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PLAYING OUT LOUD!
ARTICLES
GIG OF THE MONTH
FABULOUS THUNDERBIRDS, THE BROOK, SOUTHAMPTON –
SATURDAY APRIL 19
 Formed
way back in 1974 in Austin, Texas, The Fabulous Thunderbirds are true blues-rock
legends. Although only one original member remains, Kim Wilson, the band remain
true to their original sound.
The band signed to Epic Records in the late 1970s, releasing two albums which
mixed the Thunderbirds’ blues style with the harmonica-swamped sounds of artists
like Slim Harpo and Lazy Lester. The band’s third album “Butt Rockin’” took
their style closer to the old R&B sound with additional musicians playing piano
and brass.
Although the Fabulous Thunderbirds had become favourites of fellow musicians
like The Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton, for whom they played support slots,
their records did not sell particularly well and their label at the time,
Chrysalis dropped the band following the release of “T-Bird Rhythm.” This lef
the band without a contract for four years, but they continued to play concerts
across the USA. During this time, bassist Keith Ferguson left the band and was
replaced by Preston Hubbard, a former member of Roomful of Blues. In 1985, the
band finally landed another recording contract with Epic/Associated.
The single "Tuff Enuff" was featured in the film Tough Guys, starring Burt
Lancaster and Kirk Douglas as was the follow-up single "Wrap It Up". The band's
music was also used in the 1987 movie “Hot Pursuit.” Their recording of
“Powerful Stuff” was also featured in the 1988 film “Cocktail” starring Tom
Cruise. The band then embarked on a long series of line-up changes and albums
throughout the 1990s. Jimmie Vaughan left to play in a duo with his brother
Stevie Ray Vaughan; following Stevie’s death in 1990, Jimmie embarked on a solo
career. The Thunderbirds replaced Jimmie with two guitarists, Duke Robillard and
Kid Bangham.
In the early 1990s The Fabulous Thunderbirds were in limbo, and Kim Wilson
recorded a pair of solo albums. In 1994, Wilson reassembled the band to record a
ninth album, “Roll of the Dice,” which was released in 1995. “High Water”
followed in 1997, and a live album in 2001. In 2004, Wilson reassembled the band
again adding Nick Curran and Kirk Eli Fletcher and the group released “Painted
On” in 2005.
Advance tickets for the gig are £20, £22 on the door. For more information about
the gig and other Brook presentations see
www.the-brook.com .
CHUCK PROPHET & THE MISSION EXPRESS,
RAILWAY INN, WINCHESTER – TUESDAY APRIL 22
 Get
your tickets quick for a band who are sure to sell out on their return to the
Railway. Chuck’s individual brand of roots rock went down like a storm on his
last visit.
Chuck, who was born in California, and is now based in San Francisco, originally
made his name with the psychedelic roots band Green On Red. He joined them in
the 1980s straight out of high school, later going solo and releasing his first
album “Brother Aldo” in 1990. Since then Chuck has released eight more albums
including his latest “Soap And Water.” His reputation as a songwriter has
increased year on year with artists like Solomon Burke and Heart recording his
songs. As a musician, he has played on recordings by the likes of Warren Zevon
and Jonathan Richman.
“Soap And Water” was released last year following a spell back on the road with
Green On Red for a reunion tour. The industrious Chuck found time to write and
record the album over a three year spell which also included production duties
on a Kelly Willis album and contributing to the soundtrack of an award winning
film, “Teeth.”
“Soap And Water” was very well received by critics who generally put in in the
4-star category. Gigwise.com enthused: “Think of Chuck Prophet as a less
excitable, more experimental Ryan Adams or a Tom Petty for the 21st century, and
you’re on the right track, as this is an album that oozes blues-rock charm from
every tobacco-stained pore.”
XUEFEI YANG, TURNER SIMS CONCERT HALL,
SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY – 3PM, FRIDAY APRIL 18
 One
of the finest classical guitarists in the world is appearing at the Turner Sims
this month. Xuefei Yang is a young lady who has the distinction of being the
first Chinese student to major in classical guitar. At just 13 she entered
Beijing's Music Conservatory and has since won a raft of top international
prizes and received praise from such experts as John Williams.
