Saving Grace ( + support The Rails) - 11/12/2019

This gig was not to be missed so I ignored my travel induced sleep deprivation to drive into Bristol via a detour from a closed motorway and my groggy state was very soon lifted as The Rails took the stage. Quite a bit of new stuff from them delivered in fine style. The title track from their new album 'Cancel the Sun' was excellent but the whole 45 minute set was great. I note that both Kami Thompson and James Walbourne were playing the same 12-string guitars which produced a rich and full sound. Both are good guitarists and James includes some super fast paced picking. Kami's voice has more than a hint of mother Linda Thompson's vocals which is a real treat. Saving Grace have developed since I saw them first in their 'under the radar' phase. Also the sound was better quality and Suzie Dian's voice came across clear and pure in the opening song - 'Undone in Sorrow'. Also Matt Worley on banjo and guitar and some vocals and Tony Kelsey on guitar and mandolin were exceptionally good. And of course Robert Plant who can still sing up a storm and has put together another distinctive, unusual and scholarly (mostly Americana) repertoire. I loved 'Move Along Train' a Levon Helm cover, gospelly and rocky with Matt on vocals and brilliant backing vocals from Suzie and Robert; similarly 'Soul of a Man' also with Matt singing. The highlight was of course 'Season of the Witch' a song I have always loved with fantastic vocals and outstanding guitar playing from Matt and Tony. Absolutely top notch. Low , Moby Grape and Charlie Rich were amongst other covers in the set which was outstanding from start to finish. Glad I made it into town. Setlist https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/saving-grace/2019/st-georges-bristol-bristol-england-b9a49b2.html

Hannah James & the Jigdoll Ensemble - 20/10/2019

I wanted to go to this gig because it promised some clog dancing and we certainly got some superb, mesmeric step dancing from Hannah. It was also a folkish gig with a band that featured András Des on percussion, fiddle player Kate Young, and bassist Marti Tarn. The set opened with a short band intro followed by some superb clog dancing and then continued with Hannah playing accordion (usually whilst adding steps with her right foot). Hannah's singing was good and I really like the harmony vocals that the fiddle player Kate often added in. I didn't know the songs but I remember liking one from her first album called 'Treasures' that featured a variety of percussive sounds and also a lovely accordion led song that ended the gig called something like 'Talikkas Song'. Meanwhile every so often we had more clog dancing or soft shoe dancing or tapping including some serious acrobatics and a dancing duet with the percussionist. A different type of gig and very enjoyable. There is something about clog dancing that gets through to me in a way that a lot of more formal dancing does not.

Kit Hawes & Aaron Catlow - 17/10/2019

This was a small gig in The Glass Room at St Georges, my attendance motivated by a notable contribution from Kit Hawes as guitarist in Set Lakeman's band earlier in the year. This was full-on folk gig with just two of them, Kit on acoustic guitar and Aaron on fiddle. The performance was excellent, subtle but passionate. Some of the songs stood out for me, 'John Barleycorn', an original Kit Hawes track written about Norway followed by a mediaeval German tune, a Kit Hawes song 'Crossfire', the encore track featuring lovely fiddle playing in a sort of East European/Middle East genre song. They deserved a bigger audience although those that were there were very appreciative.

Andy Fairweather-Low - 26/9/2019

Whilst his recent performances locally have seen a similar gig with similar musicians in the band, AFL fits into the category of local musicians who merit attendance when they play in small local venues - this time it was again the Savoy hosting AFL's show. A frenetic drive from Bristol after a boat trip saw me only miss the first half of the first track and I was in my seat by the time he launched into 'Route 66' so I was happy with that. He plays a mixture of classic songs from the last fifty years with songs from his back catalogue and then of course some Amen Corner pop hits. I particularly enjoyed a number of songs in the second half of the show including 'It hurts me too', 'Nobody Loves you when you're down and out' and a brilliant medley of 'Peter Gunn', 'Apache' and 'Hideaway'. In truth he played a very similar set at the Savoy when we saw him last year but as long as he includes such classic guitar songs that's OK with me. The band like last time was the High Riders (ie the full band) with a three person brass section (Tenor sax, bass sax and trumpet), bass drums and keyboards. Nick Pentelow on tenor sax is superb on tracks like Peter Gunn - he exactly the feel and attack to play rock saxaphone but the others were excellent too. The base sax did a great solo on one song and the trumpet also had some great solo breaks. If he comes every year - I'll go every year. As simple as that.

