Josienne Clarke at the Hug & Pint - a story of storms, sad songs and the reasons for the same

 

You wait for a singer to play somewhere near you and they set a date and of course you get your ticket. The much anticipated day arrives but the weather makes you think twice. It's really bad, though maybe you're a wuss. You decide not to go. And that could have been the end of this story. But then this happened - the singer posts on social media that she's arrived in Glasgow after a ferry journey from Bute and a drive through awful weather - she did write a song titled '(Learning to Sail) In All Weather' after all.

So that profound challenge and an obvious change in the weather saw me depart westwards for the customary getting lost within yards of the venue followed by a chickpea korma with my friend Stewart before the show I was there ready to see Josienne Clarke after years of listening to her music and the occasional interaction on social media.

 Alone centre stage Josienne held the audience in the palm of her hand. Despite a new album in the offing there was only one new song, the rest of the set spanned a selection from across her career. And what a a body of work from an artist who writes lines like 'make your peace with failure/a lesson that you learned' and 'you sing and play and make things/for that is all you can do'. These lines come from 'Chicago' a song born of the disaster of turning up in that fabled city to play in an empty venue.

As a self declared miserabilist Josienne Clarke shows she also has a sense of humour with her between song banter and introductions. She frets that her sad songs are doing no good and might be making sad people sadder. That's probably a subject to discuss in a thesis but the evidence tonight would seem to counter that view as it appeared that these sad songs sung so beautifully made us, the audience, happy.

And there is the essence - the answer to the question do we need music, especially sad songs. Thank you Josienne the wait and the journey to hear you was worth it. More sad songs? Yes please.

https://josienneclarke.bandcamp.com/

Chicago Sun Times Melancholy is a Vocation in Itself

My Back Pages: the return of Wilco and Dan Stuart

 Sometimes my self denying ordinance of 'I should have seen that band or that singer twenty, thirty or forty years ago' needs a catalyst of some sort to break. This is what happened with Wilco and by association Dan Stuart. I'd never seen either live despite having the opportunity in the past. To be fair when I heard Wilco and Dan Stuart were coming to Edinburgh within a week of each other I was interested, perhaps a bit more than interested. Just not interested enough to get those tickets.

Then Wilco announced that the support would be Courtney Marie Andrews and I was in. I'd twice had tickets for Courtney Marie and had to miss the shows so I was not about to miss her at the Usher Hall.

Wilco intriguingly announced a new album 'Cousin' while touring the recently released 'Cruel Country'. I was a bit fretful that I'd fail to recognise many of their songs despite two things - I had the first four Wilco albums and they were heavily played when I got them they were rarely played now, I crammed 'Cruel Country' but was aware that with the size of their back catalogue I might be lost for sections of the set. Then given my aversion to nostalgia maybe that would be a good thing - fresh ears to unheard songs.

 

It turned out differently than I expected. Wilco included songs from all of the albums in my collection and although they did include songs across their catalogue including their latest LP and the new single 'Evicted' what I hadn't factored in was streaming - although I didn't have the albums I had obviously checked in on their albums over the years, played a few tracks, found what I liked and repeated those songs. 

Has to be said they are a blisteringly good band to see live, the energy expended while making it look easy was amazing. The audience were up for it too and gave back generously. A word about the audience - despite the vintage of the band I'd expected mainly blokes like me, my age. While there were plenty there that fit that bill there were also a lot of younger folks in the audience. In my row in the 'gods' I was the oldest by my estimation and gender wise there were only two males and I had at least 25 years on the other guy. Someday I'll work out how Wilco reach beyond their demographic. I'm glad they do as it gives me hope that good music is universal.

All too soon it was over and the encore songs began. Jeff Tweedy invited Courtney Marie Andrews onstage to join them for 'You and I' and 'California Stars'.

When I got home I dug out Jeff Tweedy's book 'Let's Go (So we can get back)' and started reading it and there was a reference to Green On Red. And that is how I got to Dan Stuart who was playing the Voodoo Rooms a week later. I took it as a sign and bought a ticket. To be fair there was a fair chance of me going anyway but the weather report says there is a fair chance of rain. Signs is signs.

Dan took to the stage, one man, his guitar and a music stand with his novel 'Marlowe's Revenge' propped on it. Introducing himself to Edinburgh he confessed that he'd got into some heavy shit when he'd been here before. He didn't elaborate.

