Gigs
Eric Roberson, Anthony David and Angela Johnson @ The IndigO2, London 04/10/08
Great venue, great line up, this evening promised to be a night of the very best in upfront soul music and I’m pleased to say we were not to be disappointed.
Hosted by Calvin Francis who warmed us up with some old skool soul on the decks, we were more than ready for the live acts. Starting off what was to be a great show was the unbelievably talented Angela Johnson, she single handedly wowed the audience with a selection of tracks, which, I am ashamed to admit I had very little knowledge of - I will definitely be looking her up now. Her voice had the crowd in awe as she casually belted out some of the best soul music I have ever heard at a live show- her vocals and her own personal keys accompaniment was the perfect combination....
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Choklate @ Ruby-Lo, London 24/04/08
Never having been to Ruby-Lo before I wasn’t really sure what to expect… I was pleasantly surprised. A small, softly lit intimate venue full of likeminded music lovers, there to enjoy the music rather than check out what people were wearing! Classy, yet homely, full of comfortable sofa seats- an ideal place for this one off acoustic performance. Stripping back her usual 6 piece band she was accompanied only by British acoustic guitarist Ciarin Fahay and electric guitarist Zak Akhimien, allowing us to really hear THAT voice.
With no huge introduction and seemingly nervous she thanked everyone for making the effort to come down and support her, which flowed nicely in to the first track of the evening and incidentally the first track from the album ‘Thank you’. I, like most people who have listen to the album, already thought her voice was pretty outstanding, but hearing her live is a completely different experien..........
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Musiq Soulchild at The Jazz Cafe - March 2008
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Musiq emerged a little later than expected (of course) and with the hype he clearly relishes to perform his first track BUDDY, which surprised me a bit – I would’ve thought he’d be saving his most recent ‘big’ track ‘til the end. That wouldn’t be the last time I was surprised on the evening.
The point I always raise when talking about Musiq Soulchild is how many good tracks he has under his belt. I mean it’s not like there are one or two gems on every album, we are talking about solid collections right the way through. Growers, non-skipables and tracks that make albums that stay in you.....
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Dwele @ The Jazz Cafe, London 22/03/08
I turned up at the Jazz Café not knowing what to expect – and that’s the beauty of this guys live sets; every time is different. Tonight was no exception with the unveiling of an almost completely new band.
Kicking of with “Flapjacks”, this performance although seemingly a smattering of unrehearsed ad libs, was well planned but different to any other Dwele show I’ve been to.
I can’t recall hearing a single track from Dwele’s earliest collection “Rize” which to me is always a shame as that means I don’t get to hear “Down Jimmy”; one of my favourite Dwele records....
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Alicia Keys, Live at The O2 Arena, London
I can honestly say that this is one of the best live performances I have experienced in all the gigs I have been too, and I’ve been to a lot of gigs! Ms Keys gave everything you would expect and want plus more, she treated to us to a performance which was both visually entertaining and vocally she excelled herself.
It was obvious that a lot of thought had been put into the show- with the backing dancers/singers, the band, computer visuals and the stage which was set up reminiscent to something you would have expected to see had you been watching the Supremes- with a slightly retro glitzy feel! However effective this was it was almost unnecessary because I felt she was at her best ....
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Eric Roberson and Anthony David @ Ruby-Lo, London - 16/10/07
We heard about this gig about 24 hours before. Some rumours had been spreading around London and after a sneaky email or two it was confirmed – Erro was to perform at London’s Ruby-Lo in an intimate last minute acoustic session.
Having already been to the Jazz Café gig on the Friday this was a chance to hear him in a completely different environment and we snapped up the chance.
Anthony David was again present and went through three or four tracks to get us warmed up.
We’ve been listening to his stuff for a couple of years now, and although I must say I’ve always been impressed with him, I was so glad I had seen him in the flesh. At his most comfortable – it seems – with just a guitar and a microphone; his inspiring voice filled the venue with no effort at all, seeing him live was really a completely different ball game to playing the CD in the car......
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Dwele @ The Jazz Cafe, London - 26/04/07
Anyone that knows me or regularly listens to my radio show will know that I have a certain affinity with this artist. I’m fairly sure that if I listened to every “Soul Kitchen” I ever recorded there wouldn’t be one which didn’t feature a Dwele record and I have actually lost count of the amount of times I have seen Dwele perform live so I’ll hedge my bets at 6 - all but one at the Jazz Café.
I’m not sure why I love this venue so much. Maybe it’s the size of the room or its acoustics. Maybe it’s the fact that there is never a big fuss to get in, or that the people that attend this place tend to be likeminded positive music lovers who smile .
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Stevie Wonder’s Birthday Party featuring:
Eric Roberson, Frank McComb, Terri Walker, Roachford - @ The Jazz Cafe, London - 12/05/07
You never really know what to expect with these gigs. Who will perform the most? What kind of vibe will it be? Will the crowd get it? Must say I was more than happy with my £20 spend on Saturday. Four great artists performing their favourite Stevie songs including tracks I didn’t expect to hear like 'Higher Ground' and 'Love's In Need Of Love Today'.
The ultra confident Frank McComb gave us his version of ‘Ribbon In the Sky’ while Eric Roberson concentrated on pleasing the crowd with “All I Do”. He looked genuinely pleased to be in the room and perform with everyone, supporting the other artists from the balcony during his breaks. Terri Walker was also impressive belting out “Don’t You Worry Bout A Thing” but I must admit to being most impressed with Andrew.....
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Musiq Soulchild @ Shepherd’s Bush Empire - 20/04/2007
This one did not get off to a very good start. Mass confusion outside the venue as people had no idea where to stand or queue. We were advised by security at the venue to queue in a long line that stretched a couple of hundred yards and we only started moving an hour after the scheduled start of the gig. When we eventually arrived at the front building we were then informed we had been waiting in the wrong area for over an hour. Not best pleased, we eventually took our place near the front of the stage.
At this point I would like to mention the one member of security personnel who was polite helpful and very good at his job – Paul Lamb you are a breath of fresh air, but it is a shame your colleagues were useless and didn’t even see a punch up right in front of the stage half way through
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Joe, Boyz II Men and Brian McKnight @ Carling Acacemy Brixton - 09//04/2007
One of the most anticipated events in London for some time now. There was originally only one date set at Hammersmith Apollo which is a little confusing as the powers that be must have known how very popular this would be, we arrived at this added Brixton gig as we just couldn’t wait.
This was to turn into one of the most frustrating nights we had ever experienced at a live performance.
Warm –ups on the night included Megan Rochelle (of “The One You Need” and “Let Go” fame) and the quite brilliant Algebra who was unfortunately stopped in her tracks by faulty equipment and we didn’t get to enjoy her final song. This, sadly, is not the limit of the venue’s shortcomings as we were soon to find out.
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Nate James @ The Regal Room, Hammersmith, London - 31/04/07
I found out about this gig just the day before and knew immediately it would be a low-key, understated event. The regal room is very easily over looked, sitting above the distillers bar in Hammersmith, and was the setting for a very cosy, intimate evening.
We were lucky enough to catch the last few songs performed by the amazing Eileen Hunter – more to come on her in the coming months I am sure. Nate James came on with a small backing – just a guitar, piano, and one vocalist.
. .... Read full review here
