Lindsay Hannon Plus: Jazz Cafe: June 27 - A ‘Women Make Music’ Schmazz presentation

Lindsay Hannon (vocals); Mark Williams (guitar); John Pope (bass); Russ Morgan (drums)

(Review by Ann Alex/Photos courtesy of Ken Drew).

This proved to be a really good night of music-making. 

Starting with a few bars of just voice and bass, through to the final song, about falling in love with the idea of love, by way of loads of great solos from the band and Lindsay in fine voice this was a truly memorable session.  

The first set comprised songs from the band’s normal repertoire; the second set - new songs.

That normal repertoire included Joni Mitchell’s Old Fashioned Hat, a gentle interpretation with a bell-like guitar solo; Love Me Or Leave Me, sung in short fast phrases, and with a drum solo.  It’s good to have such a solo early in the set, drummers often get left until last, and Russ Morgan was well up to the challenge. A switch to bebop with In Walked Bud and a bass solo this time. A song by Elizabeth Corney about the love between two sisters, usually sung with Lindsay’s other band, Iceni (that band is also well worth a listen). Knopler’s Romeo And Juliet, - Lindsay's interpretation made it her own - and finally, Everybody Knows.

The surprise of the second set for me was some of the snippets Lindsay revealed of her life which were expertly woven into music and lyric, but that’s best heard from the lady herself.  The song which followed, Mornings, was about the feelings of a young girl in a mother and baby home on a rainy morning, and the whole band gave a wonderfully sensitive interpretation of this, a gentle brush on drums, a bleak sad tune, sensitive guitar, ‘it’s raining outside’. Indeed much of this set included songs penned by Lindsay, including (I think) a funky rocky number about waiting by the telephone for the call that never comes; and an amusing song with jungle drums and animalistic tones from the guitar.  There were skilled solos all round and Mark on guitar deserves special mention as his playing showed a superb understanding of what the singer portrayed in her songs.  Definitely one of the best guitarists around.

A very satisfying evening of music played to a near full house.

Ann Alex.

PS: Unfortunately, time and tide prevented me from staying for the jam session that followed but, judging by some of the well known faces with cases, it looked promising.