Jacqui & Bridie's Folk Club: 50th Year and Final Night - Liverpool Philharmonic 23rd January 2011

Some of you may know that I spend a lot of time in Liverpool, in fact I am there all week now I work full time in the city, going home at weekends. What you may not realise is why I first I fell for this city.  It wasn't due to the Beatles as many would suspect given that I am a fan and my day job involves them more than a fair bit.

My love affair with the city of Liverpool began with the songs my dad would sing to me as a child, and many of these would be songs performed by Jacqui & Bridie and The Spinners.  (Incidentally, I would go on to a deep appreciation of The Mersey Poets to further my affections for the city before finally proceeding to The Beatles.)

When it was first suggested that there was going to be a concert to celebrate Jacqui & Bridie's Folk Club I immediately knew that I wanted to be there and, more importantly, I wanted to take my dad. I didn't particularly need to know who was going to be on the bill, when the tickets went on sale seats were purchased near the front and dad's Christmas/Birthday was dutifully sorted. The tickets were a small price to pay for the musical grounding I had been given.

The night was fantastic. From the first song, Kilgary Mountain, the audience were in fine voice, and the joy in the venue was almost tangible. The folk club ideal was upheld throughout the night, if you knew the words - sing along, if you picked up the chorus - sing along! The songs were punctuated with "terrible" jokes from Jacqui which the audience would either giggle at or greet with a well meant groan.

Everyone had a good time, whether they were on stage or in the audience. We were all a part of it and it was such an amazing thing of which to be a part.

It's hard to pick out highlights when I enjoyed all it so very much. Perhaps the most enduring memory will be Jacqui almost crying with laughter at John Gorman's hilarious performance of Ten Whisky Bottles. Jacqui remained on stage for the entire duration of the concert either listening to or joining in with the acts as they came on stage.

The evening was to mark the end of the folk club, but Jacqui went to pains to point out that she herself was not retiring and would be still available should anyone want her to appear anywhere.

The evening ended with the assembled musicians and the audience singing The Leaving Of Liverpool, followed - after loud calls for more - by the lovely Wild Mountain Thyme.

I was honoured to be there, even more honoured to share it with very special people and still hold the joy of the evening in my heart when I think about it.

Link to an online version of the programme for the evening. - for background information and details of performers.

Kilgary Mountain.


The Leaving Of Liverpool.


Link to youtube playlist of videos from the evening (in no particular order)

Thank you to Stephen for the photos.

My Top Ten Artists and Tracks of 2010

According to my last.fm profile.


Top Ten Artists of 2010
1  Yes
2  The Buggles
3  Emerson, Lake & Palmer
4  Huey Lewis & The News
5  Dolly Parton
6  Kirby Krackle
7  Asia
8  ABBA
9  Strawbs
10 Mostly Autumn

Top Ten Tracks of 2010
1  The Buggles – Video Killed The Radio Star
2  Yes – Starship Trooper: Life Seeker (Single Version)
3  Dolly Parton/Kenny Rogers – Islands in the Stream
4  Honeybug – Anything For You
5  Toto – Africa
6  Yes – Tempus Fugit
7  Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Nobody Loves You Like I Do
8  Dolly Parton – Here You Come Again
9  Dolly Parton – 9 To 5
10 Strawbs – Lay Down

Videos

Due a small technical hiccup some videos on previous entries won't work.
Sorry about that.

Meeting Alan White and Not Seeing Asia

I know, I'm a week or so late with this update, but Christmas is coming and things are getting hectic.

The other week there was a concert in Remembrance of John Lennon in Liverpool. Alan White appeared at the gig and I bumped into him in work the day before.

I didn't feel up to going to the gig but Alan is back in Liverpool in August for the Annual Beatle Week event and I have tickets for the Yes gig in Manchester next November! (How's that for forward planning?!)

I wasn't in the shop when he popped back in to say goodbye over that weekend because I was in the Midlands visiting a friend and planning to see Asia. Sadly after bus and train trips from where I was staying all the way to Birmingham City Centre we got to the venue to be informed that the gig was off. The venue itself was only told a couple of hours previously.  I need to chase them up actually. We were told we'd get an email will details of a new date etc... I've heard nothing, not even a courtesy email explaining the situation, I don't think this is good enough.

Wordle for this blog

Credit where credits due!

Oops! Completely forgot to credit Stephen for his fabulous live photos that he has allowed me to use on this blog for the last four live reviews. Thank you!
And check out his youtube account too.

The Strawbs - Stanley Theatre Liverpool

I'm not very up on my Strawbs, this I will freely confess. I had a best of compilation and the BBC Sessions CDs and that was it until I went to this gig. Since then I have been investigating and investing in further releases.

With the above in mind, the distinction that this was the electric Strawbs and that they would be performing an album in its entirety in the second half didn't really mean very much to me.

Playing to a small but very appreciative audience in a small, rather chilly venue, it was obvious that this was a band enjoying what they do. The opened with New World and, well, then I get a bit lost. I did recognise quite a few numbers but not enough to list the titles.

The sound was rather thunderous for a small venue. This isn't a complaint, I quite like it when bass notes cause my jeans to vibrate!

In the interval a couple of the band members were to be found mingling in the bar area at the back of the room.  Oh! Note to the Stanley Theatre - sometimes the audience for the shows aren't your lager drinking student types, any chance you can occasionally open the bigger bar or at least get some bitter in to the little one? Cheers!

The second half saw the band perform the album Hero And Heroine in full. I knew some of the tracks and enjoyed the whole thing enough to have ordered the CD after I got home.


The encore was Lay Down, a track that has been a constant earworm since the first moment I heard it.

I came away from the gig feeling like I had been given a bloody good fix of music and felt all the better for it too. Should the opportunity arise I would certainly go to see them again!