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| Apologies for the blur. I was interrupted by 'security' as I was taking the shot (no pix allowed) and was not allowed to reshoot. |
Joan Armatrading
The
Gov, Sun Dec 7
Joan
Armatrading burst on to the music scene in the mid seventies as a black woman who
didn't sound like a typical black singer. She had a unique sense of melody and
phrasing that was all her own. Born in the West Indies, she moved to Birmingham
in the UK at the age of 7. I, like millions of others, was smitten by her self-titled
breakthrough album in 1976, and after her performance at The Gov here in
Adelaide, I'm still smitten.
Her
music crosses an extraordinary range of styles - folk, pop, rock, blues, jazz -
and while she is equally at home in all of them, she doesn't actually belong in
any of them. Joan Armatrading is one of those rare artists who simply sounds
like herself. Whatever style she is experimenting with, she dances on the edges
of it. So you get her interpretation
of blues; her interpretation of jazz.
Except perhaps for rock. When she veers down the rock path she, surprisingly, is
a classic rocker. A couple of guitar solos sounded quite Hendrix-esque. And
then she's just as likely to follow that up with a soft melodic ballad on piano.
Armatrading
took us through a representative sample of a musical canon that spans four
decades. There were plenty of her best known numbers - Me Myself I, Drop the Pilot,
Love and Affection, All the Way from America - and a selection
of songs from her more recent forays into jazz and blues influenced offerings.
From
the outset she was gracious and witty. I loved the way she paused at the
conclusion of each song long enough to allow us to show our appreciation, and for
us to see her smile warmly in enjoyment of the moment. Quite endearing.
Midway
through her performance we were treated to a slide show of her career
highlights - musical and personal. It felt like we were in her lounge room at
home sharing precious memories. It was a nice touch.
Several
songs featured pre-recorded parts to fill out the sound. At times this worked
really well. It allowed her to play nifty jazz lead parts on songs like Stepping Out, and have us enjoy the
brass embellishment on the classic Love
and Affection. She told us she's played this song in every concert she's
ever played, and you can see why. It is indeed a classic. ("Sing me
another love song but this time with a little dedication.") On other songs
like the reggae influenced Rosie I
found the extra overlay intrusive.
Drop the Pilot was very funky, and Me Myself I once again revealed Joan the
rocker. She finished with the gentle Willow,
and invited the audience to join in. We all sent ourselves home singing in
unison as Joan sat, smiling again, at the keyboard.
It
was a privilege to finally see Joan Armatrading in person. She's still pushing
boundaries and her voice still sounds as rich and mellifluous as it ever did. Like
'massage for the brain' someone commented. Swapping seamlessly between electric
guitar, piano and her trademark 12 string Ovation, she generously shared forty
years of original music and few were disappointed. Most in fact were rapt.
(Also published on The Clothesline)
(Also published on The Clothesline)
Footnote:
7 years later I was rapt to find this review featured on Joan Armatrading's own website!
