paying tribute to Tina by playing her music to her fans,” she adds. “There’s only one Tina Turner. I’m not there to replace her – there’s no way that I could. It’s about celebrating her musical life and that’s what Totally Tina is about.”
Totally Tina is Justine’s full stage show that can see the entourage playing 170 gigs per year across the world, and to festivals with tens of thousands of people. It is a huge production with many challenges.
“I’m trying to keep 16 dancers and five musicians all happy at the same time, and bring the same quality production I’ve always brought,” she says.
“We’re pretty full on. Not only are there the people on stage, there are 28 costume changes and thousands of routines to put together. It’s hard work but definitely worth it.”
I could be stood backstage eating a pasty in the whole outfit, and in three seconds of the music starting I’m in Tina mode
Justine recalls: “When I was on Stars in their Eyes, Matthew Kelly said: ‘If you’re gonna be impersonating a legend, by God you’d better get it right.’ That, for me, is the key line – we have to get it right.”
So what is in the forefront of her mind during a performance?
“A mixture – making sure I move similar to her, facial mannerisms,” she says. “Being able to connect to the crowd – waving and smiling and pointing and making them feel part of the show.
“I’m thinking about the next costume and when I have to change, where the rest of my dancers are, looking at my musicians… It’s a thing that’s constantly evolving. I’m never just standing there singing songs. With Tina I am constantly on a clock.”
Tina transformation
Surprisingly, switching on ‘Tina’ is not as much effort as you would think.
“The physical transformation is nothing,” says Justine. “I stick a little bit of make-up on, I put tights on and the dress. I’m pretty similar to how she looks.
“I can put the whole outfit on but it’s not until I actually put the heels on… And any woman knows what it’s like. It throws your whole body into a different shape; you stand differently, you walk differently, move differently.
“I wear five-inch heels. Tina’s aren’t actually that high but it makes me feel better when I’m in a higher shoe. Once you get giant heels on, that’s when you look in the mirror and think: ‘OK, it’s all there now.’ And that’s when you start feeling more like her.
“I could be stood backstage eating a pasty in the whole outfit before the show, and in three seconds of the music starting I’m in Tina mode. I can switch it on and switch it off.”
Having just played the Granite City and Inverness, Totally Tina will be back in Scotland early next year and in Aberdeen towards the end of 2023, and Justine is looking forward to it.
“For me there are places that feel like a Liverpool audience, and one of them is Scotland, and the north-east, and Newcastle. We’ve all sort of got the same mindset – let’s go and have a real party!
“We’re all ready for a good night out, especially Scotland, and we’ve been places that didn’t go as crazy as Aberdeen for some songs. But you’ve got be careful when it comes to Simply the Best,” she laughs.
“I love being able to chat with the audience and hear their stories, and how we affected them. There are so many different aspects that make you so happy to do what you do.
“And it’s because we’re paying tribute to Tina that it’s so big and that we affect so many people. For me it’s a great responsibility but it’s also a great honour and privilege to be able to do it.”
Find out more about Justine and her upcoming gigs at totallytina.co.uk
Dan Greavey (Dean Martin)
Aberdeen’s very own Rat Pack, Oceans 3 has been making waves since 2005. Together, they bring the smooth sounds of legendary crooners Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr directly to parties and events across Aberdeen, the shire and further afield, armed only with tuxedos, mics, smooth voices – and a dash of wit.
“A good suit and the willingness to be the butt of the jokes. That’s the main thing,” says Dan ‘Dean Martin’ Greavey, 46, “the elder stateman of the group”.
“You need to have a thick skin if you’re going to be a tribute act,” he says. “No matter how much you love the thing that you’re doing, there’s probably someone out there who loves it even more than you.
“And if they come to see you, you have to be prepared for the fact that they’ll know more about it than you. And they’ll probably tell you, too!”
Hailing from Inverurie, Dan has performed as an actor in TV and musicals such as the West End production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and appeared with Stephen Gately, Lee Mead and Darren Day among others.
However, he regularly performs as Dean Martin along with his friends – and fellow actors and singers – Steve Worsley (Frank Sinatra) and secondary school drama teacher Ryan Peacock (Sammy Davis Jr), appearing “in character” together.
“We try to play the character as we sing each song,” he says. “We’ll meet up, set up the equipment, and as soon as the suits go on, immediately the American accent comes on.
“One of the stars of our show is our microphones. Because we use the vintage-style ones, they add a dimension to it.
“When people are arriving to an event and we’ve already set up our PA – and the three mics are up on the stage – they already know this is going to be a particular type of show.”
There’s a real community sense in Aberdeen. That comes across in almost every gig we do, and it’s great
Without a full production team behind the act, Dan admits there are few places to hide on stage.
“We don’t tour a lighting rig. We rely on the room and, hopefully, let the music do all the work for us. That’s the beauty of it.
“That’s what we embrace. We can take it to a function room in a hotel, we can take it on stage, and we’ve even performed in someone’s kitchen. It gives us that freedom to chop and change.”
Despite the Transatlantic flavour of their act, the group appreciates the Aberdeen audience and what they bring to shows.
Dan says: “As much as we are a city, anyone from Aberdeen will always describe it as a village. So there’s a real community sense here, and when we pull together for something, we really do pull collectively. That comes across in almost every gig we do, and it’s great.”
If you can tell the story – and make the audience believe the story – then you’ve done your job
Dan never tires of The Rat Pack, the act, or the songs.
“The reason we love them is because they are songs that tell real stories,” he says.
“I am extraordinarily lucky. It’s not as demanding as someone who has to sing and dance for two whole hours on stage. I’ve been to plenty of gigs where I’ve thought, ‘they must be exhausted’.
“But when I come away from the gig I always think, when’s the next one? That’s the feeling I get. That buzz comes right back and I want to keep going.
“I’m a huge fan of Dean, Frank and Sammy, but Sammy Davis Jr could do everything. He could dance, he could play drums, he could play trumpet, he could sing, he was a great actor and a really funny comedian. And all of this while being a black man in a white man’s world. This was at a time when you couldn’t be a headline act if you were a person of colour.
“But all those guys, they’re great storytellers, and I think if you can tell the story – and make the audience believe the story – then you’ve done your job.”
More details at oceans3.co.uk
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