In a sometimes breathless world where many things are increasingly uncertain, how comforting it felt last night to see a National Treasure like Maddy Prior O.B.E. rotating gently on a theatre stage somewhere in middle England. On a Sunday Night-St George’s Eve to be precise and in Nuneaton's AbbeyTheatre, to be geographically accurate. Just a few yards away from the new home of Nuneaton Folk Club, a fact of which I am 100% certain the lady in question was oblivious to.
Beforehand,across the road in The Crew, in a crowded bar, I watched a sweating crowd of mixed age punters pogo away enthusiastically to a band fronted by a blue suited Elvis impersonator. Few towns in Warwickshire could offer such a diverse contrast in musical styles within a two minute walk on a Sunday evening.
I got the impression that Nuneaton is understandably perhaps a bit of a Folk outpost in Maddy's mind. She was probably unaware that this corner of North Warwickshire currently has a vibrant folk scene. Indeed,just across town,Sarah McQuaid will be appearing in 48 hours time,there will be live music in The Fox at Attleborough tonight and The Anker Inn on Tuesday. And next week Anna Ryder makes her debut at Nuneaton Folk Club. Hardly a backwater!
Nevertheless,there she was,Folk Royalty, beaming amiably and revolving gently like a matronly Weeble, inspired to a less energetic version of the stage dancing which was once a familiar part of her Steeleye Span stage presence. Galvanised by the outstanding musical accompaniment of her two companions Giles Lewin and Hannah James, with whom she has previously gigged and recorded. Her steps were perhaps a little more sedate than in the past, the cardigan maybe a little incongruous, but each time Maddy gracefully began to pirouette, it took many of us back to the days of Thomas The Rhymer and The Shaking of The Sheets.
It was a very pleasant evening. Although her name came first on the bill,she shared the stage generously with the other two and that proved a shrewd move. Whoever was originally responsible for putting this talented trio together has assembled a longstanding company capable of great cadence. Giles Lewin is one of the Bellowhead Legion and Hannah James being ex-Kerfuffle and widely travelled is almost in icon territory herself. Far from being just about Maddy Prior, the three of them put a lot of passion into Showcasing mostly newish material.
It was a very pleasant evening. Although her name came first on the bill,she shared the stage generously with the other two and that proved a shrewd move. Whoever was originally responsible for putting this talented trio together has assembled a longstanding company capable of great cadence. Giles Lewin is one of the Bellowhead Legion and Hannah James being ex-Kerfuffle and widely travelled is almost in icon territory herself. Far from being just about Maddy Prior, the three of them put a lot of passion into Showcasing mostly newish material.
Maddy sang, mostly standing, occasionally sitting down. Occasionally she toddled off stage (to search for an ice cream she claimed) leaving Giles and Hannah to share duets or do solo numbers from their own repertoires. In the foyer after the performance, the merchandise tables were groaning under the combined weight of their various albums-and of course a few Steeleye ones as well. Her voice though a little more rugged than in the early days,held up well-indeed there seemed to be an additional timbre to it which you don't always hear in earlier stuff like "The Blacksmith" or "Lark In The Morning."
We were treated to sumptuous three part harmonies, energetic clog dancing from Hannah aka JigDoll and all manner of imaginative arrangements including a combined yodeling session as an exotic but strangely appealing finale.Maybe this all sounds a bit odd,but surprisingly it worked. Giles, besides being an excellent fiddle player also proved adept on the recorder and bagpipes, sometimes employing all three in rapid succession, one after another. Hannah stuck mostly to a gigantic accordion which would undoubtedly have pulled her over onto her back had she tried to stand up wearing it. But she also occasionally added stunningly effective percussion by using her clogs on a board to beef up the sound at times. Occasionally she discarded the Beast altogether, left her chair and did entire dance routines, to enthusiastic and appreciative applause.
The combined effect was very impressive, controlling mood and tempo dynamically. The audience seemed captivated. There were long but not intrusive explanations of each song which helped make the time pass all too quickly. Much of the material came from a recent album Shortwinger. Indeed they plucked from it at least nine of the tracks recorded concerning Ornithology. And so we had a mixture of songs about swallows,starlings,owls,goshawks blackbirds and the like which must have been a delight for any Twitchers in the audience.
Maybe it was the Church End Fallen Angel but like many other NFC regulars sitting there I came away feeling stimulated.I felt a better person for having sat through a tasteful, melodious,creative evening,watching and listening to three fine musicians plying their trade. All praise to Tony Deeming and Co. for their friendly service and for bringing quality like this into the town.
Maybe it was the Church End Fallen Angel but like many other NFC regulars sitting there I came away feeling stimulated.I felt a better person for having sat through a tasteful, melodious,creative evening,watching and listening to three fine musicians plying their trade. All praise to Tony Deeming and Co. for their friendly service and for bringing quality like this into the town.
