BACK in the 70s there were two Rainbows. One was fronted by Zippy and George, the other by Lincolnshire rocker Graham Bonnet.

Formed from remnants of Deep Purple Ritchie Blackmore’s Rainbow, they created rock anthems fit for any Father’s Day compilation album. I wished I still had my wrangler jacket as I approached the venue.

Fibbers was rammed with black Judas Priest and Kiss t-shirts, Hairy Biker’s stunt doubles and vinyl lovers. Support was provided by the ever-impressive powerhouse Morpheus Rising.

York has always kept the fires burning for classic rock and tonight offered the warmest of welcomes.

This is not Rainbow-its a tribute line-up featuring the former frontman. Yet people could not be happier. As an Iggy Pop-lean figure appeared we waited to see if the 66-year-old could still scale his vocal landscapes. We should not have worried. His gaping singing style forced every long note from his wiry frame.

He self-deprecatingly commented, in his converged American accent, on looking like Buddy Holly or an old Elvis Costello in his glasses.

The watertight band were powerful and precise. The drummer proved a worthy guardian for his kit, once owned by Cozy Powell. They know the set better than him, but that is part of the night’s charm.

A noticeable absence was Night Games, Bonnet’s top 10 hit from 1981. But Since You’ve Been Gone and All Night Long took the crowd back to times when they never had chest freezers.

In 35 years tastes have changed, but this was “meat and tatties’” rock played by musicians who adore it. Proof that at the end of this Rainbow you will always find a rock of gold.