#half moon putney

[plungermusic]

Même si ça change, c'est encore la même chose*

Plunger caught up with Connor Selby again at the Half Moon, Putney, more than five years since we last saw him and, not surprisingly, there have been a few changes since then: from profile-raising support slots for The Who and Pearl Jam to signing with Provogue/Mascot Records; and from collaboration with session men du jour Redtenbacher’s Funkestra; and a slick, don’t-frighten-the-horses makeover.

Those last two events left Plunger a little worried that Connor might have taken a different musical direction to that of the long-haired, Clapton-is-God-t-shirt-wearing artist we’d witnessed. But this show proved our fears were baseless: as evinced in the opening southern soul-influenced pairing of I Can’t Let You Go and Falling In Love Again, the former displaying rather Warren Haynesish guitar phrasing and the latter some lovely interplay between Connor and Joe Anderton in a brief but tasteful guitar-off.

After the slow but swinging blues of I Shouldn’t Care, a long and impressive organ solo from Stevie Watts introduced the soulful amble of If You’re Gonna Leave Me before a new song, Truth Comes Out Eventually provided a splash of snare-on-three Caribbean-spiced 60s blues-soul.

Connor’s deft touch with various shades of blues was shown in the echt, slow, slow-blues of Love Letter To The Blues featuring some highly Larry McCray-like tone and phrasing; a rather funky Bobby ‘Blue’ Bland-inspired version of Goin’ Down Slow with tight snare-and-bass underpinning, and era-correct Fender Rhodes-y electric piano; and a fabulously swinging The Deep End, drawing on one of Connor’s heroes Ray Charles, with rim-shots for that late-night smoky-dive vibe, and excellent jazzy piano throughout.

Much to Plunger’s delight there was plenty ‘southern soul’ in a 70s vein (of the kind that reeled us in on our first hearing of Connor): the melodic keys and guitar of a mellow Man I Ought To Be were reminiscent of solo Gregg Allman - not least in Connor’s fine-grained-sandpaper voice - topped off nicely by a delightful tremolo-laden chordal break from Joe; and Hear My Prayer’s Derek & The Dominos/Delaney & Bonnie brisker jangle included anthemic piano, ride cymbal-led drums, Joe and Stevie adding bvs, and a sweet southern-fried closing solo from Connor.

The closing pair of tracks reminded Plunger of the modern day torchbearers of that whole 70s southern soul thing, Tedeschi Trucks Band: the relaxed opening of That’s Alright with ticking rim-shots and swirly organ shifted up a gear with a full-band break-in with three part bvs, while the lithe TTB funk-soul of Show Me A Sign, with its Stax-y insistent-snare chorus and bustling bass lines, was the opportunity for solo spots from all, most notably a fiery British Invasion break from Joe, and a cracking keys outing featuring some surprisingly Jon Lordesque touches including a smattering of Bach! Connor’s own solo (perhaps the longest in a night where brevity and restraint were watchwords) ranged from clucking muted funkiness to soaring southern bends and all points in between.

An inevitable encore saw Connor switch from Les Paul to SG for an old Plunger favourite, Emily - a loping D&B southern soul-rocker with hints of the Louie Louie riff, a Wasted Words-style descending organ wash, and fabulous Billy Powell-style piano… a cracking finale to a cracking evening.

Some things may have changed but the accomplished songwriting, restrained non-grandstanding (but still highly fluid) playing and wonderfully soulful vocal are all still there, as good as they were, if not better.

* “Even if it changes it’s still the same thing” - with apologies to Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

His website is of course not advertising anything more recent than his 2022 Satirist For Hire tour, but look who's coming back to stand-up!

