With the chances of a fully-fledged Talking Heads reunion about as likely as Donald Trump finding a way to start making sense, a show by two of the band’s alumni is currently as close as you’ll get, enigmatic frontman David Byrne’s solo shows notwithstanding.

The singer’s unique style and eccentric persona makes it hard to imagine how the band’s sound can be authentically recreated without him, but Jerry Harrison, Adrian Belew and their terrific backing band make a hell of a fist of it. The former (guitar and keyboards) is one of Talking Heads’ founder members, the latter (guitar) a significant contributor to their seminal album Remain In Light as well as touring band, the extended body count of which was replicated here by nine backing musicians, the majority also members of the evening’s opening act Cool Cool Cool.

The assembled drummers (two), bassist, horn players (three), backing singers (two) and multi-instrumentalist brought fun, energy and incredible (as well as suitably loose and funky) musical chops to the party, and sharing out the vocals proved a masterstoke, with no one (including Harrison and Belew) trying too hard to ape Byrne’s iconic delivery, although the manic reading of Once In A Lifetime came close.

At any other gig that unlikely hit single would be a standout, but here it did more than hold its own alongside sublime versions of the likes of Slippery People, I Zimbra, Born Under Punches, Cities, Houses in Motion, Life During Wartime and more.

Fifty years and a day since Talking Heads’ first gig at New York’s legendary CBGBs club – a time frame during which Harrison unbelievably spent 25 years away from the stage – this incredible performance was not only a fabulous showcase of the mercurial band’s back catalogue but given the ages of the lead players involved (76 and 75 respectively) an astonishing success in its own right, arguably as much OMFG as CBGB.

And if this ain’t no party and this ain’t no disco then you could’ve fooled me.

Five stars

Reviewed by Steve Adams at Wulfrun Hall, Wolverhampton on Friday 6 June.