It's a long time since alt. country pioneers Green On Red folded and Dan, Chuck Prophet and Chris Cavacas went their separate ways. The memories of that seminal alt country band who blazed through this world spewing out incredible songs and living the rock'n'roll lifestyle loomed large over the night. Dan played their songs and reminisced about the band, picking out 'The Killer Inside Me' as being an album made when he was largely out of control. He described it as a psychic nightmare and has laconic disdain for the drum production which was of its time and 'hasn't aged well'.  

It was great to hear stripped down versions of 'No Free Lunch' and 'Time Ain't Nothing' played alongside more recent songs like the descriptive 'The Day William Holden Died'. Dan has had an interesting career since leaving Green On Red. Not least in the creation of the alter-ego character 'Marlowe Billings' across not just three albums but three novels and it was from the book 'Marlowe's Revenge' that he read from and it was more than a reading as Dan inhabited the characters in the first two chapters of the novel in this hard boiled crime story.  

 

He played two sets and invited us to choose the hard way or the easy way we chose the hard way and have no idea whether what he gave us the hard or the easy way. What he did give us or at least gave me was an insight to a rock'n'roll survivor who was described by his father as an entertainer and that is what he is doing night after night, finding simple pleasures like swimming in the North Sea off Bamburgh Castle while travelling to Scotland. He reckoned he'd try to get another swim while travelling down the west coast. Burt Lancaster in 'the Swimmer' came to my mind. 

For so many reasons we are lucky to have Dan Stuart with us and to be able to spend some time with him as he wends his way, and tells his tales. The troubadour.  

https://wilcoworld.net/ 

https://marlowebillings.com/centro 

  

When the 'Canyon' came to Edinburgh - Sylvie at Sneaky Pete's

 There are times when watching live music can be a wondrous experience which transports you to a mythical time. This was one of those nights and in a way it was unexpected. I'd pitched up to Sneaky Pete's for a headline show by California based band Sylvie. I knew their Laurel Canyon sound and that's why I was there - a sucker for the sounds of the late 60s early 70s California Laurel Canyon set. 

The premise of Sylvie is an intriguing one. Essentially Sylvie is Ben Schwab and some friends so a kind of mythical collective of shifting musical characters.

The myth deepens when you learn about about the inspiration for Sylvie and the eponymous album. Schwab's father, also a musician, was a band member and songwriter for Bad Anthony a band with Ohio origins who has moved to California in the early 70s recorded some unreleased demos and disappeared unsung and forgotten. when he heard these demos Schwab younger was inspired and alongside fuelling the concept of Sylvie he cajoled his dad to finally release the demos. They are now available - find them where you stream your music or on vinyl. 

For the show in Edinburgh the Sylvie line-up was Ben Schwab, vocals and guitar with Keven Louis Lareau on second guitar and vocals and Laura Jean Anderson providing the Linda Ronstadt sparkle to the evening.

The enthusiastic crowd were treated to a trio at the top of their game after a long tour where 'you never know what you are walking into'. Something happened or didn't in Nottingham but what we were never told. The three voices together swapping leads and the guitars conjured up the pure enjoyment of music and the evocation of an evening at the Troubadour circa 1972. 

Most of the songs were Schwab's including a couple of new songs which bodes well for a future Sylvie album. but a masterful take on Ian Matthew's 'Sylvie' gives the collective their name and the modus operandi of their music. There were other covers - Mad Anthony's 'Rina' where they were joined on stage by Paulo Nutini in an totally unexpected turn which had the audience reaching for the phones to capture the moment.  They encored with Neil Young's 'Flying On the Ground is Wrong'. Yes this was a Laurel Canyon moment for the 21st Century that happened right here in Edinburgh.

Prior to taking the stage with Sylvie Keven Louis Lareau opened with an intriguing set of songs played to a backing track that included instrumentation, vocals and his own audience. What the hell happened in Nottingham? Regardless he warmed the audience to the US West Coast sound setting the scene for the headliners. He included a song that caught my attention 'The Girl That Turned the Lever' a 1971 song by Ernie Graham that links back to Nick Lowe and Ian Gomm. If you know you know. Sublime choice.