I think this must be straight stand-up, because if it were Satirist For Hire, he'd have to have included an email to where people can send the topics, right? Andy Zaltzman hasn't done regular stand-up since 2019, and even Satirist For Hire he hasn't done since 2022, I was starting to think he might be done with it for good. Would be understandable, as he's turning 50 this year and The News Quiz and The Bugle are going well, and The Bugle's on a tour at the moment so it's not like he never does live performance. But God I love his stand-up. His 2019 year-in-review stand-up show got released in part on The Bugle, and it is one of my favourite stand-up shows I've ever heard. I'm so glad he's doing it again.

...He's not doing Edinburgh. Obviously he's not doing Edinburgh. Even pre-COVID, when he was still doing stand-up tours, he hadn't done Edinburgh in years. Wouldn't it be cool if he were performing in Edinburgh when I'm there though? I mean, he won't be. Obviously he won't be. But like. Wouldn't it be cool?

Also, you know, Lou Sanders and Kemah Bob are cool. What a good time.

[musicnewsweb]

ICYMI: Martin Harley Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney #MartinHarley #BluesRoots #Weissenborn #Live - Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney http://dlvr.it/TFm6bq

[entertainmehub]

ICYMI: Martin Harley Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney #MartinHarley #BluesRoots #Weissenborn #Live - Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney http://dlvr.it/TFhpPL

[rockposerdotcom]

Norwegian Blues-Rock Guitarist TORA Is Finally Coming To The UK

After having to cancel their first UK tour in 2020 due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the band is finally set for the UK, where they will give two exclusive shows. Firstly, at the Boileroom in Guildford Sunday 24th September, followed by the Half Moon Putney in London on the 25th September. TORA is a Norwegian Grammy-nominated pop/rock band fronted by guitar heroine and Instagram phenomenon Tora Dahle…

[smoothblogerator-blog]

Absolute Bowie Half Moon Putney August 2023

[cynicalclassicist]

Had a fun time at a concert on Saturday, seeing Heather Peace and Katey Brooks! #heatherpeace #kateybrooks (at The Half Moon Putney) https://www.instagram.com/p/CoVKwa7N45n/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[tumbling-dyce]

Well Alright (Buddy Holly). Albert Lee. Half Moon Putney

[absolutebowie-blog]

Absolute Bowie

Our 70s Bowie Show - set list at Half Moon Putney 5th May 2018

Thx to Mari & Paul for the pic x

[ludovicah]

See Alan Merrill Live in the UK in December https://t.co/K1jkb79GJ7 Keighley https://t.co/jbSz7bvdDC Putney https://t.co/Yn5kackOBD  Islington

[plungermusic]

Friends, Londoners, country/rock/psychfolk fans …

… Plunger come to bury Du Bellows, not praise them. 

Well, not quite to bury them so much as lay the “Aye, very nice... but it’s not Du Bellows” ghost that has coloured our attitude to Jade Danielle Williams’ post-DB activities. Having missed the official launch at the Bedford this was the first chance to hear how the new (or reworked) material from the debut album sounded with a band… and the short answer is “pretty bloody stunning”.

Although wary of the ‘hired gun’ approach, this was quite the one-night-only supergroup: Mike Ross, the tone-master, as sideman guitarist returned the favour Jade did him at last year’s Clovis Limit: Pt 2 launch in Brighton; go-to South Coast keysman Stevie Watts brought organ and left-hand bass in one package; the inestimable Evan Jenkins added his usual drumming flair and finesse; while bvs and harmonies from Kirin Hungin upped the mystical quotient.

The haunting harmony vocal opening of old favourite Particles was familiar; less so the louche Airplane-ish Haight Ashburiana flavour from the pulsing keys and restrained drums as the band matched Jade’s slow-build rise to full-throttle power culminating in a closing guitar scream. The West Coast makeover continued in Fire In The Blood: a slinky lope driven by a lithe bassline, crisp rim-shots and fuzzy proto-riffing guitar - now less ‘wild-woman-on-a-Welsh-hillside’, more ‘sophisticated Hollywood hills enchantress’, but with all the same “is that a promise… or a threat?” edge, and an impressively expansive, swaggering close.

