Joanne Shaw Taylor - Monday 26th October - Jazz Cafe, London

Monday evening is never the best for gigs, but an evening with Joanne Shaw Taylor makes for a worthwhile trip to Camden and the Jazz Cafe for an evening of blues. The venue had reliable stage times (Brooklyn Bowl take note!) and we were in place in the back corner of the sold out venue 10 minutes before showtime. And what a good show it was. Joanne's playing was excellent and ably supported by the excellent 2 other members of the three-piece. Slightly unnervingly, 2 people collapsed quite close to us half way through - we think because of the very hot temperature (the air conditioning was turned on shortly afterwards). The young Jazz Cafe staff did a really good job of treating those affected, getting them water and helping them outside - thankfully just about back on their feet. Obviously hope they were OK.

The music came from a selection of JST's back catalogue - the more recent influenced by a recent boyfriend in slightly disparaging terms. As I said, the soloing in particular was great and I'm sure appreciated by the decidedly middle aged crowd. The one thing I would add is that I can't remember any other act I've seen where no-one sings along to any of the songs - I think the emphasis is on the guitar and maybe the lyrics get lost somewhat in the music. A bonus "Ling-alert" point (you'll have to read earlier blogs to see what that is about!) and a good evening was completed by use of the gents in a nearby hostelry followed by a frame of pool against a patron who could barely speak or stand up (I won). Didn't stay long enough to find out if I was being hustled.

Setlist
Mud, Honey
Outlaw Angel
Wrecking Ball
Tried, Tested & True
Jump That Train
Diamonds In The Dirt
Almost Always Never (acoustic)
Army of One (acoustic)
Watch 'em Burn
Time Has Come
Tied & Bound
Going Home
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The Dirty Truth

T'Pau - Saturday 25th July - Jazz Cafe

Carol Decker

A few weeks on from the acoustic show, here's the full T'Pau show - a rearranged affair at London's Jazz Cafe.

The band were in "rock" mode tonight and a lively (but brief) set appeared to be enjoyed by all present. I do think for £26, the crowd can expect to see a bit more than just over an hour of headline act though. Still, quality beats quantity and this was possibly the best of the T'Pau shows I've seen over the last couple of years. Carol's vocals were spot on and the band seemed very up for it this evening.

Picking the best of the new "Pleasure and Pain" album alongside the classics from "Bridge of Spies" plus a view highlights from other albums presented a good mix and I'm very much looking forward to the 2016 tour.

Setlist
Thank You For Goodbye
Secret Garden
Island
Monkey House
I Will Be With You
Read My Mind
Nowhere
Misbelieving
Say You Will
Valentine
Running Away / Sex Talk
Bridge Of Spies
Heart & Soul
China In Your Hand

Mick Ralphs Blues Band - Saturday 26th November - Jazz Cafe, Camden

Having seen Mr Ralphs on numerous occasions in various guise, this is the first time I'd seen him as a headline act in his own right. The fact that he'd be playing no Bad Company or Mott The Hoople Material in his own set was offset by the choice of support band - "Free & Co" - guess what they played !!! -;)

I got my first "2 pointer" of the evening by recognising drummer Phil Martini in their line-up - last seen (by us) in The Quireboys and The Union.

Mick and his excellent blues band then played a competent set. In fact that's doing a dis-service. For a set where we basically knew nothing but 1 or 2 snippets of songs, it was actually really good. I was also surprised that no songs appeared to feature the words "I Woke Up This Morning" !!). Later, I gained further "spotting points" by seeing Photographer Ross Halfin (working), Tracy Hunter (at the bar), Kurt Brandon (also at the bar) and rumours of a sighting of Jimmy Page (upstairs). Well worth the trip.

Setlist
Rock Me Baby
Hi-Heel Sneakers
Just a Little Bit
Next Time You See Me
Blow Blues
Mr. Charlie
Hide Away
It Hurts Me Too
Help Me
Further On Up the Road
Got My Mojo Working
Mamma Talk To Your Daughter

Leon Russell - Tuesday 3rd August - Jazz Cafe, Camden

A trip to the Jazz Cafe to see Leon Russell - an artist who has the "legendary" tag pinned to him and is likely to acquire more UK prominence in the near future when his duets album with Elton John comes out. Surprisingly, there was absolutely no mention of that collaboration during the 80 minute set (straight through - no encore) of Southern bluesy guitar and piano with a bit of storytelling thrown in for good measure.

Starting with his most recognisable song, Delta Lady, the sound and vocals weren't great, but did improve. You have to say, that whilst his piano playing was good, the vocals were that of a 68 year old. A fair few cover versions were thrown in later which kept things enjoyable, but this was a pleasant if not outstanding evening. In summary, I'm glad I've seen him - but suspect this will be a one-off for me.

Set (Included)
Delta Lady
Hummingbird
A Song For You
Wild Horses
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
Georgia On My Mind
Jumping Jack Flash / Papa Was A Rolling Stone (Medley)
Great Balls Of Fire / Roll Over Beethoven (Medley)

Belinda Carlisle - Tuesday 4th May - Jazz Cafe, Camden

Went with Mrs B for this one and sat up in the restaurant overlooking the stage. Very civilised and an excellent view away from the crush below. Food wasn't bad either!

 

This was another acoustic evening and Ms Carlisle performed a good selection including most of her solo and Go Go's hits. It was really rather good. The band had to walk past our table to get to and from the stage - Di couldn't believe how attractive Belinda remains at 51.

The Quireboys - Friday 23rd March - Jazz Cafe, Camden

Having arrived at an absolutely packed Jazz Café (late as it turned out and missed the first 4 songs), we squeezed to the back for an evening of Acoustic Quireboys. Yep, that's right - acoustic! Many have expressed doubts on how that would work based on the loudness and excitement of their normal shows, but augmented by numerous musicians, it did. What was weird was how Spike would slur and ramble his way through song intros and then sing them perfectly in tune. How does that work?

We stood near Luke Morley and Peter Shoulder (from the Union who we saw earlier in the week). Afterwards had a decent chat with Luke in the bar who, as always, game across as a very genuine and likeable guy.