Alaw - 20/9/2019

I enjoy the local music scene immensely. Very distinctively Welsh, with talented musicians and bands prepared to play to village hall audiences locally - what's not to like. Alaw is a trio led by Oliver Dickson-Smith on fiddle. Jamie Smith on accordion and Dylan Fowler on guitar make up the band. They play jigs and reels and Welsh songs and English ones and the rhythms are great and the playing expert. This gig was at Catbrook Village Hall and it is a privilege to drive for just ten minutes, enjoy some locally brewed beer and listen to some fine music and all for just ten pounds. I'll be seeing Jamies and Oliver again in February when Mabon include our village hall on their farewell tour.

Pixies - 13/9/2019

I couldn't resist a Pixies tour even if the gig was at the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena and in an unassigned seat far far away from the stage. First up was The Big Moon an all female band who would have sounded better with a different sound mix. The bass drum was definitely at 11 and even Robbie Shakespear would have been impressed with the bass guitar volume. When that drum was going the subtleties of the vocals and guitars was rather lost and they were definitely worth listening to. The changes in tempo in the songs were good as well - I wouldn't mind seeing the band in a different environment - and with a different mixing engineer. The Pixies just launched straight into 'Where is My Mind' followed by 'Here Comes Your Man' two of their classic songs to get audience in the mood - which worked very well. Thereafter they roughly alternated a couple of their new songs (which were only released on the day of the concert so I hadn't heard them before) with a couple from their back catalogue. I really took to the new stuff, slightly less manic their some of the older songs and therefore more immediately accessible. As ever the guitar work, whether from Black Francis who has an eclectic and unconventional style, or from Joey Santiago who I think improves with every gig I have seen was a highlight for me. Not to diminish the roles of bassist/backing vocalist Paz Lenchantin or drummer David Lovering who were both excellent but the really exciting moments were when those two guitarists were giving it some. Joey Santiago seems to have become more fluid and less staccato over time and it is a great sound particularly when allied to the unique Black Francis sound. I loved the version of 'Wave of Mutilation' which was about ten songs in, tracks delivered one straight after another without pause. A few tracks later there was another great version, this time of 'Gouge Away' and shortly after perhaps the best moment of the gig when The Pixies launched into a Jesus and Mary Chain Song. A great crossover moment. Looking up the set list I see that the song was 'Head On' (from Automatic). 'Gigantic' and 'Caribou' gave Paz a chance to show off her vocal chops before a last few songs which included the brilliant 'Bone Machine' followed by the superb 'Debaser'. There was a single song encore which was 'Hey' and that was song 34 of high energy relentless music. Good job again from The Pixies.

k.d. lang 12/10/2000

The recent K.d.lang gig had me thinking about the previous time I had seen her nearly 19 years ago. I was struggling to remember the gig at The Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham. Amazingly there is a recording on youtube that is really good quality so I now have a track listing and the opportunity to relive the experience! Looking at the songs (listed below) I can see why the gig is a bit of a blur. She sang most of the tracks of the album 'Invincible Summer' which I do not know. Listening to the youtube version the highlight has to be the cover of 'Crying' which perfectly suits her emotion-laden voice plus of course the tracks from 'Ingenue' which is a classic torch album. I knew I enjoyed the gig at the time - it's great to hear the reasons why again. 1. Extraordinary Thing 2. Summerfling 3. The Consequences of Falling 4. Suddenly 5. Crying 6. What Better Said 7. In Perfect Dreams 8. Wash me Clean 9. Love's Great Ocean 10. When We Collide 11. World of Love 12. Constant Craving 13. Miss Chatelaine 14. It's Happening With You 15. Simple