Her first address from the stage had Jade noting her appreciation for the rare opportunity for live performance, and hailing the Half Moon as a spiritual home (including an almost-missed “when I was in Du Bellows” epitaph?) before another burst of San Fran Psychedelia in the swirling Vanilla Fudgey keys of Heavy: Evan adding a touch more swing than heard previously (but no less punch, particularly the short Motown snare-driven snatch) plus a brief-but-scorching guitar burst and grandstanding organ canter to the crisp dead-stop.

The chaps left the stage to Jade and Kirin, for a brace of folky-tinged numbers delivered with just Jade’s autoharp as accompaniment: a cover of the Stones’ Dead Flowers “in the style of Townes van Zandt” was a fragile lament, the surprisingly full sound of the autoharp (combining organ-chord and mandolin-chiming tones) lending a Valleys-meet-Appalachia atmosphere aided by Kirin’s eerie high harmonies; and Hymn For Reuben, “a little ditty to my late, great, beautiful brother” maintained the backwoods feel with a very echt simple chapel-cum-revivalist melody and moved-by-the-spirit vocal.

The band returned for the stylish waltz-time Blackbirds, with sophisticated stop/start cleverness (admirably executed by Evan on ‘first playing’), the sweet vocal line and harmonies sharpened by some unexpected progressions. A classically 70s ‘quiet-bit’ heralded a darker psychedelic wig-out coda with waves of organ, complex fills and rhythms, and trippy guitar noodling. 

Dedicated to Pete Makowski (champion of Jade and Du Bellows in the early days who sadly died this year) the slow, soulful Happiness retrieved much of the country-stylings it first had: ringing tremolo guitar and low organ wash backing an achingly melancholic velvety vox rising to full-on anguish. West Coast blue-eyed soul (think Mac/Hall & Oates hybrid) number Blood, “about my father and how alike we are… and how that’s not so great at times!” saw more tricksy stop/start tutti riffing, and a very Rumoursesque chorus with loose-limbed cymbal-rich drumming and Jade hitting Nicksian levels of yearning, cajoling power.

With a relaxed hallucinatory reverie opening and muscular chorus full of tom-rich fills and heavy swelling bass keys, Lightning was the most likely to raise the DB spectre: Jade’s keening seductive menace rising gradually to ecstatic, channelling-elemental-forces oomph in the closing interplay with Mike’s banshee guitar. Very much a ‘new era’ tune, Oceans Of Words had a bustling Stones-meets-Supremes, ‘Gimme Sympathy For Hanging On’ groove, with busy rim-shots, gutsy organ and judicious Keef-y chords: another fade to quiet and explosive return allowed the band to show off their considerable skills in a largely instrumental coda while Jade twirled and floated around, transported by the music.

After considerable calls for an encore (and a hastily convened band discussion) they closed with Fleetwood Mac’s Dreams: a first-line stumble somewhat belied Jade’s comment “this is one we all know”, but thereafter a silkily slick version, with rock steady bass-and-drum foundations, and Mike providing the high harmonies as well as an exquisite solo hinting at another Dreams (the ABB track) was a perfect finish to a stonking set.

With grin-like-an-idiot moments throughout, it’s fair to say that by the end of this breathtaking, engrossing show (it came as some surprise it was actually only just over an hours worth) Plunger’s very own unquiet spirit had been well and truly exorcised.

Jade Like The Stone’s debut (not with this line up mind you) Seven Roads is available on vinyl, CD & digitally here: https://www.musicglue.com/jade-like-the-stone/

[kemetic-dreams]

Ronald Dyson (June 5, 1950 – November 10, 1990) was an American soul and R&B singer and actor.

