Gags secured numerous rave reviews for their live performances, often being tipped as ‘the next big thing’.

The diversity of media was interesting – musical bibles NME and Sounds covered the band, while closer to home the New Manchester Review, the city’s answer to Time Out, also took a shine to the outfit as did the Manchester Evening News and student weekly, The Mancunian.

One newspaper story relates how Gags fell foul of noise abatement officials for playing too loud – ‘Gags pop group gagged by noise protest’.

Some of the comments recorded were a testament to hyperbole, although the earnest hacks turned out to be poor tipsters.

“Gags have no pretensions at all…they aren’t going to be playing in the pubs for long”
SOUNDS

“Imagine my surprise to see Eric Clapton jamming with Randy Newman!”
NME

“Gags are… goodtime, sweaty, bluesy, sometimes original, sometime derivative… always adventurous”
NME

“A high energy blues band that has built up a huge following”
Manchester Evening News

“The best local band I’ve heard”
The Mancunican

“Probably the best known band from… Manchester’s pub rock circuit”
New Manchester Review

“Gags were so loud they were banned from playing”
Manchester Evening News