Ah… that looks awfully familiar.
Excellent solo acoustic set by TV Smith at Foxtails, a tiny coffee shop/bar in Chorley, Lancs last Sunday afternoon. Unusual venue but the owner is trying to put on more punk/new wave acts. It’s a lovely friendly place with a great selection of beers, coffee and cakes!!!
ESE AND THE VOODUU PEOPLE at The Troubadour in the Old Brompton Road.
A classic & historic intimate venue (where the band’s live album Mercury In Retrograde was recorded) that really brings the Vooduu Vibe out in force. Sheena back onstage with her glorious backing vocals. She’s amazing.
Rev’d Be Atwell the consummate MC…
Good as always to see @TheKevster and some other members of the Vooduu Faithful.
Lovely support set from Queen Lilas. Bought her CD.
Lovely.
Tomorrow evening, Ese and Sheena perform in Jimi’s flat in Brook St. Can’t wait!
Only stain on the night was some young single-cell-brained excuse for a human being in a beige puffer tried to grab my phone on the tube, reached in as the doors were closing. Told him to go f**** himself. He gave me the finger, but at least he was left empty-handed.
My daughter has just returned from a work assignment in Malta so I came up to London to meet with her last night and we went to the Royal College of Music for a concert of music including Haydn’s Military Symphony. The opening overture by Farrenc was rather good and not previously known to me (must check out some recordings). The second was the world premiere of a piece of music by John William Griffith - a bit odd, not really my thing. And then the Haydn… My daughter had overheard some of the players in the lavatories before the performance moaning about how “dull” the symphony was, which wasn’t exactly a great start to the evening. Thing is, they were probably right. I now realise why the Haydn music I have is rarely touched, short of the odd piece here and there (Creation etc…). I hope I haven’t put off my daughter, although she would have probably much preferred the jazz concert I attended the same time the previous week while she was still away.
A real treat at Brook St last night: rare magic.
Ese & Sheena as The Vooduu Sistaz with Kissangwa on percussion & vocals.
Live in Jimi Hendrix’s bedroom. An alignment of the universe. I’m sure Astro-man was listening.
And then…we all dispersed home, or in the case of me and @TheKevster, to the pub.
What an evening
Talk about lifted…
Ron Carter, 86
Herbie Hancock, 83
Israel Nash last night,at the Deaf Instute Manchester. One down ,fourteen more gigs booked for the rest of the year,upto now
I was there too. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
Jerusalem Quartet
Program:
Smetana: String Quartet No. 1 ‘From my Life’
Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 11 op. 122
Beethoven: String Quartet op. 59 No. 2 ‘Razumovsky’
At Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam.
I have never been to this venue so possibly it’s the hall acoustics, but the tonal balance of thes quartet sounded super dry, particularly the Viola, compared to Borodin at Tivoli a few weeks earlier. Also The Jerusalem’s style is ultra aggressive and incisive. It fits perfectly to the Shosty program but it lacked nuance and intimacy in Smetana ‘From my Life’. Leaving me feeling like what just happened?
Beethoven’s Raxumovsky was interesting. Whilst I can see Beethoven might like their attacking assault, I still prefer more traditional readings. ( tho I’d take this over Amadeus or Beaux Arts any time of the day )
As a side note, there was a pro Palestinian heckler in the Smetana program. The security took way too long to remove the offender.
Cheers Kev! I’ll have a look on me break
I’ll not see you at The Roundhouse tonight I think - your blesséd footie , but soon. There’s a beer somewhere with our names on it!
BTW, I’ll email you about the record buyer. He’s been in touch…
Got a job interview tonight Steve so might not be able to make it…
Break a leg, sweetie
See you soon, drinks on me…
French pianist Hélène Grimaud gave a very nice performance today.
I was very excited for the rarely performed late piano works by Brahms (opp. 116 & 117).
Ese Okorodudu, solo @ The Roundhouse (small theatre stage) last Wednesday night.
Beautiful
A short, sweet solo gig in support of Chisara Agor (who was also fab):
And had the benefit of our very own Vooduu Noel on percussion
A lovely evening. I adore these small, intimate gigs…
Man, has The Roundhouse changed since I was last there to see Cecil Taylor some 30+ years ago!
Nice! I was curious about that program, too.
I see you sat in the box. Did you have to rotate your seat?