After the success of the first
Country in The Afternoon, Cumbrae Promotions treated us again to a mini
festival of music, in the iconic venue in the corner of South West London. The back room with its classic red drapes has
hosted many a famous name over the years and is a promoter’s dream since
everything needed for a live gig is already in situ including the branded drum
kit.
The twelve thirty to five thirty
event is perfect for the winter months, no late-night commute although lots of
people will hang around to grab a bite to eat from the bar and if lucky have a
photo opportunity or chat with a couple of the artists. However, this year with
its incredible line up, Sunday saw people arriving as the venue opened.
The two days provided something
for every type of country music lover imaginable. Gavin had done an amazing job
in selecting and balancing the acts.
Day 1 – the Northern take over (Dublin is North of London so
Silverball Country is sticking with its description of the day!)
The day was opened by Blackpoolian
Emma Moore showing the power of her
voice, no stranger to opening after the British Country Music Festival. Whilst Emma is very humble and acknowledges
the talent of others, (especially those that have influenced her music, the 90s
powerhouse of country women), she not shy when it comes to giving her opinion –
but honesty is what county music all is about right! (We agree Emma). Although Emma
referred to her missing band a few times, this girl doesn’t need a band - her
voice and stage presence filled the room. Mixed in with her strong and powerful
vocal there was a slight twang and her lyrics are captivating. Emma finished
her set in her traditional way with ‘Trouble’,
letting the crowd know they could pick up their tall, dark and handsome
T-shirts from the merch table. Emma
hung arrive for the rest of the day, friendly chatting away, singing along and
even a little bit of dancing at the side of the room.
Up next were the Jaywalkers, an Americana band from
Chester who Gavin discovered at Buckle and Boots. Sadly Jay, their lead singer was suffering
from a cold, something that was pointed out by her partner and mandolin player
Mike as she poorly attempted to hide her tissue. Jay, in good spirit, used this opportunity - with
her voice approximately 2 octaves lower than normal - to deliver a show
stopping, “where did that come from” Johnny Cash number. To allow Jay’s voice to rest the trio moved
on to an instrumental number which highlighted how they blend the bass,
mandolin and fiddle in perfect harmony; the room was transported to the deep
south, perhaps Burnt Chilli Creek, the title of one of their songs. As they
moved through their set list, we learnt that Mike writes most of the songs from
everyday encounters, but discovered more about the group dynamic – the girls
had no sympathy for the mandolin struggling with the temperature difference
between the stage and the dressing room; its his own fault for having 8
strings, as they both only have 4 and were perfectly fine! Lucy also had no choice about passing picks
back and forth as she had chosen to stand in the middle.
Next came the Irish Duo, The Remedy Club made up of husband and
wife Kj McEvoy & Aileen Mythen. The pair are old school country with an
understandably Celtic vibe. The pair played at the 2018 Millport Country Music
Festival and still aimed to keep Gavin happy by playing one of his favourite songs. The pair have been busy in Nashville recording
their new album and a new single is expected early next year. They joked that their music was out there somewhere
on digital platforms, which they didn’t really understand but hoped we would.
The room become a little fuller
during the final interval, as Gavin warned us to be ready for the force of
nature that is Stevie O’Connor.
Recent Entertainer of the Year
award winner Stevie O’Connor was
Saturday’s headliner. His band was already in place as he made his way on
stage. Surprisingly he opened with a quiet (as least for him) number and said
hello before he brought the party with a quick switch from guitar to the banjo.
The foot was stamping, the sound grew louder, and he invited the crowd to sing and
clap along. Country Road, lyrics that
include ‘waiting on Willy’ and ‘country women make good lovers’ are always going
to be crowd pleasers but we saw a more sentimental side with his tribute to the
late Amy Winehouse. Emma More was invited
back on stage to perform ‘She’s on Fire’ and the two really did give a great
performance dancing along together. Once Stevie thought the crowd was woken up,
in his words it was time to go nuts! Only
Stevie could drag 3 ladies on stage to be his backing dancers, get away with
wiggling his bum, sticking out his tongue and repeatedly lunging into the
crowd. The crowd was in rapture with
everyone singing and dancing along.
