The Blockheads were dragged into the light on the tattered coat tails of punk but always owed a greater debt to Steely Dan than the Sex Pistols.

Fronted by arch maverick Ian Dury, it was the rhythmic powerhouse of Chas Jankel (guitar/keyboards), Norman Watt-Roy (bass) and Micky Gallagher (Hammond Organ) that shaped Dury’s music hall whimsy into songs that conquered the world.

Since Dury’s death in 2000 the band have continued to tour and this year released a new album Same Horse, Different Jockey.

This festival gig at the Corn Exchange was a great opportunity to see true legends of the game intermix the new (Boys Will Be Boys; Confused) and the cherished old (Clever Trevor/What A Waste etc).

The new songs follow the established Blockheads pattern (jazz-funked cockney patter) but the album title gives a clue as to their weakness.

Vocalist Derek Hussey does a valiant job but asking anyone to climb into Dury’s saddle is like asking Jim the blind stablelad to replace Kieren Fallon on the eve of the Derby. There could be a fairytale ending or...

Judging from his performance Hussey feels the pressure of being thrust into the built up shoes.

Dury was a diabolic stage performer but there was always a half smile; the songs too are essentially generous and comic. Hussey is all flat ironic detachment and, at times, couldn’t hide his disdain for some of the old tunes. These are sacred vessels, they need sensitive handling.

The same couldn’t be said for Jankel and Watt-Roy; the latter a bouncing Yoda with his gold Precision, nailing those squirming basslines to the beat.

Meeting him afterwards I grabbed both his hands and asked for The Force. Sadly I’m still as cack handed on the bass - must’ve been planetary interference.

It was a pleasure meeting Gallagher too - anyone involved with London Calling demands a little idolatry. These pros know the value of their legacy and they gave it their all, for the 10,000th time.

Standout tracks Sex and Drugs etc, Rhythm Stick plus, of course, Reasons To Be Cheerful.

The encore was a strangely deadened recital of Blockheads, the team anthem.

"They have womanly breasts under pale mauve vests," is not a line you’re likely to hear in any Simon Cowell product but if this gig was anything it was by way of a tribute to a true original, Ian Dury, warped wordsmith of the wave nouveau.