k.d. lang 17/7/2019

First up was a short very enjoyable set from classical guitarist Leonard Grigoryan. Good enough to snaffle a CD. k.d. lang was on shortly after and straight into a track by track performance of Ingenue, the 1992 album that made her a global star and gay icon. The band comprised of a superb pianist/hammond organ player, Daniel Clarke, an excellent musical bassist, David Piltch, a delightful rhythm guitarist who occasionally picked out some intricate solo notes, Grecco Burrato, and Rich Hinman on Pedal Steel and Lead Guitar, Andrew Borger on drums and backing vocalists, Moorea Masa and Tahirah Memory. Of course the singing was superb, the band was great particularly the three I mentioned favourably and the songs are pretty classic unrequited-love songs. I particularly like 'The mind of love', 'Wash me clean', 'still thrives this love', 'Outside myself' and naturally 'Constant Craving'. I noted however the the piano was especially inspired on 'Season of Hollow Soul' and 'Tears of love's Recall' and in truth the whole performance was great from start to finish. After that k.d. did a couple of tracks the second of which was a highlight called 'I dream of Spring' before hitting three 'canadian' covers , a Joni Mitchell track followed by an extraordinary version of 'Helpless', her emotion packed singing resonating perfectly with one of my all-time favourite songs. That was a moment. She followed it with 'Hallelujah' - a more overtly expressive version than Leonard Cohen's - to say the least. The encore was a couple of her tracks I didn't know and that was it - short and very very sweet.

Carmina - 15/6/2019

This was the second Carmina gig in a month or so - the first having been in our village hall and this one at the lovely Part Y Seal country house. The sets were fairly similar although this one a little shorter. I particularly enjoyed some of the covers ('Fragile' a Sting song, 'Into the Mystic, Van Morrison, 'Killing the Blues' Rowland Sally and particularly 'Heroes, David Bowie. This last song is done slow and moody and like all good cover versions it adds something to the song. Of their songs I particularly enjoyed 'Landmarks', the rousing and brilliant 'River of Love/Shenandoah' mash up, 'Twenty Three (in the morning) and 'Song for Pepper'. There was also a great intro from Geoff as a tribute to the recently deceased Dr John. 'This was a four-piece Carmina with Rob, Pippa, Paul and Geoff on Keyboards as the fourth member. It was nice to meet people we knew in the audience and also chat to the band who know us after Geoff stayed with us last time round.

Mark Knopfler - 30/5/2019

Trips to Birmingham for gigs are rationed now so it is only special occasions and Mark Knopfler (who I haven't seen for four years counts as special even if it is the NEC). We got the tickets via MK's fair ballot arrangement whereby you put your requirements forward and then seats are allocated by ballot. How on earth then did I manage to get the three best seats in a 16,000 capacity arena - middle of the front row almost within touching distance of the man himself? The band was pretty much the same as on previous tours, Guy Fletcher as keyboards etc and band leader, Richard Bennett on guitar etc, John McCusker on fiddle etc, Mike McGoldrick on pipes and whistles etc, Jim Cox on keyboards, Ian Thomas on drums, Danny Cummins on percussion, Glen Worf on bass, Graeme Blevins on sax and Tom Walsh on trumpet. The band all get a mention as they were exceptional. The reason for the 'etc' is that many of the musicians are multi-instrumentalist and there was a wide variety and a constant change around. MK himself gets a new guitar every track and occasionally more than one. This was in marked contrast to the previous night's gig where Albert Lee just keeps playing with the same guitar. The gig started with 'Why Aye Man' followed by the upbeat 'Cornbread City'. Then the beautiful 'Sailing to Philadelphia' and the first piece of slower more plaintive Knopfler guitar playing. He then moved on to a couple of Dire Straits songs including 'Romeo and Juliet' which always goes down well before a couple of songs from the most recent album (Down the Road Wherever) including the excellent 'My Bacon Roll' which is a typical quirky MK song. The band were adding their own brilliance to the guitar which is front and centre at any MK gig - each of them a master of their own instruments and working seamlessly as a band. The two horn players made a big and perfectly judged contribution whenever they were called on and the two drummers also worked a treat. Next up was one of my favourites of MK's lesser known songs 'Bonaparte' and that was certainly one of the highlights of a gig, that was in any case superb throughout, with the whole band given the opportunity to show how good they were. A few tracks later and it was another favourite of mine 'Postcards from Paraguay' and some brilliant trumpeting from Tom Walsh. Another excellent Dire Straits song 'On Every Street' and then perhaps the best of the night 'Speedway at Nazareth' another quirky MK song. Every MK gig seems to produce a single moment that lives on and here it was a phrase on the guitar in this track that tumbled down the fretboard and ended beautifully. MK has an ultra relaxed confidence as he plays with his trademark bends and sustains that make every track a joy in any case. The encore produced the audience-pleasing 'Money for Nothing' and a second encore the timeless 'Brothers in Arms' followed of course by 'Local Hero'. Is that all? Just two hours of solid brilliance from an all star band and a guitarist still delivering at 69? OK.

