WARNER E HODGES Live Review

WARNER E. HODGES (solo)

Backstage at The Green, Kinross

6 June 2026



Live review



Hot off the heels of the first leg of a U.K. and European tour with his International All Stars band to promote his new album ‘Absolutely’, Warner E. Hodges played a rare and it has to said stunningly good solo gig in Kinross last night. 



One of only a handful of solo dates across the U.K., the show almost went beneath the radar for me as I’d missed the announcement on his social channels, but thankfully picked up on it in an e-mail alert from Mundell Music who deserve kudos for bringing this top quality gig to Scotland. Even more so, as the venue is only a 20 minute drive from where I live. 



Promising a selection of songs and stories from throughout his career as a founding member of both Jason & the Scorchers and Dan Baird & Homemade Sin, as well as with his own band and in a format rarely played - solo - the potential for no-nonsense boogie was high, albeit played acoustically. 



Taking to the stage at 8.00pm sharp, Warner immediately eschewed the acoustic element of the ‘acoustic storyteller’ format explaining that he agreed with Billy Gibbons that “acoustic guitars are bad Ju Ju” as he strapped on his trusty Les Paul and that he’d just be playing electric (including solos) and see how that goes. 



Starting with ‘Preachin’ to the Choir’ (from his ‘Just Feel Right’ album), the opening riff of which owes as much to AC/DC as to cow punk, and the night was set for some wonderfully raucous music delivered by one. However, such is Warner’s ability to fill a stage and venue with guitar there were times when it sounded like there were two guitarists on stage and a few moments when, hell, there could easily have been three. Did we miss or need bass or drums? No … what are these alien concepts and instruments you refer to? 



The bluesier and more Creedence Clearwater Revival-leaning ‘Plain Mean’ (from his ‘Soul Shaker’ album) follows before what Warner introduces as “a song by Dave Edmunds written by Bruce Springsteen” - ‘From Small Things (Big Things One Day Come)’. As with many of Springsteen’s songs, the quality of songs discarded or given to others results in others having hits.



Resting his arms on his guitar Warner tells us a cautionary story about when he first met Dave Edmunds (his idol) and than another story about when a few years later he met Bruce Springsteen while they were recording separately in studios near to each other. I’ll not spoil the stories in case you manage to hear them at a later date down the road.



The first song from his new album to be played tonight was up next, ‘Individually’, followed by his explanation that the chorus “I don’t care about you, You don’t care about me, We’re all in it for the same damn thing, Individually” was written about how divided things are in the States just now. He also spoke about his 90 year old Mum’s concern that he’ll not be allowed back into the States after touring and speaking about Trump. 



I’m a sucker for solo gigs, as acoustic versions of much-loved songs can offer something different in a stripped-back form, but there is nothing rawer than when an artist plays alone and sings over an electric guitar. It’s like the first time I listened to Graham Parker’s ‘Live! Alone in America’ or when Bruce Springsteen (often) plays a live version of a full-band song just on his own. This solo set was very much in this territory and I was gripped.



Warner’s long-term bandmate and collaborator, Dan Baird, is referred to regularly during the gig with one reference introducing his cover of Homemade Sin’s ‘Lick A Sense’. 



As on a number of occasions throughout the set, Warner’s gentlemanly Southern charm comes to the fore as he asks the audience “is it okay if I play a country song?”, explaining that he’s from Nashville and highlighting that country music is quite different to metal; if you play metal records in reverse you can conjour up the devil whereas if you play country music in reverse you can get your wife, house and car back! With that, Warner sings ‘The Magician’. Having not listened to it in ages, I initially took it for a cover before rediscovering it on his ‘Just Feel Right’ album.



Two songs follow from his ‘Right Back Where I Started’ album - the first after being asked if we’re okay with him playing a fast song, ‘Waitin’ On Me’, and the second dedicated to his wife who inspired the song ‘Never Alone’. 



