28th August 2012

A simple remedy for those summertime blues…

 

With the chance of ever getting a bit of sunshine this summer steadily slipping away, it was up to the finest of Newport’s musicians to raise the spirits of everyone present at the Newport open mic session on Tuesday.

Richard Thomas and Andy Clarke warmed the audience up with some selected cuts from the glory years of rock and roll. A pair of Chuck Berry and Little Richard numbers gave resident sound man Adam enough time to get the volume levels sorted.

From deep in the shadows of the crowd, a young girl in a floral dress nervously crept up on to the stage. This was Melissa Severn, vintage tinged love songs and delicate soaring vocals were the order of the evening. Melissa took the crowd through a three song set of her own self-penned folk songs. It was great to hear someone writing such great, original material that was slightly away from the normal generic singer/songwriter style. Describing her sound is quite difficult, but if you imagine a young Joni Mitchell from rural Shropshire, you might be somewhere near…

Another young star Olly took to the stage next. With a revolving cast of fellow young musicians he led us through Maroon 5’s ‘Payphone’ and Steve Miller band’s ‘the Joker’. This young man has such a relaxed stage presence- one of those frustratingly talented people who makes it look a lot easier than it really is!

Richard Thomas returned to the stage with his reliable drummer and multi-instrumentalist, Remynie Faith. Together they delivered a great rocking set, climaxing with a fantastic homemade punk medley containing lashings of the Undertones and Blondie!

Remynie then stepped off the stage to perform a solo piano slot. Performing Lady Gaga’s ‘Papparazzi’, she proved she not only has the hair and boots but also the voice to match. Vocals, Guitar, drums, and piano… who knows what this multi-talented girl will bring along next week!

The triumphant return of Monkey sex change once again had the audience in fits of giggles. Martin and Sammy’s set consisted of Bongos, Leather Jackets, sunglasses and all round stage madness! Both talented musicians and songwriters, the audience shouted out for more, including several requests for Martin’s song ‘come on the floor’ a heart warming song about asking a girl for a dance... apparently.

The evening was rounded off nicely by two fine acoustic pairings. First up were Laurence Gale and Rob Bryon with a bluegrass tinged set of covers with Rob doing a great job on lead vocals.

Ed Young and Graham McCartney then finished off with some folk numbers with added Harmonica by Macca.

Another fun filled night at the navy with some great music to satisfy everyone’s taste. 

Cheap drinks and some fantastic live music. 
Come along and see what all the fuss is about! Tuesdays @ 8pm, Bellman’s Yard, Newport.

21st August 2012.

Tuesday 21st August was another very busy night at the Navy Club; there were over 60 people in the audience again, and with a jam-packed list of acts waiting eagerly to perform, a fantastic and eclectic evening of music was once more in store.

The evening began with a succession of men with their guitars. First of all the crowds were to experience the return of the silver fox; Alan Turner eased us in with his gentle bass tones, covering classics by the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and even Andrew Lloyd Webber's Memory.

Next up was some very easy listening from Darcy Crawford, with a smooth blend of country-inspired pop-rock modern classics. He has such a professional sound, you just want them to keep coming.

We all got lost in Rich Evan's rock and roll, with a brilliant version of Drift Away, followed by Steve Earle's Guitar Town. He was then joined on stage by 12-year old Isis Sky. 

She has a wonderful voice, and produced a unique cover of Ed Sheeran's A Team that no one will forget in a while. Her performance was truly worthy of a great guitarist, but Rich did okay. You can play it back on her Youtube channel The Isis Melodies, which she runs in her spare time. You saw her here first!

Usually seen at the Navigation Inn, Gnosall, tonight Andy Appleby jumped ship to the Navy to strut his stuff to some Stray Cats, before rounding off the set with a seriously sway-inducing rendition of Moondance.

We then welcomed Dave White on vocals and guitar, Neil Astle on guitar, Mike Crisp on bass and Stephen Black on drums, who are, for the time being, to be known as Blacky. You know you are in safe hands when a band can crack out a decent Wishing Well, and this is just what they did. Neil mastered a stunning solo, before it was Mike's turn to shine on bass with a cover of the Who's Substitute (high notes courtesy of Rich E). Everyone thought they must have misheard Jude when she informed us that they had met over the internet never played together before tonight, but this is just testament to how well these guys play! Let's hope this is the first of many performances for this group!

