Lucinda Williams 29/6/2013

Last time I saw Lucinda Williams a few years ago the circumstances were unfavourable but despite that the gig was good enough for me to want to catch her again and a gig at a South Wales small town theatre looked a good bet. The venue turned out to be very nice and the crowd were in tune with the ethos of her blue-collar roots. The support was the now-usual singer songwriter. He was called Jimmy Livingstone and he was quite personable and I liked his last track which had a lot of energy but other than that he was OK but not particularly to my taste. Lucinda came on with Doug Pettibone on guitar and was joined after a track by bassist David Sutton. Straight away I remembered the powerrful directness of her vocals; you wonder how the voicebox copes as she gives it welly on every song. She kicked off with 'Passionate Kisses' and followed up with one of my favourites 'Metal Firecracker'. In fact the whole set is composed of good or very good songs because she is an outstanding songwriter and while I can pick out a few of my particular favourites there wasn't a weak song at any point. If I was being particularly critical I might have preferred 'Car Wheels..' to be delivered in a slower more downbeat style but that is nitpicking. Doug Pettibone came more and more to the front as the set went on and his guitar playing was outstanding. In fact right after 'Car Weels..' he played two exquisite solos on 'Pineola', perfectly attuned to this poignant song. One of the highlights for me, as was 'Lake Charles' shortly after, another song about death, but hey, this is country music. 'Jail House Tears' upped the tempo somewhat and was another outstanding track and not long after there was perhaps the best song of the night, a Skip James cover, 'Hard Times Killin' Floor Blues' with some superb guitar from Doug Pettibone. For a gig that featured just a couple of covers, 'Factory' in the encore was another great moment. I guess if you are a great songwriter then any cover you do is going to be a special song. I'm delighted I got to see Lucinda Williams again and in much better circumstances than last time. Roll on the next tour I say.

Steve Winwood - 22/6/2013

Although Steve Winwood is mainly known for his keyboards and his vocals, I rate him as one of my favourite guitarists, and so I noted that I had seen four gigs in May and June featuring four of my favourite guitarists and with an average age of about 65! Of the four gigs this was perhaps the least surprising being somewhat similar to Steve Winwood gigs I have seen in recent years. It did have some great highlights, mainly when Steve was on guitar which was basically three songs plus one on mandolin. There was a great version of 'Can't Find My Way Home' and of course 'Dear Mr Fantasy' featured in the encore as usual. I also loved 'Fly' early on in the set. It would be churlish to criticise as the band were good - better for the fact that the lead guitarist Jose Netto seems more integrated into the group sound these days - but perhaps there was a spark missing. These guys have been touring this show for a while, a mixture of Spencer Davis, Traffic, Blind Faith tracks with a few more recent songs thrown in. I wanted to hear some more of the extensive Winwood solo catalogue although we did have 'Back in the High Life Again' and the obligatory 'Higher love' which I guess is the most well known of his later work. A nice gig as you might assume with Steve's incomparable vocals and general musicianship. The band were also tight. I am also always impressed by the way Winwood plays the bass line with his left foot while playing on two keyboards and singing at the same time. Nonetheless I shall be expecting a different set next time. The support was a singer songwriter called Joe Summers. He was interesting and pleasant enough.

Neil Young 11/6/2013

Crazy Horse with Neil Young are a machine. A powerful unstoppable machine which can only come from decades of playing together. For a lot of the gig they stood on the huge NEC stage surrounded by large props but standing so close together they could have been in your lounge and that just emphasized how tight they are yet completely relaxed into the music. Of course front and central is Neil Young's amazing grungy guitar voice and that was what he was at Birmingham to play. First off we had Los Lobos who played a longish set for a support band of around 50 minutes. It was pleasant and professional enough and showed some wide ranging musical influences. The set list included songs in Spanish, an Allman Bros track, blues, swing and rock and roll. They were all good musicians but the drummer was outstanding, beat perfect all the way through. Respect to them that they did not include 'La Bamba' in their set. The Crazy Horse gig started with an extended piece of business involving roadies dressed as lab scientists and construction workers and then a playing of the National Anthem before they kicked off with 'Love to Burn' followed by 'Surfer Joe and Moe the Sleeze'. Immediately the vibe of the evening of extended tracks of guitar music was evident. Perfection; but not everyone in the audience was happy. A couple of tracks of the new album followed, 'Psychedelic Pill' and 'Walk Like a Giant'. The gig was really motoring by this time with Neil getting ever more expressive on guitar; four songs in and more than 45 minutes on the clock by the time the extended coda on 'Walk Like a Giant' had finished. The show transitioned into a solo acoustic section after a quieter song I hadn't heard before, 'Hole in the Sky', and Neil then did 'Heart of Gold' and 'Blowin' in the Wind'. The mouth harp on 'Heart of Gold' was delectable and the last track in thsi part 'A singer without a song' with Neil on piano was also superb but overall I think he and the band relaxed back into the previous mode with a better feel as Crazy Horse songs resumed with 'Ramamda Inn' off the new album. This was one of the highlights of the gig for me. The band was tight as a nut and Neil's guitar screeched to perfection through this long reflective song. Next up were old favourites 'Cinamon Girl' and a long playful 'Fucking Up' before the band in response to a request threw in 'Cortez the Killer'. This is a magnificent song and with this band on this form it was a privilege to be there. The main set was wrapped up with 'Mr Soul' and 'Hey, Hey (Into the Black)'. The encore was possibly the best bit - I was wondering why he hadn't played 'Powderfinger' but the truth was he was saving it for the encore. One wonders if they will tour again - both Young and Sampedro had their wrists strapped - and if that is the last track I hear Neil Young and this band play then that is a perfect finish. The guitar was immense; it is a, possibly the, classic Neil Young and Crazy Horse song and it was a great finish to a great gig.

Mark Knopfler 30/5/2013

Another week, another Albert Hall gig and also another excellent support act. This time it was Ruth Moody, a member of the Wailin' Jennys, singing folky songs to great effect. The voice is pure and strong, the songs were heartfelt and the band were good. Mark Knopfler came on as part of a superb band that included John McCusker and Phil McGoldrick mainly on celtic type instruments (pipes, whistles, fiddle), the usual crew of Richard Bennett and Guy Fletcher, a rhythm section of Glenn Worf and Ian Thomas and the superb Jim Cox on piano. He was also joined on stage by Ruth Moody for a few tracks early on and then later by Nigel Hitchcock on sax for three songs. Now that is a band. Mark Knopfler is someone who just a natural on guitar, often expressive when starting or finishing songs or even tuning. The whole set was quality from the opening bars of 'What it is' and onto the rocking riff from 'Cornbread City' and then the folky 'Privateering'. And so on for nearly two and a half hours without a dud track in there. As recorded tracks I particularly like 'Hill Farmers Blues' and 'Seattle' but the live highlights for me at this gig were 'I Dug a diamond' with Ruth Moody on backing vocals and a fabulous version of 'Marbletown' with an extended instrumental break featuring John McCusker and Glenn Worf. Throughout Mark changed guitars purposefully and the band changed instruments and each track was arranged to perfection. If I had to pick a criticism then I would say that MK's voice is ageing but it would be churlish to nitpick. The 'Dire Straits' stuff was also done brilliantly with Mark revelling in the band as he ripped through 'Romeo and Juliet', 'Telegraph Road' and 'So far away from me'. The encore was a beautiful version of 'Our Shangri-la' followed by the theme from 'Local Hero'. All done - when can I repeat?