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PLAYING OUT LOUD!
ARTICLES
Vic Chesnutt. Preview by Peter Ashton.
 An artist who numbers Tom Waits, Madonna and Michael Stipe of REM amongst his
fans makes his debut at The Brook in Southampton on Monday May 16. He’s Vic
Chesnutt, an American singer-songwriter who has been confined to a wheelchair
since being involved in a car accident when he was 18.
Born in Florida in 1964, Vic began playing is brand of contemporary acoustic
folk around Athens, Georgia after his accident in the late 1980s but it was not
until 1996 that he achieved star status when the “Sweet Relief Two”
tribute album featuring his songs was released in 1996. Michael Stipe of REM had
helped to produce Vic’s first two albums “Little” in 1990 and West of Rome” in
1991, after seeing him play at the 40 Watt Club. The tribute album featured
artists such as Madonna, Hootie & The Blowfish, Smashing Pumpkins and REM
brought his work to a much wider audience.
A documentary video of Chesnutt's life called “Speed Racer” was produced and
directed by Peter Sillen in 1991, and was followed by Vic’s third album “Drunk”
in 1993. His fourth album was delayed by Chesnutt's membership in
Brute, a project with members of Widespread Panic including David A. Schools,
Michael Houser, Todd Nance, John Hermann, Johnny Hickman, David Lowery and John
Keane. After “Sweet Relief Two” was released in July 1996, Capitol signed
Chesnutt and released “About to Choke” his major-label debut, in the autumn of
that year. “The Salesman and Bernadette” followed in1998 and featured Lambchop
as his backing band. Vic then cut an album with Kelly and Nikki Keneipp called
“Roses for the Butt of All Our Merriment” in 2000; in the same year he teamed up
with longtime friend and admirer Kristin Hersh for a series of US tour dates.
The following year Vic issued “Left to His Own Devices,” a
collection of rarities, outtakes and demos. In 2003, he struck a deal with the
roots rock-oriented New West label, who released ”Silver Lake” in 2003. “Ghetto
Bells” featuring contributions from legendary jazz guitarist Bill Frisell and
multi-instrumentalist Van Dyke Parks was released earlier this year.
Tickets for The Brook gig on May 16 are £12.50, available through 02380 555366
or through the website
www.the-brook.co.uk
Courtney Pine. Preview by Peter
Ashton.
 Nearly 20 years on from his emergence on the British jazz scene, saxophonist
Courtney Pine, who appears at Newbury Corn Exchange on Saturday May 28, has
confirmed his reputation with an illustrious career and the award of an MBE in
2000.
His debut album, "Journey To The Urge Within" in 1987, was the first serious
jazz album to make the British Top 40 album charts, qualifying for a silver
disc. The follow-up in 1988, was the acclaimed "Destiny's Song" produced by
Delfeayo Marsalis, which again hit the Top 40, also entering the American jazz
charts, and kicking off Courtney’s international reputation. It was in this year
that he also performed at Nelson Mandela's 80th birthday concert at
Wembley.
His third album “The Vision’s Tale” in 1989, recorded in America, was followed
by a change in direction the following year when Courtney released "Closer To
Home", a collection of reggae tunes taking Courtney recorded in Jamaica with
producer Gussie Clarke and released on Island Record's Mango label. The album
was later re-mixed by Pine and Ingmar Kiang for release in America and the UK,
reaching number 14 in the Billboard chart in America in the summer of 1992.
Courtney followed up with two more albums for Island, "Within The Realms of Our
Dreams" and "To The Eyes of Creation." Signing to PolyGram in 1995, he returned
to the studio to record his seventh album "Modern Day Jazz Stories" for Verve,
with US jazz giants, Charnett Moffett (Bass), Geri Allen (Piano) and Ronnie
Burrage (Drums)
as well as DJ's Pogo and Sparki from the UK Hip-hop scene. Released worldwide in
January 1996 it received widespread critical acclaim.
Another successful album came in 1997 with "Underground," then in March 1998 the
album "Another Story" was issued, with tracks taken from "Modern Day Jazz
Stories" and "Underground" remixed by some of the most prominent drum and bass
artists in the UK, most notably Roni Size who also picked up a Mercury award for
his debut album.