 

Luke then gave us the vocals to some heart-felt new-metal covers, and then we were in for a particular treat as he finished the set unaccompanied.

I'm not sure that the names of this guy's songs are publishable without age restrictions, but it's safe to say that Martin Woodhall had the whole room in stitches with what is infamously known as "his most graphic song yet". Definite comedic talent here people, and not a half bad musician to go with it - in fact we could have our very own, slightly less hairy Bill Bailey in the making.

Olly and Jake returned to the stage after headlining a superb evening here at the Navy Club last Friday (17th August); it was great to see so many young people enjoying themselves in the audience. Once more tonight, they did not disappoint.

The night was still going strong, but unfortunately it was time for the photographer to go home to bed! Apologies to the following acts who did not get their pictures in this week - but see it as an incentive to come back again and play!

And we certainly wouldn't say no to hearing more of young Dave who finished off a tremendous Newport Open Mic night with a lovely solo acoustic set.

Thanks again to young Adam on the sound desk, and to everyone who made it at 7pm to help set up - always much appreciated. Looking forward to seeing you in the future for more great Tuesday evenings.

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14th August 2012: Keeping It Live At The Navy Club.

Keeping it live at the Navy Club…… by Dan Nicholas & Rebecca Threlfall. Pictures by Laurence Gale

So the Greatest Show on Earth comes to a close and the nation is left to reflect on what has been a terrific seventeen days of the Olympic Games. The closing ceremony would have to be very special to match the magnificent opener and in my humble opinion, it was. With everyone from Julian Lloyd Webber to Jessie J, the world was once again reminded of how much talent our small island has brought to the musical table. Watching the spectacular closing show one couldn’t help but notice the wide age range of the performers. Young bands like One Direction rubbing shoulders with The Who and who didn’t enjoy a youthful Ed Sheeran teaming up with 66yrs old Nick Mason to perform a Pink Floyd classic?

In a way and in a much smaller scale of course, there is a parallel with the Newport Open Mic. Held every Tuesday at the Navy Club in Bellman’s Yard it is quite usual to see Newport’s youth sharing the stage with the more ‘senior’ members. Last week for example, almost half of the musicians were 16yrs or younger and this was also reflected in the 100+ audience.

 Not quite so many this week, but a great turn out nonetheless, to enjoy a wide range of music from great local talent. With sound check quickly dealt with, first act of the night was local tennis coach Darcy Crawford. Swapping racket for guitar and centre court for the centre stage, he served up a treat of heavy hitting acoustic songs from the likes of Paulo Nutini and The Script. Certainly no faults to be found in his set (the tennis puns end here I’m afraid) a really competent performer who will hopefully be back very soon.

Youngsters Ollie and Jake were next up displaying a mastery of their instruments far beyond their age. A three song set took the audience from Tom Petty to Guns and Roses, via an original composition from Ollie called Stealing my Heart. The guys will be playing an acoustic evening with special guests, this Friday at the Navy at 8pm. Give ‘em your support!

Remynie returned to the Navy following her set last week and treated the audience to a great version of Price Tag before joining resident anarchist Rich T on drums. With ‘Chicken’ on bass.

 Rich played us through a set of political punk rock that in his own words ‘should possibly never have left the 70s!’ The audience disagreed and rocked out to his set closer Anarchy in the UK.

Bradbury Lane provided a beautiful mix of traditional songs and 60s classics. A classy set had soaring vocals from Lynn Bradbury and fantastic acoustic guitar work from Alan Lane. 

All the way from Down Under, Dave Johnson, Australia’s answer to George Formby, had the audience clapping along to the Irish Rover before taking everyone back to Sunday’s closing ceremony with Always     Look on the Bright Side of Life.

 After turning up last week with a collection of homemade instruments (including the lovely ‘Amy Winebox’) Rich Evans took to the stage with a surprisingly normal looking six string guitar! A great performance as usual included a hillbilly power twang version of Copperhead Road.

