The Troubadour at Earls Court. Upstairs is the quirky coffee house and restaurant which I don’t think has changed in appearance since I first visited it in the 70s. Downstairs is a venue at the heart of London’s music scene, a cramped cellar which has seen the likes of Bob Dylan grace its stage. Last night…
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The Little Noise Sessions in aid of Mencap are now into their seventh year. Curated by Jo Whiley, the gigs take place over six or so nights, with a choice of lineups designed to please most music lovers. The artists give their time free to the Mencap charity, which is struggling with the government’s further cuts…
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Some artists bob around on the fringes of your radar for ages, and so it has been the case with Richard Hawley. Those lovely ballads, the chocolatey voice, the Pulp connection – yet he’s remained a bit niche somehow. But things have gathered apace, and September 8 this year saw the Radio BBC 6Music collaboration…
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Like most height-challenged people (5ft), I’ve always found standing-only gigs a bit hit and miss. So the news that one of my favourite bands, the mighty Alabama 3 are to do an Alabama 3 acoustic, complete with rather elegant sounding three-course dinner, is music to my ears. And so to the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Downstairs is…
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Tuesday night was almost rain free – that’s saying something for this washout of an English summer which has so far plunged festivals and outdoor events into a maelstrom of mud and near bankruptcy. So it was a pleasant experience to sit on dry paving stones in the courtyard of Somerset House, drinking a ubiquitous…
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Took advantage of a rare balmy evening this summer in London to mosey down to the Boogaloo near Highgate for an evening of musical fusion in a rather different style. Tonight’s listing reads: ‘Breton Girl, whose romantic style is drawn from Celtic, Medieval and Indian music’. The Breton Girl in question is singer-songwriter Wendy Lewis, elfin, barefoot,…
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I try to never miss seeing the support. Even if I check them out on YouTube and they don’t grab me, you just never really know. I would have paid to see The Hold Steady back in the day but here’s Craig Finn, at The Macbeth, Hoxton, support for The Felice Brothers. We started with…
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