Album number eight "Back In The Day" was released in September 2000 with vocal
contributions from Beverley Knight, Lynden David Hall and Kele Le Roc. In that
year Courtney also travelled to South Africa to make a documentary for
the BBC on the local musicians whose stories and music revealed a hidden chapter
of apartheid. His ninth album “Devotion” was released in 2003.
In addition to his recording career, Courtney has become a popular presenter and
broadcaster with the BBC. He also composed, arranged and produced the soundtrack
for a feature film ”History Is Made At Night” and was nominated for
an award for his score of “It Was An Accident” for Pathe Films. He was also the
subject of the prestigious “South Bank Show” on LWT with an hour long programme,
documenting his career so far, shot in London, New York and Jamaica.
Broadcast in November 2000 it was watched by over a million people.
On the live circuit, Courtney has played across the world from the main stage at
Glastonbury to the intimate Blue Note Tokyo in Japan and continues to tour
Internationally with his award winning band.
In recognition of his career to date and his contribution to the black community
and jazz music, Courtney was awarded an O.B.E in the 2000 New Year's Honours. He
has also been honoured with a Gold Badge Award from the British
Academy of Composers and Songwriters and a Fellowship to the Leeds College of
Music. In December las year he was also made an honorary doctor of music by the
University of Westminster in London.
Rufus Wainwright. Preview by Peter Ashton.
 Rufus Wainwright, a singer-songwriter whose melodic, theatrical songs hark back
to the byegone age of Tin Pan Alley, cabaret and opera, makes an appearance at
Poole Lighthouse on Sunday May 15.
Rufus was born in 1973, the son of esteemed folk music luminaries Loudon
Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle. His parents divorced while he was still very
young, and he was raised by his mother in Montreal. Starting his piano
studies when he was six, by the age of thirteen he was touring with his mother,
aunt Anna and his sister Martha in a group billed as The McGarrigle Sisters and
Family. A year later, Rufus was nominated for a Juno (the Canadian
equivalent of a Grammy) as Most Promising Young Artist, while his "I'm A-Runnin'"
was concurrently nominated for a Genie (the Canadian countepart to an Oscar) for
Best Song in a Film.
Coming out as a homosexual while still in his teens, Rufus sought solace in
opera throughout his adolescence, also becoming a huge fan of performers like
Edith Piaf, Al Jolson and Judy Garland. After attending the Millbrook School
in upstate New York, he briefly studied music at Montreal's McGill University,
before turning away from classical performance towards pop and rock.
Becoming a fixture on the Montreal club circuit, Rufus later cut a series of
demos with producer Pierre Marchand. His father passed a copy of the tape to his
friend, arrange Van Dyke Parks, who in turn handed it on to DreamWorks executive
Lenny Waronker. The label signed him soon after and released the eponymous
“Rufus Wainwright” in1998. Rufus then spent the next few years touring and
appearing sporadically on soundtracks including”Shrek” and album compilations
(“The McGarrigle Hour”).
His second album ”Poses” was well-received in 2001, and after spending much of
that year and the next touring on his own and with Tori Amos, Rufus recorded a
kind of double album in Woodstock, NewYork - ”Want One” was released
in September, 2003 with “Want Two” following a year later.
Donovan. Preview by Peter Ashton
 The reclusive 60s artist Donovan has made a return to the live music scene to
follow up his well-received “Beat Cafe” album of last year. The man who was
somewhat cursed by the sobriquet “Britain’s answer to Bob Dylan” in the
mid-60s will be at Portsmouth Guildhall on Wednesday May 11.
The comparisons with Dylan probably did the young Donovan Leitch no favours,
apart from the initial publicity. Despite having a similar visual image to Dylan
which was based on Woody Guthrie, Donovan’s mystical songs were very
different in flavour to the more acerbic lyrics of Dylan. Donovan’s music
embraced the innocent optimism of the flower-power movement with ornate
arrangements and ethereal vocals.
Donovan Leitch was born May 10, 1946 in Glasgow and raised just outside London.
t He made his first demo when he was 18 and in 1965 became a regular on TV’s
“Ready, Steady, Go! (“the weekend starts here,” we were reminded each
week). Donovan’s debut single "Catch the Wind” inspired the Dylan comparisons
and reached No 4 in the charts. The first meeting between Dylan and Donovan was
captured in the classic documentary ” Don't Look Back.”