Dave Whiteman (on the left) then accompanied vocalist Zoe Pinchin (on the right), in a brilliant arrangement of Fleetwood Mac’s The Chain before a touching version of Dylan’s Make You Feel my Love.

All the way from Leeds, Navy newcomer Malcolm Purvis then graced the stage performing his original gritty songs about growing up in the North before finishing off with a lovely song about his favourite road. (It’s the A19 in case you were wondering!)

Just enough time at the end to assemble a jam band, who kicked off with R.E.M and closing with a double shot of Mustang Sally and Sympathy for the Devil. There was some fantastic saxophone soloing throughout courtesy of Ben ‘Sax God’ Garrott, Neil Willday on vocals, Rich Evans on guitar.

So once again, another superb night of music comes to a close, and it all happens again next Tuesday and every Tuesday at the Royal Naval Association in Bellman’s Yard, Newport. Your £1 entry will guarantee you a great evening of local LIVE music and even includes a raffle……what are you waiting for??

On 26^th Aug, top local band Airbag will be headlining The Pheztival at The Pheasant on Newport High Street from 3pm with 6 other acts confirmed including Arcade Parade and Fake Obsession. Entry is free, but please dig deep to fill the collection buckets for the supported charity, Macmillan Cancer Relief.

If you would like your gig advertised on this page, or have any music gossip or info, please email details to overseasmuso@gmail.com  or newportopenmic@gmail.com REMEMBER FOLKS, KEEP MUSIC LIVE!!!

Old’s Cool 7th Aug 2012 Words & Pictures: Dave Whiteman

Team GB may be having the most successful Olympics of all time, but more than 100 music fans packed in to the Navy Club proved that if you make a healthy dose of live music an option, it will be enough to drag people away from the dreaded box.

After a quick start up under the watchful eye of sound man Adam Brown, The Scratchouse Band whizzed through the sound check on what was to be a very busy night of live music at the Newport Open Mic held at the Royal Naval Association, in Belman’s Yard Newport, every Tues.

Sometimes you just know it is going to be special, and when Ed Conway brought his new band ‘Lost the Plot’ to the stage, so it proved. Have you ever seen musicians belt each other with tin trays whilst banging out a lusty version of The Boxer? Mad, certainly, but highly entertaining!

It seemed that it was going to be a night of bands, as next act, Vinyl Tap followed on. A lovely version of Bee Gees classic, ‘To love Somebody’ was followed by a Del Amitri classic, then a quite brilliant ‘Daniel’ by Elton John.

The guest board was already almost full but there was one more treat before the headline act. ‘Bang to Rights’ with stand in drummer Andy Conway lost no time in raising the temperature, blasting through ‘Born to be Wild’ before finishing with ‘Won’t get Fooled Again’, by The Who.

Each month the club offers a longer than usual set to local musicians, and top Newport band ‘Old’s Cool’ used their extended spot to showcase their new lead singer, Ben Armstrong. No stranger to the club, Ben first played here around 10 yrs ago in earlier bands like Casino Twist and The Words, and looks to be an excellent new recruit. They cruised through a first live outing with this line up, but showed they are not simply a jobbing rock band. Crowd pleasers from Free and Bad Company dovetailed perfectly with a quite outstanding, ‘Still got the Blues’ from Gary Moore, before a reworked Queen standard, ‘Hammer to Fall’ with terrific harmonies, brought a well deserved encore.

Difficult to follow that, but Dave & Zoe the had the audience joining in with sing-along’s from The Ronettes and the Mamas & Papas, and then there was hardly time to draw breath before the next young lady took to the stage.
Mellissa Walford seen on the right is only 15, but singing beautifully and accompanying herself on guitar as she does,  she is going to be a regular favourite at the Open Mic.  Standout track was a brilliant version of ‘White Flag’ the Dido anthem.