An opening set from Grayling was well received and it can't be long before she is headlining too. 

https://sylvie-music.bandcamp.com/album/sylvie-2022-2

https://kevenlouislareau.bandcamp.com/

https://laurajeananderson.bandcamp.com/album/lonesome-no-more-ep

https://www.facebook.com/graylingmusic/

https://www.fulltimehobby.co.uk/artist/sylvie

     

The Year of the Union Jack Mug

One of the things that struck me when I took my seat at my first City of Edinburgh Council meeting in 2019 was the display of Union Jack mugs on the Labour benches. Two senior Labour Councillors had  Union Jack mugs to the fore Cllr Cammy Day the Labour Group leader and sometime vice-convener of something Cllr Lezley Marion Cameron.  It seemed odd and might more readily have been expected on the Tory benches. The SNP councillors did not turn up with Saltire mugs. Since I'd left the council in 2012 the Independence referendum had happened and Labour had been an enthusiastic member of 'Better Together'.

Wrapping yourself in any flag - Union Jack or Saltire was not something I was familiar with in the City Chambers over my time there. Until 2019.

Labour were at that time in coalition with the SNP and had been since 2012. By 2019 they were the junior party. The SNP were the lead party in the coalition by dint of getting more councillors elected. Between 2012 and 2019 there had, of course, been the Independence Referendum. During the referendum period Scottish Labour had effectively silenced any of their members who showed sympathies to the independence cause. By 2019 the tensions between the SNP and the Labour groups that were almost wholly based on the constitution. 

After the 2022 elections when again the SNP elected the most councillors there was some speculation that a coalition could be formed again with Labour though because of numbers it might include the Greens as well. Meanwhile away from the council chambers the Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar was giving interviews where he kept saying that Labour would not enter coalitions with any party. He meant primarily the SNP. The Edinburgh Labour group went along with that and despite having a group of only 13 councillors emerged as the party running the council. How did that happen when the breakdown was 19 SNP, 13 Labour, 9 Conservative, 12 LibDem, 10 Green and Labour did not enter any formal coalition? Simple if you are Labour do a background deal with the Conservatives and the LibDems that sees those parties gain convenor and vice-convenorships (some specially created). Of course Labour protested their innocence saying they'd done no deals. The Conservatives and the LibDems mumbled and looked the other way and hey presto Labour became the party in power. The Union Jack mugs had triumphed and for the first time Edinburgh has an administration based on the constitutional question and not on good governance of the city.

There were two newly elected Labour councillors who refused to back the deal and were promptly suspended from the group with one eventually leaving to sit as an independent. Other strange things happened with the new Transport Convenor saying he would only be in post until October when he'd be replaced by someone better placed to take that remit forward. He's still there. Who his mystery replacement was I guess we'll never know. 

There was some speculation that Labour's tenure would be short but the numbers remain in their favour generally though from time to time they lose out.

The Budget would be the big test and that is exactly what it turned out to be. Labour seemed to have crafted a motion that would allow some asks of the the other groups, particularly the Conservatives and LibDems, to be incorporated to get their budget passed. It didn't turn out that way. Labour's motion was voted down thanks to some tactical voting by some Green councillors and the erstwhile Labour councillor (who resigned from the Labour party during the meeting). Labour had a choice and chose to support the LibDem budget voting it through along with the Conservatives. The progressive and visionary SNP/Green budget was cast aside. There was a problem for Labour though - the LibDem budget that they'd voted for contained causes to end compulsory redundancies and seek to outsource council services starting with waste services. What did Labour have to say about that? Their Leader, the Council Leader, Cammy Day said he'd not read the LibDem budget motion! All would be well though they just wouldn't do those things. Labour had officially lost a member during the budget meeting and now had the same number of councillors as the LibDems whose budget had just passed and who were expected to easily win a by-election in Corstorphine Murrayfield putting them one ahead of Labour. Would the LibDems try to take over? They'd doubled the size of their group at the 2022 Council elections and were expected to gain a new councillor in a few weeks so why not pounce and take control of their budget and the council? They looked the other way again. Perhaps the new 'Better Together' arrangement is too fraught and distrustful for a switch to happen at least for now? 

Time will tell but from the outside it looks like this coalition which insists it is not a coalition will trundle on Union Jack mugs held high. There could be a couple more by-elections that could cause problems for Labour especially if they lost them to the SNP or Greens. There's always the possibility of a defection too as socialist Labour members become increasingly disenchanted with Keir Starmer's Labour. As I wrote this news broke that former Labour councillor Nick Gardner had joined the Greens. I don't know how fresh those Union Jack mugs are but they could be looking mighty tired by this time next year. 

