Phil Nichol is Bobby Spade - legendary beat poet. In sparkling Edinburgh early evening sun Fringe-going Hep Cats need to get down to the Stand to dig this exceptional performance, which skilfully evokes the spirit of Jack Kerouac.The premise is a recreation of the fateful Baltimore night in 1974 when Spade performed his magnum opus, a rambling epic prose poem, Welcome to Crazytown. It may be billed as comedy, but this is a theatrical performance with jazz band backing.The main Stand venue is the ideal backdrop, creating the nightclub atmosphere for this story of the underbelly of a dark metropolis, populated with freaks, bums and squares. A seedy MC introduces us to Spade and the band of double bass, keyboard, clarinet and guitar create an authentic atmosphere. The band are not simply musical accompaniment, but are engaged in the story. Nichol completely inhabits the character of Spade, leering from the stage, with perfect delivery, pacing and rhythm. As you can imagine from the above, you shouldnt go along expecting an hour of conventional stand up. It is a great piece of work, sharply written, evocative of the era and genre, mocking yet reverential, and of course, extremely funny. I suspect that audiences who are familiar with the work of Kerouac, Ginsberg and the other beats will get most out of it, but the writing is strong enough to carry along those who arent.I left with the impression of a slick professional production that it had been a privilege to see.