Albert Lee - 29/5/2019

An opportunity to see a great guitarist in our local theatre in Monmouth was not to be missed. We saw Albert Lee a couple of years ago in Bristol and this was a pretty similar gig in terms of the set list. The band was different but I didn't catch their names. The keyboards man was excellent and he fitted with Albert's Guitar playing very well with some fast and rocky keyboards. He played a Carl Perkins track 'Restless' early on and that was the first time he slipped into one of his distinctive, fast and rhythmic solos that are his trademark. He has a fluidity that is rarely equalled, maybe when Mick Taylor was at his pomp and playing blues solos, maybe Knopfler (in a different way) - who we are seeing tonight as it happens. He also respectfully names the songwriter before each track and sometimes mentions his connection to said songwriter (Albert's resume is astonishing). There were a couple of Gram Parson's tracks and 'Luxury Liner was one highlight of the gig with amazing playing by Albert on an extended solo and some good soloing from the keyboards man. Albert Lee is a great stage presence as well with no ego on show although he was clearly a little bit resentful that he had been sacked by Eric Clapton and let off a few notes from 'Layla' by way of musical comment. There was a couple of Rodney Crowell covers, an Everley brothers cover, 'Highwayman' from Jimmy Webb, some Crickets covers (including 'Well All Right) and a great version of 'Tear Stained Letter' that might even have Richard Thompson listening with envy at the guitar picking. And of course there was 'Country Boy' - absolutely outstanding. The encore included a Glen Campbell cover at the keyboards following by a couple of trademark guitar songs to finish, the last song being 'Tear it Up' - which he had.

Manic Street Preachers - 15/5/2019

The support act, singer songwriter Gwenno plus guitar/bass/drums was a new first for me - the first Cornish language set I have been at. Well actually I think the first few songs were in Welsh but she is clearly bilingual as the last few were definitely in Cornish. She was good, plenty of attitude and a nice voice. Not sure what the songs were about...... The Manics were touring their 1998 album, 'This is my truth, tell me yours' and it is not an album I have although I do know a number of the tracks on it. They just launched straight into it and for the first hour or so played pretty much the whole album. There were two rhythm guitarists backing up James Dean Bradley on guitar and a keyboards player to augment, Nicky Wire on Bass and Sean Moore on Drums. They are a good combo of anthemic, gritty and political and JDB is a very fine singer and guitarist. He did just one track without the band (except for the keyboards) which was 'Born a Girl' and that was particularly welcome as the sound was a little muddy up to that point. JDB's guitar was generally low key until they played 'Black Dog on My Shoulder' and from then on he laid down some beautiful solos and rhythm guitar on pretty much every track, notably on 'Prologue to History'. The last song in the album section was of course 'If you tolerate this then your children will be next' which got a suitable audience response for such a great song. They continued playing other songs from the catalogue with JDB continuing great guitar playing. I particularly like 'Motorcycle Emptiness' but it was ll good stuff. Last track as on previous gigs was 'design for Life' and then they were gone. It's great they are the local band for us now and I note that the album was recorded in our local Rockfield Studios. They are a great home band to have.

