My Next Concert (s) (Page 120 of 123)

In the last 3 weeks I have seen :

Mason Hill, Wishbone Ash, Band of Friends, Peter Frampton/Cardinal Black (superb new band), Robert Plant

3 gigs left this year :

!7 Nov. Evanescence/Within Temptation - Glasgow
20 Nov. Saxon/Diamond Head - Aberdeen
1 Dec. Joanne Shaw Taylor - Newacstle

January: -
one probable, off my beaten track, location-wise - Bannerman's in Edinburgh; for The Southsiders. (Student band, cutting their teeth, so if any mates in the area looking for something to do of a Sunday [15th] evening....)

February: -
1st - Del Barber @ Ashington: White House
6th - The Pretenders @ Newcastle; Cluny
8th - Seth Lakeman @ Newcastle; Wylam Brewery
10th - The Wilson Brothers @ Darlington; Forum
17th - Rebecca Downes @ Darlington Forum

Del Barber - White House Social Club; Ashington, Northumbria (UK) 1-2-2023

Always a joy to spend a musical evening up in Ashington, as organised by Mike Slaughter and last night's show was no exception. making his White House debut (as part I believe of 1st UK headlining tour), we had multi-award winning Canadian independent folk, folk rock, Americana, and alternative country singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer (phew!) Del Barber and his band: -
Del Barber: Acoustic Guitar and Vocals.
Ivan Burke: Drums, Vocals.
Ryan Funk:  Bass
Austin Parachoniak:  Mandolin / lead guitar

So, what was the music actually like? Country? Alt-Country? No, doesn't come close, let's call it what the man himself calls it - "Montana Honk-Tonk". Never heard of it? Well, you should have been here as you missed a superb band in full flight giving resonant, "Eddy-like" twanging guitar, haunting, weeping pedal steel and great vocal harmonies.

As for the man and his songs, Del is a great story teller, both in his music and in the introductions, letting slip his penchant for collecting great characters in his travels, and I would guess he's one of those characters himself. This is clear in his songs such as Louise and Ronnie & Rosie. And you can't ovelook the more observational numbers like No Easy Way Out and Everyday Life.

Have to admit, prior to the gigs announcement, I'd not heard of Del & his band, and maybe the country-side may not have been my first choice, but I put my faith in Mike's choice, and once again it paid off. here's hoping to Del & band's quick return.

Still Got You - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuI9LbjR3YU
Nothing Left To Find - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QJlYO9gYuA

Seth Lakeman - Wylam brewery; Newcastle-upon-Tyne  8/2/23

So, last night, felt it was time to have a walk over to "the allotment shed" again, to see what was going on. As it happened, bumped into Seth Lakeman, with his friends Benji Kirkpatrick and Alex Hart, who agreed for a tipple of the home-brew, to play a few songs.

Well, that's how my mind saw it, but whatever, a Seth Lakeman show at Wylam Brewery is an absolute treat - ask the other 250+ who were there. Sure, it was as much a change-of-pace for me as the Del Barber gig last week, but once you get your mind around the lack of drum kit and guitar racks full of  bouzouki, banjos, violins & violas among the acoustic guitars (okay, there was one solid body electric, couple of tenor guitars and a couple of hollow-bodied semi-acoustics), then you know you're in for a night of Folk music; quality Folk music. (Seth is to Folk what Aynsley Lister is to Blues, in my opinion.)

The evening came in 2 sets; The Giant; Love Will Still Remain; Bury Nights; The Bold Knight; The White Hare; The Rambling Sailor; Underground; Higher We Aspire; Setting of the Sun - threading through Seth's back-catalogue, with sumptuous harmonies between himself and Alex, who provided backing on harmonium, and Benji on mandolin and guitar.

Part 2 was much the same, though Seth did several numbers, such as set opener Lady of The Sea, solo, before picking up the pace Set: - Lady Of The Sea (Hear Her Calling); Shoals to Turn; Side by Side; Solomon Browne; Blood Red Sky; The Colliers; Coming For You Soon; Kitty Jay; Encore: Blood Upon Copper; Change.

Great stories in the songs and so well performed; don't let the "Folk" tag deter you; great music is great music and Seth is a musician you should catch, given the chance. (Even though it's drawing to a close, 6 of the 11 dates of this tour Sold-Out.)

March 4th - Wille & the Bandits + ? @ Newcastle; Cluny

That would be awesome. My son loves Rick Wakeman (and I do too). I'm hoping he gets back to the states again.

Saw King Buffalo last week. One of the opening bands - The Swell Fellas - was really good. Sludgey doom metal with a progressive side... not sure how else to describe it. Huge, thick sound from a trio. King Buffalo was great as well.

Next up: Greg Koch in Deland, FL.  Really looking forward to that. He's a great player and super entertaining.

March 30th  Dom Martin (solo) @ Newcastle Cluny

This Irish guy has been collecting awards over the last few years, like they're going out of fashion - time to see what the fuss is about.