REVIEW: And all in one evening...

…with Sally Barker, Vicki Genfan, Dave Pegg and Anthony John Clarke

Sally Barker’s voice ‘made Sir Tom Jones cry’. So what? At school, my voice made the music master cry. However, that’s where the similarity ends. When we saw Sally on Monday Night 15th September, I had to agree with Jones the voice, her singing was beautiful in the September Festival at St Ives Theatre but, first, special guest of the evening, Vicki Genfan.

To say Vicki plays guitar is to say USIA Bolt runs ... true but a massive understatement. Vicki was voted ‘Guitar Player’ magazine’s ‘Guitar Superstar’ in 2008 playing her own composition, ‘Atomic Reshuffle’ which she played for us. Wow! When she was signing my CD, I counted her fingers: she has just the ten, so I don’t know how she does it. As we arrived, Vicki, with her attractively tuned guitar, was introducing her arrangement of ‘Norwegian Wood’ which displayed so many things you can do with an instrument that there might have been three or four people on stage. She gets tunes, chords and percussion from the one guitar and all complimenting the rich timbre of her voice.

Ms Genfan has easy going audience rapport between songs that moved effortlessly from the explosive power of ‘Atomic Reshuffle’ to the bluesy, evening Jazz of ‘Blow out that Flame’. She shared a wacky rapport with Sally Barker when performing John Denver’s ‘Leaving on a Jet Plane’ before Vicki left the stage as Glen Hughes (keyboards) and Ian Crabtree (guitar) joined Ms Barker, her voice and her guitar.

Sally Barker has done her time as a talented and productive singer songwriter and as a member of all­woman folk group, The Poozies. On Monday she displayed a wider range and a richer palette moving from the folky exuberance of ‘Maid in England’ to the soulful Jazz of ‘Elephants’ and the audience participation of ‘Favourite Dish’, running right into the BeeGees’ ‘To Love Somebody’. Ms Barker was excellent value with an eclectic performance that perfectly showcased her considerable talents. But we had to move on to...

... The Western Hotel, where Dave Pegg and Anthony John Clarke were about to resume their sparkling double act. Dave Pegg is becoming a bit of a fixture in St Ives (Fairport Convention, The Dylan Project and now this) and we like that a lot. He’s a true gentleman and decades at the top of his game have not turned his head. He also adds musical depth to any performance. Anthony John Clarke displays caustic wit and delivery honed in the harshness of Belfast during the troubles. He’s also a talented musician and songwriter but no clown. The intelligent wit in his performance offers sharp insight to our own idiosyncrasies and idiocies.

It isn’t just the stand­up that’s funny; Clarke has a talent for investing his songs with gentle wit, ‘Tuesday Night is always Karaoke’, but also, when he’s a mind, to be a true poet, as in ‘The Broken Years’, his poignant recollection of sadder times and ‘Gloria’. Much of his work is “bitter sweet”, the sweet and humorous softening the bitter: think Billy Connelly without shouting and with the reverence of Father Ted – I’ll look out for Sister Mary Joseph Ferguson when I’m next on the Emerald Isle!

So much happening and so little space to record it all: Dave and Anthony’s ‘Bring Me Sunshine’ closed another magical evening at St Ives September Festival.

- John Hancock
This review appeared in the St Ives Times & Echo