Donovan's follow-up single, "Colours," also reached No 4 in the British charts,
and after making his American debut at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival, he issued
the album “Fairytale.” But the breakthrough album came the following year.
“Sunshine Superman” contained the classic "Mellow Yellow" which followed the
title track into the Top 10 in 1967. For the next eighteen months or so Donovan
was a fixture in the charts with songs like "There Is a Mountain," “Jennifer
Juniper” and “Hurdy Gurdy Man.” Donovan travelled to India with The Beatles to
study with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi around this time, an experience which which
inspired him to renounce drug use and promote meditation. The inspired double
album “A Gift from a Flower to a Garden” followed.
Following his last Top 40 hit, "Atlantis" Donovan retreated to Ireland, emerging
from a period of hibernation by starring in and writing the soundtrak for the
1972 film “The Pied Piper.” Two new albums, “Cosmic Wheels” and “Essence
toEssence” were released in 1973, but failed to make any commercial impact.
Following 1974's “7-Tease” Donovan spent the next years living quietly in
California's Joshua Tree desert, going out on the road just once in 1976 to
promote that year’s “Slow Down” album. After the release of the wake of 1983's
“Lady of the Stars,” Donovan virtually retired from writing and recording
altogether.
The Donovan revival started in 1991 when Happy Mondays dedicated a song to him
on their “Pills 'n' Thrills & Bellyaches” album and he later toured with the
group. Five years later, Donovan released his comeback album “Sutras”
which again failed to make waves commercially.
But in 2004 Donovan reappeared with an intimate and stylish collection of
original songs,”Beat Cafe,” which was well-received. Now he’s back on stage with
the “Beat Cafe” tour. Tickets for the Portsmouth Guildhall concert are
available through 02392 834773.
Bellydance Superstars. Preview by Peter Ashton
 There’s a chance to see a unique combination of music and dance at two venues in
the South this month. The Bellydance Superstars and The Desert Roses are on tour
in a spectacular show which visits The Anvil in Basingstoke on Friday May 20 and
Bournemouth Pavilion on Saturday May 28.
The Bellydance Superstars and The Desert Roses come to the South following last
year's sell-out shows at London's Bloomsbury Theatre during a tour that
culminated with the red hot US dance troupe performing on the main stage at
Glastonbury Festival in June, prompting the Daily Telegraph to declare: "Bellydancing
- it's the new Riverdance... devastatingly sexy."
The Bellydance Superstars stage show presents a cross-section of tribal,
Egyptian and cabaret styles, using over a hundred different costumes to
colourful effect. Miles Copeland, one of the music industry's most successful
managers, formed the Bellydance Superstars two years ago, bringing together some
of the best belly dancers in the world.
Miles believes that belly dancing is much more than just a fantastic way to keep
fit, considering it an art, dance and lifestyle pursuit that awakens a woman’s
natural feminine sensuality. He says that the dance was never intended for
seduction, this being a Hollywood notion. Belly dance is thought to have been to
help women prepare their abdominal muscles for childbirth, and was performed by
women for women. Well, I expect there will be a few men in audience at
Basingstoke and Bournemouth.
Marianne Faithfull. Preview by Peter Ashton
 ike many men of a certain age, I spent many hours fantasising about the young
Marianne Faithfull back in the 60s. I bought her hit single “As Tears Go By” and
played it constantly, and eventually saw her perform live at Salisbury
Arts Centre about 35 years later. I was even rewarded with a smile when I walked
past her in the arts centre grounds where she was doing a photo shoot for local
Technical College students! Now I and her many other fans have the
chance to see her again when she performs in the Cathedral Close during
Salisbury Festival on June 11.
Marianne was discovered by Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham in 1964,
and recorded the Jagger/Richards composition "As Tears Go By" in the same year.
It hit No 9 in the British charts and was followed by three more Top
Ten hits, “Come and Stay With Me,” “This Little Bird” and “Summer Nights.”