Early career

Born in Washington, D.C., Dyson grew up in Brooklyn, New York where he sang in church choirs. At just 18 years of age, he won a lead role in the Broadway production of Hair, debuting in New York in 1968. Dyson became an iconic voice of the 1960s with the lead vocal in the show's anthem of the hippie era, "Aquarius". It is Dyson's voice leading off the song and opening the show with the famous lyric "When the Moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars..." He made a cameo appearance in the 1979 motion picture version of "Hair", singing "3-5-0-0" with another "Hair" alumnus, Melba Moore.

Later career

Dyson also appeared in the 1969 film Putney Swope.

After Hair, Dyson pursued his stage career with a role in Salvation in 1970. His recording of a song from the Salvation score, "(If You Let Me Make Love to You Then) Why Can't I Touch You?", successfully launched his record career, breaking into the Top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100 record chart, peaking at number eight in 1970. The follow-up, "I Don't Wanna Cry", was a strong US R&B seller, climbing to number nine.

In 1971, "When You Get Right Down To It", of which his was a more dramatic cover version of a song that had been a hit the previous year for the Delfonics, made the US charts, and reached number 34 on the UK Singles Chart in December that year.

His record company, Columbia Records, sent him to Philadelphia in 1973 to be produced by Thom Bell, one of the premier producers of the day, for several tracks. Bell's highly orchestrated style suited Dyson with hits including "One Man Band (Plays All Alone)", which reached number 28 on the Hot 100 and number 15 on the R&B chart, and "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" peaking at number 60 on the Hot 100 and number 29 on the R&B chart. These appeared on an album which was also made up of re-mixes of some earlier recordings, including "When You Get Right Down To It".

Dyson remained with Columbia working with top-line producers for another three albums, The More You Do It (1976), Love in All Flavors (1977) and If The Shoe Fits (1979). The title track of the first of the three resulted in one of the singer's biggest-selling records, reaching number six on the R&B chart. It was produced by Charles "Chuck" Jackson (half brother of Jesse Jackson and no relation to the more famous singer of the same name who recorded for the same company in the 1960s) and Marvin Yancy, who had been responsible for successfully launching the career of Natalie Cole with a series of hits. (Jackson and Yancy had also produced hits for a Chicago soul group, The Independents, with whom Jackson was also lead singer.)

In 1986, Dyson also provided the vocals for the song "Nola" on the She's Gotta Have It soundtrack.

Dyson then moved to an Atlantic Records subsidiary label, the Cotillion Records label, in 1981 for two albums and several singles which were only moderately successful. His acting and singing career had begun to stall in the late 1970s due to ill health, and it was in 1983 that Dyson appeared on the R&B chart for the last time on Cotillion with "All Over Your Face". His final solo recording was "See The Clown" in 1990.

Death

Dyson died at the age of 40 from heart failure on November 10, 1990, in Brooklyn, New York.

Legacy

A posthumous release on Society Hill Records appeared in 1991, when a duet with Vicki Austin, "Are We So Far Apart (We Can't Talk Anymore)", dented the US R&B chart, reaching number 79 during a five-week run.

[rawrampmag]

FORTNIGHT IN FLORIDA @fortnightinFL — #EasierToLose

FORTNIGHT IN FLORIDA @fortnightinFL — #EasierToLose

FORTNIGHT IN FLORIDA are a London four-piece who consider Toro Y Moi, Holy Ghost! and Hot Chip as their biggest influences.

 ���Easier To Lose” is a soothing embrace…

Born from a shared love of disco, synth pop, and an encyclopedic knowledge of the quotations of Alan Partridge, Fortnight In Floridasymbolize the will to escape from the daily routine, expressed by a distinctive brand of electronic…

[musicnewsweb]

Martin Harley Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney #MartinHarley #BluesRoots #Weissenborn #Live - Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney http://dlvr.it/TFfYw5

[entertainmehub]

Martin Harley Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney #MartinHarley #BluesRoots #Weissenborn #Live - Morning Sun launch Half Moon Putney http://dlvr.it/TFfYvl

[special-ingredients]

Prologue

This story is for....