Postscript: Full Council on 4 May marked a year since the last elections and the SNP attempted to remove the Labour leader and the Convenors/Vice-Convenors. It failed because the Union Jack coalition held - great thing giving senior roles to parties you 'are not in coalition' with isn't it? 

 Rob Munn was SNP Councillor for the Leith Walk ward 2019-2022

Me For Queen and Samantha Whates live at Leith Depot April 2023

 I like small gigs. That closeness to the artist testing their sounds in front of small audiences is a special thing and one that I always find enlightening. 

This was certainly one of those nights. I was there to see Me For Queen and Samantha Whates two singer-songwriters creating music one step outside of the mainstream staying true to their muse and sharing those creations with small but appreciative audiences.

None more so than the the audience that greeted them at Leith Depot's new performance space in April. I was lightly familiar with Samantha Whates music (initially through here work with Josienne Clarke in the duo PicaPica) and was less familiar with Me For Queen but aware of her connections to other artist like Alva Leigh and Sarah Howells.

Samantha opened the night and performed a well received selection of her songs focussing on her recent album 'Waiting Rooms' (recorded in, yes waiting rooms around the UK) and the brand new 'Early Works'. 

Me for Queen (Mary Erskine) focussed on her new album 'Microclimate'. The songs are worth taking the time to get to know as Mary has a way with subjects and words that is worth following through. 

Both guested on each others songs adding to the feeling of collaboration that touring can bring to artists and audiences. These were unique performances that are unlikely to be repeated.

These are two artists that are well worth seeing so if you get the chance then take it. You won't be disappointed.

A friend of mine uses the hashtag #shoplocal to tag small gigs he goes to locally and that is applicable here. I walked to the venue like it was a local shop and walked home afterwards. If only a trip to my local Tesco was so uplifting. #shoplocal

https://www.samanthawhates.me/

https://meforqueen.bandcamp.com/

Gordon Lightfoot a reflection

I drove into Orillia, Ontario in the summer 1990 on the second long road trip of my North American odyssey and saw the City of Orillia sign (population 27000) it proclaimed proudly "Orillia Home of Gordon Lightfoot."  

(picture credit unknown)

I allowed myself a wry smile for the Canadian troubadour known worldwide for his hits 'If you could read my mind' and 'Sundown'. Orillia and Canada are rightly proud of this song-writing genius. He wrote many songs over his long career and the two mentioned are the ones most will remember hearing. There are many others. His songs caught the mood of those late sixties early seventies singer songwriter times with their beautiful melodies and lyrical turns.

His death at the age 84 robs the world of a master tunesmith but what a legacy he leaves. Over a run of albums from his debut 'Lightfoot!' in 1966 through the 1970s and 1980s he established a reputation as a songwriters songwriter with his songs covered by Elvis, Bob Dylan and many others. In 1976 he had a hit with a song named 'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald' a song about the tragic sinking of an ore freighter in Lake Superior. It was an unlikely hit being longer than the radio standard but caught  contemporary interest in the tragedy and told the story of the victims. 

The outpouring of emotion on his death from across the world and especially the music world in Canada and beyond illustrates the reach that he had, how familiar people are with his music and how his songs connected to people. That is the testament to a great artist. 

The Bonnevilles - Live and Loud at Sneaky Pete's

 

I can never get over just how much sheer rock'n'roll noise the Bonnevilles make. The economy of one guitar and one drum kit combined with powerful playing of Andy and Chris produces a visceral music that clears away not just the cobwebs but everything in it's path.

Opening their set with 'Down to the River' and 'Good Suits and Fighting Boots' their garage punk blues rock sound does not mess around - at one point Andy asks Chris 'what time is it?' and the answer comes back '20 past 9' which brings the retort 'what? fuck we're playing these songs too fast!' 

The set covers the run of albums so far released and these songs are more than road tested but still as fresh and exhilarating as when I first saw them in Leith Franklin Cricket Club years ago (when I  realised there were only two Bonnevilles making that incredible racket). 

Tonight was the opening night of their UK tour and the energy was incredible. They did pace themselves with a slow 'Kneel at the Altar' and a long story of two fan boys playing at Junior Kimbrough's Juke Joint during a US tour. There's some audience participation when Andy descends from the stage and some new songs from a forthcoming album and its a wrap. The Bonnevilles are easily one of the most powerful live acts you can hope to see - no pretention just maximum rock'n'blues. How was your Tuesday night?

https://thebonnevilles.co.uk/