I took a trip along to the Northumberland seaside town of Newbiggin by the Sea on Thursday night, lured by the promise of an evening presented by congenial hosts Derek and Melanie Allan, aka Acoustic Magic. I’ve been to quite a few Acoustic Magic events and always enjoyed the company and entertainment provided by their team of terrifically talented musicians.
It was a beautiful evening and what a fantastic setting for a midsummer night's gig. The event was held in the coffee shop area of the Maritime Centre which boasts stunning views of the coastline and the (in)famous “Couple” art installation piece.
After a quick look around the very interesting museum (and getting a fright from a seaman mannequin!!), raffle tickets and a lovely steaming cup of coffee were purchased and I settled down to watch the acts.
First up in the stage area was a gentleman by the name of Robin Lewsey who, I believe, hails from the Northumbrian fishing town of Amble. Robin performed a 30 minute set of softly sung melancholia which seemed to mainly consist of cover versions of songs that were all new and unfamiliar to me. The polite and appreciative crowd, ranging from children right up to elderly ladies and gentlemen listened attentively, applauding appreciatively after each song. Nice start to the evening!
I had actually expected Peesh to be up next but at around 8.30pm we had Mike Orchard, who describes himself on Twitter as “A Trainee Folk Singer/Songwriter Gadgie” – I like that! As with Mr Lewsey before him, Mr Orchard is a gifted technical guitarist who obviously loves playing to live audiences, this evening’s one being most appreciative of his talents.
Unfortunately I forgot to take my notebook and pen so, as I have a memory akin to an amnesiac goldfish, I must send my apologies to Robin and Mike for not being able to name any of the songs from their sets. However, if you enjoy classic acoustic folk music, go and see them!
The raffle was drawn at this point and I so very nearly won a fabulous Acoustic Magic mug..…but not quite! I did, however purchase another badge from a very astute young sales lady to add to my growing collection so I didn’t go home empty handed!
Finally, we had Peesh who is beginning to make one helluva of a name for himself as a solo artist and over the last year has notched up a considerable amount of solo acoustic performances. His set was upbeat and entertaining, which is a bit of a juxtaposition to his sometimes dark and deep lyrics. He delighted some of the audience members by ad-libbing the lyrics to KiDS TV and substituting their personal favourites that they had shouted out when he introduced the song! His 45 minute set, filled with favourites from his AcoustiCalendar project such as KEEP YA TiMBER iN AND YA POWDER DRY, AN ENGLiSHMAN ABROAD, OLD PUNKS NEVER DiE and a rare outing for WONDER YEARS, was over all too quickly and then it was time to leave, just as the sun was beginning to go down.
To be totally honest, I almost didn’t go to the gig as had a splitting headache and was really grumpy after a rubbish day at work but I left – having stayed out much longer than originally intended - with a warm heart, a smile on my face and my headache a distant memory.
Acoustic Magic indeed!
Many thanks once again to top photographer Mr Clemmy Scotswood (Peesh and LoGoz manager) for allowing me to use his brilliant photographs.
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