Carmina - 11/5/2019

This was my fourth time for seeing Carmina; two members for the first gig, three for the second, four for the third and therefore of course five band members for this one. This gig was my suggestion for the Village Hall and it went down very well. The band was Pippa Marland (vocals and sax etc), Rob King (guitar), Paul Bradley (guitar), Geoff Castle (Keyboards) and on Double bass The band kicked off with 'Bird of Paradise' as usual and played mainly their own songs with a few covers thrown in. The covers were all excellent choices, 'Into the mystic' (Van Morrison), 'Killing the Blues' (popularised by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant), Graceland (Paul Simon) and as an encore song a superb version of 'Heroes' (Bowie). This last song was a slower, less poppy version of this classic track and was a great finish to the gig. Near the end of the set Carmina did a great 'mash up' of 'Shenandoah' and another song that worked really well and had full-on audience participation for the chorus. Of the band's own songs I particularly enjoyed 'Landmarks' which had a great sense of place for those who know Bristol and'Lord Franklin',and 'Song for Pepper' but the gig was class from start to finish. To get such musicians to a village hall is startling.

Ron Block & Tony Furtado - 7/5/2019

Another interesting gig opportunity presented itself when I spotted that Ron Block (of Union Station fame) was playing in a Unitarian Chapel in Kendal on the same day we were staying 10 miles away in Sedbergh. I managed to obtain a few of the very last tickets for this sold out gig organised by American Roots in Cumbria. It was amazing. Ron Block is of course an outstanding guitar and banjo player and it turns out that Tony Furtado is ditto. Having the two of them duetting for most of the time was incredible. It reminded me of listening to Jerry Garcia and David Grisman where you have two superb musicians relaxed and acoustic and playing the music they love. Certainly Ron looked the picture of relaxation whereas when playing with Union Station he seems much more uptight. The opening song 'Raleigh and Spencer' saw them both on guitar and was a beautiful country blues style song with slide guitar from Tony and intricate playing from both. The general pattern was for one of them to play banjo whilst the other played guitar. There were also a number of solo songs. Each of them played intricate chords and solos and it was just a joy to listen to such consumate musicians playing together. Tracks I noted included the old americana classic 'Peggy o', a banjo version of the Beatles' song 'I Will', a brilliant version of the Woody Guthrie song 'It takes a worried man'. Many of the songs were written by the guys themselves including '65 Mustang Blues,, 'Mollie Catherine Carter', 'Hogan's House of Boogie'(Ron Block) and 'Can't Lie Down', 'Star' and 'Broken Bell' (Tony Furtado) and they basically took the vocals on their own songs. Ron also wrote a beautiful hymn-like song which could almost make you get religion. They encored unplugged and unmiked and did a beautiful Woody Guthrie song 'I ain't got no home'. What a great and surprising gig.

