South America calling!  Words by Jude Paton & Dave Whiteman, Pictures: Laurence Gale

From our overseas correspondent, Jude Paton:

Five degrees north of the equator and 90 degrees in the shade, Open Mic in Colombia starts at the crack of dawn with the shrill tunes of Hummingbirds accompanied on percussion by Woody Woodpecker. The gentle sounds of Latin American favourites The Iguanas and The Chameleons are the opening act for super group ‘Them Crooked Vultures’ (John Paul Jones, Dave Grohl and Josh Homme) who’ve just flown in from the Andes to perform in the Cauca River Valley along with their 20 strong vulture entourage. A great show ensues, ending with them all soaring high above on the thermals before departing down the valley.

A coconut dropping from 40 feet reminds me of the time when Bongo Eddie from Kid Creole and the Coconuts made an appearance at Newport Open Mic….and brilliant he was too! Late night sounds come from The Crickets followed the Colombian Frog Chorus which always goes down well. I hate to put any performer down but the least popular act, The Mosquitos invariably send the audience scurrying home, arms flapping but happy to return for more the next day.
 
All these lovely sights and sounds provided free by nature here in South America.  And is that Woody Woodpecker back for an encore? No it´s just my host, John Heath practicing on his castanets again. Hasta Luego amigos see you next week!..........
 

...Jude would definitely have approved this week’s line up. Malcolm Purvis, from Leeds opened the proceedings and introduced a new toy…an electronic harmoniser. For the first time we heard Malcolm supplement his own songs with a couple of covers…and what a couple of crackers they were. Both written by Australian James Rayne, ‘Reckless’ and ‘Any Day Above Ground’ sounded as two voices in perfect harmony from just one man and his guitar.

Haven’t seen Lexi Tapley in ages, and she was clearly nervous as she took to the stage with Open Mic regular Alan Lane. Any anxiety was quickly dispelled as she sang beautifully throughout a set that included U2 and David Guetta. My personal favourite was ‘Landslide’ by Fleetwood Mac, with brilliant guitar picking from Alan.

Speaking of brilliant guitar, next up Jobe Spencer and Robbie Pilgrim still have not found the confidence to sing, but gave us instead a superb improvised instrumental set that showcased a great talent. Maybe a song or two next week lads?

Just before the start, our youngest performer, Jay Harris gently reminded me that he is no longer ten years old. Showing off his brand spanking new Epiphone guitar, an 11^th birthday present  from his proud parents, he wowed the crowd with a great song from The Editors before playing what has become his signature song….’Sweet Child o’ Mine’……. reckon I will be handing over the reins to Jay in the next few years!

Next up Nathan Davis, at sixteen, seemed positively ancient by comparison. Ably supported by Jobe Spencer on lead, he treated us to a new, as yet unnamed song before a very ambitious and quite excellent ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ from American power balladeers Journey. Great stuff Nate.

Remynie Faith brought her new band Feorh, to play at the Navy for their first live performance. Their name translates from Old English as ‘live principles of soul spirit for eternity’ and nervous glances were seen around the room as the first heavy metal chords belted out. No need to worry as a couple of lively self-penned songs, ‘52 hertz’ and ‘Widow’ preceded a very lively Black Sabbath classic, ‘Paranoid’. Ozzy would have been very pleased!

How do you follow that?.....with Richard Thomas of course. New versions of songs from The Eagles and Gloria Gaynor led the way before an anarchic ‘God Save the Queen’……all played brilliantly on his newest acquisition, a ukulele.

Gaz & the Tones have established themselves as firm favourites, and very nice to see them introduce a couple of covers. ‘Handle with Care’ the Wilbury’s anthem perfectly suited their rock acoustic style, and an unexpected ‘Burning Love’ from Elvis completed a fine set.

      Mick Skinner and Clive Roberts from Telford, and collectively known as Click, made their debut next and soon had the crowd of seventy or so in the palm of their hand. ‘Ricky Don’t Lose That Number’ by Steely Dan, never an easy number to play, showcased their musical prowess. Hope we see you back again soon, gents?

Just time for our photographer Laurence Gale and singing partner Rob Bryon to bring a great evening to a close with covers from Jackson Brown and The Faces, amongst others. 

Many thanks to those who help to set up and break down, it would not be possible without you. 

Till next week, keep it live!