Apollo and Vincent. My hopes, my lights, my loves. I will cherish you forever and always, I love you. Christopher David Baker. One of the greatest men on this earth. Nan couldn't have asked for a better or more hard working husband. We miss you.

Nick.  The greatest friend one could ever hope for. Thank you, for sticking around. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

A young woman walked through the empty streets of Belgravia alone, the depth of night surrounding her. The street was eerily quiet. No cabs went back and forth, up and down the road, which was highly unusual for London on a Saturday night. Lucie was more than slightly tipsy as she had proclaimed, having had a pint and a half at a nearby pub. She was only a lightweight, so it was extremely difficult for her to keep up the tally of drinks like her friends did. Whilst they could go on and on into the wee hours of the morning, Lucie could usually only last until early on in the night. She couldn't even make it to midnight without blacking out entirely, with the way she always tried to drink with her friends. 

She stumbled down the street, humming some random showtune loudly to herself. Every few clumsy steps, she would trip slightly, but most times she managed to save herself. However, it didn't take her much longer to lose her footing completely, and she ended up falling upon some steps, with her head jerking forward as she landed, her head nearly smashing against the concrete. Her teeth did smash together though, a resounding clack vibrating through her skull for a good five or six seconds. It was only when she recovered, and sat herself up, that she realized how far from the pub she had wandered, and how far she was from home, or anything she was able to recognize properly. The dawn of this fact was admittedly rather sobering, but it wasn’t enough to bring everything back to her mind. It merely made her scarily aware of the things happening closest to her. 

Casting her mind back through her foggy memory, she had taken a cab to her friend's home, in Putney. Then they travelled to the Spotted Horse, meeting up with a few other of their friends. As the night wore on, they paid a visit to The Boathouse, having another drink- or two, in the majority of her friends' case- there, before finishing their journey on the other side of the river, at The Waterside. Although it may not have felt far when she was with her mates, she was in no position to trek back over the river and home in the state she was. Lucie looked up to the heavens, some childish part of her hoping to see the stars. Alas, this was London, and the light pollution was so strong that the only thing visible through the orange haze, was the peach tinted lunar body of the moon, and even then it kept disappearing behind wisps of cloud. Her gaze stayed there, eyes straining against the light. What was she supposed to do to get home now? 

She felt like she had only stayed there a few minutes at most, when in fact, nearly an hour had passed by, quicker than a flash of lightening. The thing that brought her out of her daze, was a light tap on her shoulder. It was so brief, she almost thought it was her intoxicated brain trying to play a trick on her. She shook her head quickly, before turning her torso round, and looking up at the figure, almost curiously. Whilst an instinct within her subconscious had told her it could now be am extremely dangerous situation, she was very happy with the vision she was blessed with. The woman had long, dark brown hair, which looked almost black in the dim light of the early morning. Despite being hastily tied back, her hair cascaded over her shoulders, and down her back, like some sort of ink waterfall of the night. Her eyes were a similar brown, almost black, giving her a warm and motherly look about her, even if her expression was one of concern and worry. "Are you alright, sweetie?" The woman asked, her thick Texan accent immediately apparent to Lucie, despite her drunken state. Lucie slowly began to nod her reply. "Yeah..." she slurred over her response. "I think so..." she blinked slowly up at the woman who had approached her. The woman smiled ever so slightly at the positive reply, and kindly held out her hand to drunken girl. "Come inside." She offered. "You can rest until the morning, then you can be on your way. We can get you nice an’ comfy on the couch." Lucie, not knowing what else to do, and being in no state to refuse, took the woman's hand, and hauled herself to her feet, using the weight of the other woman as leverage.

Once she was at least fairly stable, she was led inside by the loving young woman, an arm round her shoulder in a protective embrace, and the door shut behind them quietly, producing a lion's roar in the cold and silent street.

The next morning, the friends that had accompanied the young woman the night prior reported to the police.  Lucie Robertson was declared missing by noon.