Saucerful of Secrets - 29/4/2019

I had wanted to see this band as soon as I read about them last year and when they came to Cardiff that was an opportunity not to be missed. First on was Mcnally Waters with Larry McNally on guitar and vocals and Harry Waters (yes - son of Roger) on keyboards plus a rhythm section of bass and drums. They were very good, an interesting Southern Rock/Blues guitar, a New Orleans style keyboards and an overall sound that was part Deep South and part New Orleans. The songs were good as well and perhaps the only thing that wasn't quite there was the vocals of Larry. They played a short (25 mins) set) and then it was SoS. The line up was Nick Mason on drums (obvi), Gary Kemp guitar and vocals (ex Spandau Ballet), Lee Harris guitar (ex Blockheads) Guy Pratt Bass (ex Pink Floyd/Roger Mason/David Gilmour collaborator) and Dom Beken (Keyboards and stuff). The first thing to say is that, as I hoped, this did not feel or sound like a tribute band, although with Nick Mason on drums it could not be called that anyway. It sounded like a new slant on some fascinating and excellent songs from a particular era that is pretty much a unique legacy of the original Floyd. In doing early Floyd songs the band also achieved a couple of things - restoring a mainly lost legacy (live at least) and appropriately reminding us of the nature of the sound mix of that band at that time. Drum driven to a greater extent than most music, bass telling the melody often and guitar given the freedom to do whatever along with the synthesised and recorded sounds that are also distinctive of Floyd. The guitarists were outstanding. Lee Harris was one of the most confident guitarists I have seen, hitting complex and precise licks without missing a beat and creating a perfect sound to overlay on top of the rhythm section. This was perfectly demonstrated during the first surprise track of the night for me 'Fearless' from Meddle. He also delved into a few Gilmour like (without being derivative) solos when the song required it. Gary Kemp was a great surprise to me as someone who has never been a Spandau Ballet fan. He was fairly restrained early on and was never showy but as the gig went on his guitar was increasingly prominent and increasingly very good. Guy Pratt on bass was immediately a perfect fit and this is not surprising given his history with the band and its former members. The gig began with a couple of old classics 'Interstellar Overdrive' and 'Astromini Domini' and with some Floyd-like videos and lights going on of course. After a few more vintage songs and the aforementioned 'fearless' (which is still going round in my head) it went up a level with a rousing version of 'Arnold Layne' with Gary on vocals. Shortly after came one of the highlights of the night, a long version of 'If' which had some 'Atom Heart Mother' in the middle. there was then some stellar guitar playing from Gary and Lee on the next couple of tracks and not long after the long-awaited 'Set the Controls'. This was especially resonant for me as that was the amazing highlight of my very first Floyd gig in '68. Another big memory track was on shortly after, 'See Emily Play' and then to my surprise 'One of these days' from my favourite Floyd album 'Meddle'. This of course perfectly suited the band and Guy and the two lead guitarists were perfect on it. The encore started with a brilliant version of 'Saucerful of Secrets' (of course) and then 'Point me at the sky' finished the evening off. Brilliant, just brilliant.

Gretchen Peters 19/4/2019

Gretchen Peters has joined the top league of alt-country singers for me. This was the fourth gig of hers for me, the first one being in 2013 and they have all been outstanding. This time she came with the same excellent band as last time (Barry Walsh on piano, Colm McClean on guitar and Connor Mcreanor on bass) plus a string quartet who came on for the second half (three violins and a cello). The first set was the basic band with a couple of songs where a single string player came on. Colm McClean was brilliant (as he was last time); subtle but beautiful guitar playing whether filling in or soloing. Barry Walsh is about as good on piano, relaxed joyful keyboards. Gretchen ran through a stack of her best songs. Th highlight of the first half for me was the outstanding 'Everything Falls Away' with brilliant solos from guitar and particularly piano. A song full of sadness and truth. 'Disappearing Act' is another favourite from her last album and it was great version of 'Saving Grace'. She finished the half with 'Five Minutes' and 'Idlewild' two of her best songs, telling stories which have resonance on a bigger scale than the particular tale they tell. The strings were on for the second half and they added a driving fullness to the sound which complemented her songs. All four of the 'Southern Fried String Quartet' were right on the button. She kicked off with 'Arguing with Ghosts', did a great version of 'Hello Cruel World', the superb 'Blackbirds' and a few older songs, the last two and most memorable of which were 'On a Bus to St Cloud' and 'To Say Goodbye' which again featured great playing from guitar and keyboards. There was a brief encore of 'When I grow old' and then that was it. A couple of other things worth mentioning were her acoustic guitar playing which is steady as a rock and a key part of the overall sound and the incredible enthusiasm of the audience. She seems to have found a rapport with St Georges and Bristol and I am hoping she turns up again soon.