Yang began playing the guitar at at the age of seven, and began formal tuition
when she was ten, studying under the famous guitarist Chen Zhi, later Chairman
of the China Classical Guitar Society. Her public debut was at the First China
International Guitar Festival where she received immediate acclaim. At the same
time, she was presented with her first foreign guitar (a "Pepe" children's
guitar from Aria), by the celebrated Japanese guitar maker Masaru Kohno. She
went on to win second prize at the Beijing Senior Guitar competition being the
only child competitor, aged eleven.
As a school girl, Yang rapidly gained an international reputation, playing
extensively in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Spain and Australia and playing concert
tours in Taiwan, Japan and Portugal. At twelve years of age she played in Tokyo
for the first time and was given a special award by the Guitar Alliance of
Japan; this time Masaru Kohno took Yang to his studio and let her have her pick
of his world-renowned concert guitars. She was to play this Kohno guitar made of
cedar and jacaranda regularly over the next five years. When she made her debut
in Madrid at 14, the composer Joaquin Rodrigo was in the audience, and in 1995
after John Williams heard her play in Beijing that he gave two of his own
Smallman guitars to her conservatory especially for her and other top students
to play.
She moved to London in 2000, studying under Michael Lewin, John Mills and
Timothy Walker, and further establishing her international career with many solo
recitals and concert performances in the UK and Europe. She graduated with
distinction in 2002, achieving a Recital Diploma and receiving the Royal Academy
of Music Principal's prize for exceptional all-round studentship. Since then
Yang Xuefi has won numerous prizes in music competitions including the
Stotsenberg International Classical Guitar Competition, the San Francisco
International Guitar Competition and the Young Concert Artist International
competition in the United States, and the Darwin International Guitar
Competition in Australia.
Yang has since given recitals or concerts in many more countries, including the
United Kingdom, the USA, Germany, France, Spain, Belgium and The Netherlands.
BECK SIAN, QUAY ARTS CENTRE, NEWPORT,
ISLE OF WIGHT, SATURDAY APRIL 19
 Imagine
Kate Bush having gone New Age with a didgeridoo and a bullroarer thrown in for
atmosphere and you’ll have a fair idea what Beck Sian is all about.
In fact, the 32-year old Australian has a more personal connection to Kate Bush
– they are cousins, and Beck used to sing along to her famous relative’s hit
“Wuthering Heights” when she was a child. Beck, who comes from the Dandenong
Ranges of Victoria, is now based in the UK and is touring to introduce her first
album, “Unfurling.”
Singer-songwriter Beck describes her music as “haunted forest music,” influenced
by the forest-covered ranges where she grew up. With her waist-length red hair
and Celtic tattoos, Beck cuts a striking figure on stage. She mixes her own
material with traditional songs, and apparently has a great stage presence. She
plans to release two albums this year, the first of which is to be titled
“Luminous Wings & Unseen Things.”
Beck has already attracted the attention of many top names on the music scene:
“Bucketloads of charisma and a fabulous, enchanting delivery.”
Steve Harley (Cockney Rebel)
“A multi-layered unique artist with a vocal gift to carry her anywhere.”
Judith Durham (The Seekers)
“She’s got an amazing voice.”
Reg Presley (The Troggs)
“She is fabulous.”
Genevieve Tudor (‘Sunday Folk’ BBC Radio)
“There is an enormous range of emotion and feeling in that voice and
persona: and, with that voice, she can do anything.”
Andrew Wilson (BBC Radio)
Tickets for her performance at Quay Arts Centre are £8 through 01983 822490 or
see the website www.quayarts.org .
MILLER ANDERSON BAND, THE CELLARS AT
EASTNEY, SOUTHSEA, SUNDAY APRIL 20
 Miller
Anderson, a guitarist with an incredible pedigree in the world of rock and blues
plays at gig at The Cellars with his own band.
Miller has been on the music scene since the early 1960s, first making a name
for himself as a member of the Keef Hartley Band, with whom he played between
1968 – 1971. He played on the famous “Halfbreed” album and also appeared with
the band at Woodstock Festival. He also played on the following “Battle of North
West Six” and “Overdog” albums.
Miller formed his own band in 1971 following a solo album, “Bright City.”
