Let The Good Times Roll A New Year’s Eve Moment with Noddy Holder Nick Lowe and Paul Carrack
A surviving video clip of Noddy Holder Nick Lowe and Paul Carrack performing Let The Good Times Roll offers a modest but valuable glimpse into a rare shared moment between three highly respected figures in British popular music. Recorded during a New Year’s Eve show, the footage may lack technical polish, but its musical and historical value lies in the personalities involved and the spirit of the occasion.
Noddy Holder is best known as the unmistakable voice of Slade, a band that defined British glam rock and working class pop energy in the nineteen seventies. Nick Lowe emerged from the pub rock scene before becoming one of the central figures in the rise of new wave and power pop, both as a solo artist and as a producer. Paul Carrack built a reputation as one of the finest blue eyed soul vocalists of his generation, with key roles in Ace Squeeze and later collaborations with artists such as Mike and the Mechanics. Seeing these three musicians share a stage is unusual in itself, making the clip noteworthy despite its rough visual quality.
Let The Good Times Roll is a song closely associated with rhythm and blues tradition, often used as a celebratory closer or communal singalong. In the context of a New Year’s Eve performance, the choice feels natural rather than calculated. The song does not demand virtuosity or complex arrangement. Instead, it invites shared feeling, loose interaction, and a sense of occasion. That quality allows each performer to contribute without overshadowing the others.
Holder brings a familiar sense of warmth and audience connection, even outside the Slade repertoire. Lowe adds his relaxed authority and instinctive feel for groove, while Carrack’s voice anchors the performance with professionalism and soul. The clip suggests an atmosphere of camaraderie rather than rehearsal, which aligns with the spirit of a year end celebration. It feels less like a formal collaboration and more like musicians enjoying the moment together.
The video quality is clearly limited, likely taken from a broadcast or private recording rather than an official release. However, this limitation also reinforces the authenticity of the clip. It captures a moment that was never intended to be preserved as a definitive statement. Instead, it survives as a fragment, valued precisely because it was not polished or heavily documented.
For fans of any of the three artists, the performance serves as a reminder of how interconnected the British music scene has always been. Different styles and careers often intersected on stage, especially in live settings built around shared celebration rather than promotion. Let The Good Times Roll in this context becomes more than a song title. It reflects the relaxed joy of musicians who had already earned their place in music history, simply marking the turn of the year together.