Nobody wanted to go home, but
there was the promise of more to come tomorrow as we shuffled out of the room.
Day 2 – Sensational Sunday
Francesca quickly realised that once
you found a space you better stick in it as there was no room to spare in the
venue, thus the new tradition of leaving your boots as a place marker was born!
London based O&O opened with their full band for their first time playing
together in London: Jake Stanton, Ash Millburn & Joe Cruise; following a
beautiful typed up setlist, something that would not be seen as the day
progressed. Orian and Obadiah took turns to talk to the audience, introducing
themselves and explaining their history. We were treated to both new and old
material and were asked to sing along with one of their choruses. This was a
lively set with Orian, dancing around on the stage, it seemed that they were
having as much fun as the crowd as their drummer had to call time.
Next up was Gary Quinn, but having recently received the award for male
vocalist of the year it was felt
that he needed a bigger introduction than that which could be delivered by
Gavin. The crowd went wild as William
Michael Morgan did the honours. Gary opened with a Chris Young cover which
quickly turned into his own song, one that many would agree would be great for
Chris to sing. We heard the tales of the many Nashville artists that Gary has
worked with and how his songs came about, and of course how Kenny Chesney and
Ed Sheeran beat him to using the title ‘Tip of My Tongue. The audience was fully engaged and responded
with humour to his questions about being in love. Gary admits that music can be cheeky, I wonder
what Gary thinks while sings some of his songs as there is a cheeky grin on his
face. He left the crowd with a question: Am I a boob, bum or legs man? The answer he would reveal to anyone
purchasing a CD. Gary may have been on
his own on stage, but his presence filled the room.
A trend had been set; it was
Megan Louise that introduced the female vocalist of the year, Kezia Gill onto stage. Kezia admitted that she didn’t come down to
the Big Smoke (London) very often,
she couldn’t afford the parking but was humbled to be there. Her songs included
a dedication to her husband Lloyd for their anniversary and the tear jerker
‘Local Man’s Star’ for her dad. To complete the set, her 3 loves (husband, dad,
and Johnny) she had to put in her Johnny Cash number. The surprise of the night was that Kezia had
asked her younger sister, Rosie to sing with her on stage. Yep, they are a musical family like the Von
Trapps and we all agreed that Rosie should sing professionally. Kezia hoped everyone would remember her name,
written on her guitar strap as nobody gets it right and would like her on
Facebook - it’s all about the likes. A
high energy set, with Kezia playing both the guitar and keyboard. She looked and sounded amazing as always and
I think she definitely got one or two new fans.
Headlining was the man that
people had travelled for – American artist
William Michael Morgan. There
is no mistaking his black stetson and the scarf he was given by fans up in
Glasgow. He also pointed out the pins
(badges) he had been given; if he had the pin, he was in, that’s the ways it
works, isn’t it? William gave thanks for
O&O whom he had just met, his little buddy Gary and Kezia who “sings her
arse off”. Despite a few songs written
on the back of a menu, which manged to get stuck to his foot and therefore seen
by all, William asked the audience what they wanted him to sing. We were
treated to new material, so new he forgot some of the lyrics to Brokenhearted
along with classics: Talking to A Girl,
Missing and Beer Drinker.
Another treat of the evening was
when Megan Louise was invited onto
stage to duet with him and given the compliment of being too young to be that
good!
William finished his set with the
song that started everything off: I Met A Girl. He thanked the crowd for the
love that they had shown him and country music and hoped we would receive the
same welcome in the States. He left on a humorous note, disclosing to Gavin he
had danced with his daughter Fiona at the BCMAs; but it was all her fault and
she’s bigger than him. He promised to be back soon, perhaps bringing his buddy
Trent Thomlinson with him, who co-wrote Lonesomeville.
So, get your tickets
now as he will be headlining Buckle and Boots in 2020!
Francesca
Silverball Country
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