WINTER ALMANAC RADIO ROADSHOW The Sage Gateshead, December 27th 2009 (Reviewed by Lucy Freeman.)

The Sage Gateshead, a spectacular concert venue towering over the history-laden River Tyne, and taunting the city of Newcastle on the opposite bank, was the scene of the final outing for Jez Lowe’s recent touring show “Geordie’s Winter Almanac Radio Roadshow”, which has been wending it’s merry way around the UK for the last two weeks, undaunted by below-zero temperatures and hazardous snow falls. The audience for this afternoon show two days after Christmas, with snow still on the ground, is also undaunted and the 300-seater hall is full to capacity, with all standing-room-only tickets also taken. We could tell immediately that this wasn’t going to be an ordinary, straightforward concert, with a clever stage set of giant radios and old fashioned microphones dominating the stage. There was an enormous cheer when local lad Jez finally took the stage to introduce the cast and prepare the audience for the “broadcast”, which he explained was inspired by an old radio show from the 1950’s called “What Cheer Geordies”, that was produced just across the river from where we were now sitting, in the old studios of BBC Newcastle. One by one they assembled – local singer and raconteur Benny Graham, young instrumentalist Andrew Cadie, and Jez’s own Bad Pennies cohorts David De La Haye, Andy May and Kate Bramley, and then with the “On The Air” sign glowing red behind them, the ensemble launched into the show’s introductory medley, including the traditional DRIVE THE COLD WINTER AWAY, sung by Benny, a pipes duet from Andy and Andrew, and a new “theme song” by Jez entitled BARNSTORMING. It was clear that Jez would not be dominating the proceedings, and as the first half went on, both Benny and Kate shared the vocal spotlight, with some very adept backing from the others throughout. Andy May’s keyboard solo on Kate’s BACK TO THE LANDGIRLS was quite breathtaking. After some hilarious interludes including a side-splitting “Wassail” song and a visit from the “Ghost of Christmas Past” who looked strangely familiar, the first half closed with a quartet of Jez’s compositions from the BBC Radio Ballads series, mainly from the hunting episode, with all the vocalists taking a lead role in turn. After a break for a “gale warning” and weather forecast, the show continued with two wintry weather songs, Benny’s version of THE SNOW IT MELTS THE SOONEST and the whole band’s version of a rarely-heard Bad Pennies song WANNIE WIND. After a beautiful duet on the Northumbrian pipes by the two Andrews, played by Andy May on a set of pipes belonging to the legendary piper Billy Pigg, Benny had us all spell-bound with his Christmas ghost story of The Cow That Ate The Piper. Another highlight followed, with Jez offering his song A CHAMPION LIFE, that he has been cracking up audiences at his solo gigs for the last few months. It was nice to hear it sung on the very spot where events happen in the story! Kate’s jazzy version of THE BOY THAT SANTA CLAUD FORGOT cast a bewitching spell on us, and then a new Jez Lowe song about an immigrant’s Christmas, called GRAMOPHONE DANCING had us all singing along. Then it was time for the finale, “before we hand over the wavelength to The Archers again”, and the ultimate “Geordie Winter Medley”, including Alan Hull’s WINTER SONG and a send up of some well-known Christmas songs had us all screaming for more. An emotional encore of a Tyneside version of AULD LANG SYNE and Jez’s own crowd-pleasing JACK COMMON’S ANTHEM had everyone, including the Sage’s own staff and technicians, singing along, before we all trooped out into the frosty Newcastle night. A fantastic show from Jez and his band of heroes then, as original and as heart-warming as you would expect from this “ambassador of the North East”, and as good as anything I’ve seen this year. Everyone afterwards was asking, “When it going out on the radio?”, but I for one can see the show making a great Christmas TV programme, showing folk music at it’s entertaining and varied best.
(Reproduced by permission of The Crack magazine)