Saving Grace (ft Robert Plant) - 17/4/2019

In by the skin of our teeth to this under-the-radar local gig for Robert Plant's most recent project - Saving Grace. I only heard of the gig in a local school theatre after it was sold out, by word of mouth. I got myself on the waiting list (in ninth place) but heard nothing so went down early on the night of the gig and just before the start time we managed to find two groups who had turned up one person short and sneaked in under the wire. I'm glad we made the effort - a stunning exposition of Americana from five great musicians, certainly Americana in the band sound which reminded me instantly of a T-Bone Burnett project. There was a muddy guitar, a frequent banjo, an insistent drum and the two vocalists, Robert Plant and Suzi Dian. Tony Kelsey was on guitar and also mandolin, and Matt Worley on banjo, acoustic and baritone guitars, and cuatro. Oli Jefferson was the drummer. The gig started with Suzi on vocals on a Patty Griffin cover, 'Standing' and the song perfectly suited her voice and the bands atmospheric Southern US sound. Then Robert took over on vocals to sing 'Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down' which he did with Band Of Joy when we saw them. The majority of the set was Americana of some sort backed by the excellent band musicians with Matt playing mostly banjo and he turned out to be a good vocalist as well and took the lead on one song. They also threw in a Donovan cover and this may have been the highlight of the set as 'Season of the Witch' is just such a great song and with this band and these two vocalists it was outstanding. There was another Patty Griffin cover 'Ohio' which was also excellent and then a Low cover of 'Everybody's Song' from The Great Destroyer. Those three songs were the last three before the encore - an outstanding end to what was a short set of a little over an hour. There was an acapello spiritual encore to finish. I'm so glad I didn't miss this local treat

Harbottle and Jonas - 5/4/2019

A complete contrast from the day before - from noisy, feisty Southern Rock/Blues in a packed standing city venue with a sticky floor to a gentle folk gig in a local village hall. They are based in Devon and many of the songs featured the sea and their recent album is 'The Sea is My Brother'. Freya Jonas had a distinctive folky voice and also played both an accordion with her hands and a harmonium with her right leg mostly. Dave Harbottle played guitar and sang as well. Both had a friendly audience engagement style with bits of chat and explanation between songs. I very much liked their opening song - 'Was it You?' about Scott in the Antarctic and also rated the title track of the aforementioned album. The other highlight that comes to mind was a cover of 'Black is the Colour' which suited Freya's voice perfectly. In fact the whole gig was great from start to finish. The encore was a rousing version of 'The leaving of Liverpool' which went down well all round.

Larkin Poe - 4/4/2019

Having seen Larkin Poe a couple of time I was keen to enjoy them again. They tick lots of boxes, feisty Southern Rock, guitar-led, drenched in blues influence, loads of slide guitar, sisters harmonising - what's not to like. The venue, The Fleece, was a first for me and whilst it was a nice building it had the usual disadvantages when its all about standing and drinking rather than sitting and listening. The support were coincidentally also siblings, two brother who were called Foreign Affairs and although they were supporting Larkin Poe on their whole European tour they were as it happens home town boys from Bristol. I enjoyed them, the guitar playing was excellent if occasionally a little over elaborate and the songs were interesting. Larkin Poe just came on and turned the volume and energy up to ten and kept it there for the whole show. It is a pleasure to go to a gig with four early blues covers (Leadbelly, Son House x2 and Robert Johnson) but their original songs are also good. There was of course a number of songs from their new album (Venom and Faith). I particularly enjoyed 'California King' on which Rebecca played the banjo to go with Megan's slide and the same instruments were kept for one of the Son House covers, 'John the revelator'. That's a good combo - banjo and slide. Other than that Rebecca played a mean, down and dirty guitar. One song fetaured a great solo from her followed by a fabulous slide solo from Megan and that was probably the high point of an excellent gig. Also memorable off the new album was 'Beach Blonde Bottle Blues' whilst older stuff that I noted included 'Trouble in Mind' and a great 'Preaching Blues' cover. The encore was a spare version of 'Come on in My Kitchen' and that is a good finish.

Seth Lakeman - 26/3/2019

I had last seen Seth Lakeman at the Monmouth Music Festival a few years back and before that about ten years ago. I enjoy his modern take on folk and the enthusiasm and dynamism with which he delivers it. First up was Josienne Clark, singer songwriter with an interesting set of songs and a great dry line in chat. Comparing her music to that of Seth's ('footstompingly good') she described it as 'tearjerkingly sad'. She did moody electric guitar as well as acoustic and had a great voice. Seth's band was drummer, bass player and lead guitarist with him playing fiddle, guitar, a four string guitar(?) and banjo. The band was excellent - I was particularly impressed with the guitarist, Kit Hawes who was perfect for the band, never flashy but always adding to the band sound whether filling in, soloing or adding rhythm. After a number of songs I didn't know - presumably off the new album - the best of which was called 'Silver Threads' (or something similar), Seth played some songs from the excellent 'Freedom Fields' album. My favourite track, the supernatural 'White Hare' was in the set along with 'Colliers' which adds a rousing sing-a-long chorus to the tragic tale of a mining disaster and the excellent 'Setting of the Sun'. This was followed by another of his more well-known songs 'Poor Man's heaven'. All great stuff and they are all still circulating in my brain. I'm very glad I caught up with him again.

