Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Gig Review - Country In The Afternoon November 2019 - Half Moon Putney



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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