TAMWORTH FOLK CLUB GUEST NIGHT REVIEW
November 2004

Nancy Kerr and James Fagan

support by Steve Edkins and Steve Swoffer

 

The last guest night for this year with a duo who have been on the music scene for many years and were the winners of the BBC radio 2 folk award for best duo in 2003. Nancy Kerr and James Fagan. This well-loved two combine highly skilful and innovative performance with accessibility, warmth and stage presence. They approach their music with energy and infectious smiles. Rapid musical communication with one another and the audience makes their performance spectacular and unforgettable.

Now that's got the official contribution out of the way, lets see what the Gamecock thought of the night. I had brought along a couple of friends with me who, over the years have attended a few concerts and they stayed to the very end, always a good sign. As did the smaller than usual audience.

Our own intrepid duo The Two Stephens opened up the evening with a great set of songs and jokes which were interspersed with a certain amount of audience participation, did I mention heckling, it's a change for messrs Edkins and Swoffer to be on the receiving end, you had to be there to find out who had the last word.

Nancy Kerr and James Fagan come from distant backgrounds, Nancy from Northumberland, James from Australia. Nancy plays mainly the fiddle, which was superb, and her voice is magical, combining traditional tunes rooting in the Irish, but branching into Bulgaria, Nashville and Alnwick.
James inherited his interest in music, being a member of Australia's premier folk-singing family, The Fagans. He mainly plays the Irish flat-backed bouzouki, the guitar shaped version, which has become his trademark. James strong and melodic singing has made an impression wherever he performs.

This night proved no exception and the audience were drawn into the atmosphere with great chorus joining in. I always think that the cosy small venue of The Gamecock must feel very welcoming to our guests, especially when they have been used to playing large concert halls, theatres etc. Very much a live music venue, in every sense. May it long continue.
I look forward to next years guest nights and please can we continue with your support for a great night out. Happy New Year.

R.D.C. 2004