Warner E Hodges International All-Stars The Green Hotel Kinross 24th September 2026 Live Review
Reviewed by Iain McArthur
They are all stars, and some of them come from different countries, so Warner E Hodges definitely wasn’t just boasting when he named his band the International All Stars, although he would have had every right to do so – they are that good.
First up on stage is the charismatic and very efficient drummer Mauro Magellan – born in Brazil but living in Wisconsin – who we know from The Georgia Satellites and many more. He’s joined by bass virtuoso Keith Voegel from Missouri band The Bottle Rockets, and finally Conny Bloom from Stockholm, who most folks know from The Electric Boys and Hanoi Rocks, although some might recognise him as the harpist playing ‘20th Century Boy’ in a Jameson’s Whiskey advert from a long time ago.
When the singer hops on the stage it’s not Warner but it is the lovely Stacie Collins, now happily back performing after a long time away following the death of her beloved musician husband Al Collins. After a low-key intro, the music takes off with ‘Baby Sister’ and ‘It Ain’t Love’, both featuring groovy vocals and Stacie’s trademark harmonica playing – an instrument traditionally known locally as the ‘mouth organ’ but that somehow doesn’t sound quite as appropriate anymore!
Stacie’s got some fabulous musical story songs and like all good cowgirls, her chosen subjects include love and murder. ‘The Lucky Spot’ is the tale of her parents’ first hook-up and ‘Lost and Found’ sounds like it must be Stacie’s own story. We are certainly lucky to have her back, and with the whole band rocking and Stacie hollering and blowing the harp in fine-style, the set was totally authentic and very enjoyable indeed.
With the band already on stage and nicely warmed up, there wasn’t much of a turnaround needed once Warner had ambled on and set up his rig. The big man qualifies as an international all-star in his own right as he was born an army brat in Germany and he spends a lot of his time spreading joy and his music around the globe. He’s definitely built in the tradition of the finest Southern story-tellers – he’s got a lot of them - and I would certainly enjoy having a drink and a blether with him in one of Nashville’s finest music bars – but probably not Kid Rock’s and maybe not Eric Church’s ‘Chiefs’ bar either as that c*nt stole my credit card the last time I was there (well, probably not him personally and I might have just dropped it when pissed and there was no harm done anyway).
With a whole world of songs to choose from, they are all crackers and we get ‘Carried Away’ and ‘Preachin’ to the Choir’ to get us back underway and the room is rocking from the first chords. Early on, Warner introduced “a big loud-ass song” which turned out to ‘Absolutely’, the title track from his latest record, and there are other choice cuts from that including ‘Individually’. Warner dedicated ‘The Hottest Thing in Town’ to his wife, who he misses when he’s on the road. I think Conny must miss her too, as he embellished it with an emotional finger-licking good guitar solo.
The chat is good throughout and some old favourites surface like the Jason & the Scorchers’ song ‘White Lies’. Before long, Stacie and her harmonica are back to join in on a punky John Denver omelette of ‘Country Roads’, Quo’s Caroline, CCR’s ‘Fortunate Son’, a bit of the Stones, and a memorable full version of ‘Surrender’ by Cheap Trick, with Tom Peterson-approved bassist Keith taking over the vocals on the latter.
A full evening fairly flew by and after a thoroughly entertaining gig, and judging by the big grins on everyone’s faces, you can be sure there will always be a welcome in the hillsides for these fine folks any time they want to come back. Absolutely.