Although they did not tour, they played some sessions for the BBC. Miller then
formed a band called Hemlock who made one eponymous album in 1973. After touring
as support to the Savoy Brown Blues Band, Miller was actually recruited by the
Savoys playing alongside two superb guitarists, Kim Simmonds and Stan Webb. They
released the album “Boogie Brothers,” which contained many songs written by
Miller, and toured the USA extensively. But Miller’s spell with the band was
brief – he left at the end of 1974. There followed brief flirtations with Blood
Sweat & Tears, Dog Solldier and a project with ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor.
In August 1976 Miller joined Marc Bolan's T Rex. They only released one album,
“Dandy In The Underworld” before Miller temporarily left the band to join
Donovan for a tour. When he was thinking of coming back to T.Rex, Marc Bolan's
sad death occurred in a car accident, on September, 16, 1977.
After another tour with Donovan, Miller and Ronnie Leahy left to form their own
band, The Dukes. They were soon joined by the young Jimmy McCulloch. They toured
supporting Wishbone Ash and recorded a single "Hearts in Trouble" but the band
broke up soon after Jimmy sadly died of an overdose. In 1982, some years after
they had shared the stage in Savoy Brown, Stan Webb called Miller again, to join
his band Speedway. Miller remained in the band, which was soon once again
re-named Chicken Shack, until the end of 1984.
Since the mid-80s, Miller has been part of the Spencer Davis Group, A reunion of
veteran musicians, under the name of the historical group. They usually reunite
every year under the command of Spencer Davis and Pete York, both original
members of the band. They released a live album, “Extremely Live at Birmingham
Town Hall.” Alongside his involvement with The Spencer Davis Group, Miller has
played a number of tours with Deep Purple, singing the Jon Lord material, and
also regularly plays with Zoot Money and Maggie Bell. He has also toured with
Roger Chapman’s Shortlist.
RACHEL UNTHANK & THE WINTERSET, THE
JOINERS, SOUTHAMPTON – THURSDAY APRIL 24 & SALISBURY ARTS CENTRE, WEDNESDAY
APRIL 30.
 All-girl
folk band Rachel Unthank & The Winterset, have until recently been the North
East’s best kept secret, but five nominations in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards
earlier this led to their capturing the prestigious Horizon Award. This followed
another award in 2005 when they won Mojo magazine’s Folk Album of the Year.
The band comprises sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank, Belinda O’Hooley and Niopha
Keegan. With their uncompromising Georgie accents the quartet have folk music
fans with a rich mix of traditional music that also incorporates elements of
blues, jazz, burlesque, classical and contemporary styles. Along the way they
have attracted fans as disparate as Phil Jupitus, Robert Wyatt and Kate Rusby.
So far they have released two albums, “Cruel Sister” and “The Bairns.” The
latter album was number 17 in The Observer Music Magazine’s Top 50 Albums of
2007, and the only folk album in the 50. It was described as “a bewitching,
dreamlike, down-to-earth masterpiece.” It was also called "utterly gorgeous" by
The Guardian and as "a work of towering quality" by The Telegraph and “quite
possibly the folk album of this generation” by Rock N’Reel.
Rachel and the girls have also become great favourites on the festival circuit,
impressing at the Larmer Tree Festival a couple of years ago. Already this year
they have been booked for Glastonbury, Wychwood, Lovebox, The Big Chill,
Belladrum and Summer Sundae.
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FABULOUS THUNDERBIRDS
THE BROOK, SOUTHAMPTON
SAT APRIL 19
CHUCK PROPHET
& THE MISSION EXPRESS
RAILWAY INN, WINCHESTER TUESDAY APRIL 22
XUEFEI YANG
TURNER SIMS CONCERT HALL,
SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY – 3PM, FRIDAY APRIL 18
BECK SIAN
QUAY ARTS,
NEWPORT,
ISLE OF WIGHT
SAT APRIL 19
MILLER ANDERSON THE CELLARS AT EASTNEY,
SOUTHSEA,
SUNDAY APRIL 20
RACHEL UNTHANK
& THE WINTERSET
THE JOINERS, SOUTHAMPTON THURSDAY APRIL 24 & SALISBURY ARTS
WED APRIL 30 |
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