Aly Bain & Phil Cunningham - 27/3/2019

It was straight back to St Georges after yesterday's gig to see Aly Bain and Phil Cunningham and as usual they delivered a stunning gig. There is no better fiddle player than Aly and Phil is a master of the accordion and writes exquisite airs to boot. This was another masterclass and it was a privilege to be watching it from the best seats in the house. Three particular tunes come to mind - the one where Aly picks up his second fiddle with some strange tuning from a strange part of Scandinavia and plays a song in 21/8 time, the tune that is effectively a solo fiddle and the 'solo' effort from Phil that followed that. The solidity and subtlety of Aly's playing is astonishing, the speed and beauty of Phil's amazing. Always a joy.

Roy Harper - 12/3/2019

I was in two minds about this gig when it was announced - I had last seen Roy Harper in 2005 when he was still putting on a good show despite being in his mid sixties. However I had missed out on the 70th birthday tour and indeed the 75th in 2016 so I was worried that a gig in his late seventies would mar memories of the many times I had seen him in his pomp. I should not have been concerned. His voice is still strong, his guitar playing distinctive and apart from a couple of senior moments early on he remembered the lyrics (not always the case in his early days!). More than that the versions of what were mostly old songs were fresh and interesting and the backing musicians excellent. The band was large but never dominant - Roy's guitar and voice were front and centre throughout. The band included a subtle electric guitar player who played fill-ins and occasional pieces of lead, a drummer, bassist, trumpet player, cellist and the band leader who played fiddle and keyboards. In typical Roy Harper mode he said that the reason he had four guitars on stage was because he didn't want to keep tuning between songs and then of course he did exactly that. The song selection was superb. Although the stage time was close to two hours he only got through about twelve tracks because of the length of some of them. I was delighted that among those were the two I wanted to hear most namely 'Hallucinating Light' and 'Another Day'. Both were great versions as well. Pretty high on my wish list also was 'Don't you grieve' which featured early on. Also great choices were 'Highway Blues' a song I had not listened to for a long while and a stand out version of 'McGoohans Blues' - appropriate because that was the first song I had ever heard of his. It was at the Floyd Hyde Park gig in '68 when he was first on stage and basically just managed a long version of that song before falling off his stool. It was delivered with force and passion - pretty amazing considering his age. He also sang some stuff I didn't recognise at least one of which was a new song as well as a couple more songs I did 'Hors D'oeuvres' and 'Time is Temporary'. Of course he finished the main set with 'When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease' and the encore was a new song about how much he had enjoyed his life. Several days later the gig is still buzzing around in my head. I am amazed and very glad I made the effort to get to Birmingham. I doubt that I will see him again - it's a stupendous way to finish.

Mabon - 2 March 2019

Another opportunity thanks to the 'Nights Out' programme that subsidises bands to gig at village halls. This time it was Jamie Smith's Mabon at Catbrook. They are a great band to see mainly because they are excellent musicians but they also bring a nice ambience with clear enjoyment at playing in front of village audiences. The music is Celtic with plenty of reels, jigs and airs but with world influences with an occasional polka and the like. Jamie plays accordion, Ollie Wilson-Dickson fiddle, Iolo Whelan drums, Matt Downer Bass and Paul Rogers guitar. The gig was a sort of retrospective celeb rating the 20 years the band has been together so there was old stuff and new stuff. I enjoyed the dancing bear tune that featured both soulful and lively fiddle and accordion, the 'Drum and Breize' tune with its Breton influence, the polka, the frenetic 'Accordionist's Despair' and the encore track that started out as 'Foxy Lady' but morphed into something else and everything really! Great Night out.