Turning attention to the Scorchers, Warner reminded us more than once during the gig that the band had originally been called Jason and the Nashville Scorchers, reflecting their home town name, but had to drop the “Nashville” from their name when their EP took off and they were then signed by EMI. Self-deprecatingly he told the wonderful tale about how he hadn’t realised that their breakthrough hit ‘Absolutely Sweet Marie’ was a Dylan song, he wouldn’t have recorded it if he’d known, then they supported Dylan and deliberately didn’t play it only for Dylan to ask them to as he preferred their version to his original. 



Further stories followed about touring with Stevie Ray Vaughan and with The Ramones as the Scorchers took off.



Approaching the end of the set, another song from his new album followed, ‘When My Baby’s Blue’, along with ‘I Love You Baby’ before two more Scorchers’ numbers - ‘White Lies’ and their wonderfully raucous cover of ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’ which was no less raucous in Warner’s hands to close his set. Remaining on stage and humbly soaking up the applause Warner decided to give us one more song which he simply introduced as a protest song - ‘Fortunate Son’ - a song which has been covered so many times by different artists, but tonight, again just accompanied by his gnarly Les Paul, sounded rawer, fresher and more urgent and immediate than I’ve heard it before.



Warner is a guitarist’s guitarist and extremely highly-rated by his peers - not for shredding or histrionics, but for his pure ability to, as Charlie Starr put it, “play the shit out of the guitar”.  Over the course of 90 minutes and armed with just his Les Paul and some FX pedals Warner provided a masterclass in guitar playing coaxing sounds out of it that were by turns chunky, raw, meaty, dirty, soulful, honeyed and sexy with beautiful tones throughout. Importantly and subtly doing this in a way which isn’t off-putting or self-indulgent to those who aren’t guitar freaks. He plays so naturally that his guitar appears part of him, almost like an extension of his physical being, that it wouldn’t have been hard to imagine little Warner emerging from his mother’s womb clutching a guitar and laying down a riff before his umbilical chord was cut. 



Watching and listening to him play, it also occurred to me that Gibson could save themselves a fortune in marketing and artist endorsements, simply by recording a clip of Warner playing and inserting a big arrow pointing to him saying “THIS”. 



Warner is an experienced pro and entertainer. Having spent most of his career backing others or more recently fronting his own band, he did appear a little less comfortable playing solo than when I’ve seen him playing with bands and when having other musicians to play off. But he should be in no doubt he absolutely nailed this - vocally, musically and in providing great entertainment. Saturday nights, or any nights, don’t get much better than this. 



As great as the gig was, there were only around 50+ in a room which could have held double that. I also noticed Warner joking on social that he’d just been told that another date on the tour “will be “light on the ground”! I guess that’s code for “haven’t sold many tickets”?????? lol”. I’m not sure if these couple of attendances were down to there being so many gigs happening just now or to the solo gigs not being marketed as much as (or a bit more hesitantly than) the full-band ones, but I’d hope they wouldn’t be viewed as a failure. I and those around me loved every minute and the sheer quality of the gig deserves a larger audience. And if you do manage to see one of his occasional solo gigs consider yourself very lucky. I’d also love to see an album or EP based on this format. 



For those who may have missed seeing Warner or are keen to see him again, Warner E. Hodges and the International All Stars will be returning to the U.K. in September -



16 Sept - Bannerman’s, Edinburgh

17 Sept - The Waterloo Music Bar, Blackpool

18 Sept - The Patriot, Crumlin

19 Sept - Ruskin’s Bar, Kendal

20 Sept - 10 Cafe Bar, Forfar

21 Sept - 10 Cafe Bar, Forfar

23 Sept - Motorsport Lounge, Llandudno

24 Sept - Backstage at the Green, Kinross

25 Sept - Cart & Horses, London

26 Sept - Prince Albert, Brighton

27 Sept - The Cluny, Newcastle

28 Sept - The Greystones, Sheffield

29 Sept - The International, Leicester



Tickets are on sale now for all dates. Go get them.