Famously the girlfriend of Mick Jagger during the late 60s and early 70s,
Marianne’s career dipped after splitting with Mick and later developing a
serious
drug habit. She recorded rarely in the remainder of the 70s.
But in late 1979 she returned to recording with the brilliant “Broken English”
album. That fragile, breathy voice had been replaced with a world-weary, but
highly expressive croak. She had finally found her own voice, and began writing
her own material. Although Marianne’s recordings were sporadic during the 80s
and 90s, she released one triumph, the “Strange Weather” album in 1987, a
collection of standards and contemporary compositions which she interpreted in
her own unique style.
In 1994 she published her self-titled autobiography, which was followed later by
the biography “As Tears Go By” by Mark Hodkinson. Marianne also produced two
excellent albums in the late 90s, “20th Centry Blues” and “Vagabond
Heart.” In 2002 “Kissin' Time” presented an eclectic collection of songwriting
collaborations with Beck, Damon Albarn, Billy Corgan, Jon Brion, and Jarvis
Cocker among others. Continuing in collaborative vein in 2004, “Before The
Poison”
contained contributions from P.J. Harvey, Nick Cave and others.
Recent newspaper reports suggest that Marianne’s health, both mental and
physical, has not been too good in recent months, but it is to be hoped that
this still beautiful and talented performer will produce a devastating
performance during Salisbury Festival.
Rebecca Carrington. Preview by Peter Ashton
 There
aren’t too many classical cellists on the comedy circuit, so a big welcome to
Rebecca Carrington who plays four gigs in the South of England over the next
couple of months - details can be found at the end of this preview.
A classically trained cellist who won a scholarship to study at the Royal
Northern College of Music and completed a Masters of Music at Rice University in
Houston, USA, Rebecca has been described as the Victor Borge of the 21st
century. In addition to being a gifted musician, she performs spoofs of
everything from Britney and Madonna to Mozart & Pavarotti. She also enjoys a
parallel career performing with many leading orchestras including the London
Symphony, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Philharmonia and the BBC
Symphony Orchestras.
It was whilst studying music in the USA that Rebecca first became involved in
the comedy/cabaret scene, performing in clubs like The New York Comedy Club and
The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. In 1996 she won the university Mastercard
Talent Search and went on to perform her comedy act on CBS and NBC television
and performed her own Solo Show on National Public Radio. Radio appearances in
the UK include Loose Ends on BBC Radio 4, In Tune on BBC Radio 3 and Jammin’ on
BBC Radio 2.
Rebecca has also performed at numerous festivals, including the Manchester
International Cello Festival, Guildford International Music Festival, Cambridge
Summer Festival and Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where she was a semi-finalist in
the Channel 4 "So You Think Uou're Funny" competition. She is also a talented
voice-over artist and worked on the comedy BBC TV show, "Double Take."
She is also a session singer and backing vocalist having sung with a variety of
jazz bands and pop artists. In 2001 she toured in Europe as a cellist and
backing vocalist with David Byrne (ex-Talking Heads). She has also performed her
"One Woman Show" at the Jermyn Street Theatre, Piccadilly, The Canal Café
Theatre in Maida Vale and at the Bedford, London.
You can see Rebecca at the following venues:
Friday April 15 - Quay Arts Centre, Newport, IOW - Box Office: 01983 528 825
Sunday April 24 - South Hill Park, Bracknell, Berks. Box Office: 01344 484 123
Saturday May 14 - Forest Arts Centre, New Milton - Box Office: 01425 612393
Saturday May 21 - Ashcroft Arts Centre, Fareham - Box Office: 01329 310 600
Wednesday May 25 - The Point, Eastleigh
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Featured artists:
see POL Articles
Vic Chesnutt
The Brook, Southampton
Monday May 16
Courtney Pine Newbury Corn Exchange
Saturday May 28
Rufus Wainwright Poole Lighthouse Sunday May 15
Donovan
Portsmouth Guildhall Wednesday May 11
The Bellydance Superstars and The Desert Roses
The Anvil Basingstoke
Friday
May 20 and Bournemouth Pavilion Saturday May 28
Marieanne Faithfull Salisbury Festival Saturday June 11
Rebecca Carrington Various gigs throughout the Month
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