There seems to be a wealth of young talent coming through the club at the moment, and next act, Ollie & Jake wowed the still considerable audience with ‘When you Say Nothing at All’ by Ronan Keating and ‘I’m Yours’ by Jason Mraz, before another Open Mic veteran, Richard Evans came on stage. Carrying what looked like an old wine box with a broom handle sticking out of it, Rich proved that a good musician can get a good tune out of anything! Switching instruments he then entertained with a ‘sensitive’ George Formby song written by comedian Frank Skinner, called simply ‘Osama bin Laden’.

It seemed the younger members of the club were still up for more as the evening drew to a close, with James Pilgrim leading the way with songs from The Arctic Monkeys and then The Libertines before first Dan Walton and then CJ Allen, both members of Blue Tuesdays kept the late stayers in their place with great songs from The Who and The Beatles….where do 16yr olds like these get their enthusiasm for the sixties from?!! 

The barman Jess was yawning, drinks were being finished and at 1130, people were starting to drift away, but bums very quickly dropped back down on seats as last act Dan Garrott started to play his Alto Sax. Accompanied by Remynie Faith on drums it evoked pictures of a smoky cellar bar jazz club in Soho with its style and expression.

So once again, another fantastic evening of music at the Newport Open Mic. More than a dozen acts of various ages and styles, all with one thing in common…..playing music live. So next Tuesday around 8pm, switch off the telly and get down to the Navy Club in Belman’s Yard…..there cannot be many better ways to spend a quid!

31st July 2012: Musical Olympians raise the roof at the Navy! By Dave Whiteman

With the Games in full flow and typical summer weather , ie pouring down, who would have expected a virtual full house at a local club? That's what we had this week (31st July) at the Newport Open Mic, held at the Royal Naval Association in Bellman’s Yard, Newport. 

With new boy, Adam on the sound desk, it was all systems go for the glittering opening ceremony. The scratch house band this week (could that a good name for a band?) had Mark Langford, Steve Smith, Richard Thomas and Dave Whiteman warming up the crowd with rock classics from The Beatles, Eagles and Bruce Springsteen.

James Pilgrim, just 16 yrs. old was the torchbearer for the evening and what a great opener he was. 'Time for heroes' by the Libertines was followed by a great mix including songs from the Kinks and Alex Turner, before finishing with one of his own songs, 'Lack of Parties'.

Another debutant on stage, Darcy Crawford is the new coach at Boughey Gardens Tennis Club and he is also a very talented musician. A great contemporary set of covers from Paulo Nutini, Ed Sheeran and Mumford & Sons, and Darcy had the audience in the palm of his hand.

It's always a pleasure to hear someone cover a Damian RIce song and Rose Feaver gave us a super version of 'Animals were Gone', then a beautiful Irish folk song, 'Rose of Aberdeen'  before finishing with her own composition, 'One night in the City'

One of the great things about the Open Mic is the sheer variety of music, and the next act provided the rock element with a master class of classics. 'Bang to Rights' are a four piece Newport based band led by Mervyn Williams, one of the founders of the Open Mic. 

We haven't seen him in the club for a while, but a lively set including 'Freefallin' from Tom Petty and 'Highway to hell' by AC/DC, had the audience shouting for more. Ably assisted by Mark Langford on guitar, Steve Smith on bass and substitute drummer Rich Thomas, this was a very polished performance from an experienced band...come back soon Merv!

Every month at the Open Mic, there is an opportunity for an act to showcase their talent with an extended set and picking up the baton this month was Telford based Blue Tuesdays, a three piece outfit all aged just 16 years.  Any pre-conceived ideas about shoe gazing were quickly dispelled as a high octane set saw them raise the roof with covers from Derek & the Dominoes, Led Zeppelin and a couple of corkers from Wings. A real highlight was a terrific version of 'Oh Well' by Fleetwood Mac, and bearing in mind that these guys were not even born until nearly 30 years after this songs release, they made it their own with their energy and feel. Guitarist Dan Walton, bass player CJ Allen and drummer Josh Reid...watch out for them!

 

 

It's always difficult to follow a performance like that, but Richard Thomas delights in being different and will always rise to the challenge when the bar is raised. Recruiting Remynie Faith on drums, he warmed us up with 'Call Me' by Blondie before a Eurovision tribute, first with a song from Bucks Fizz before finishing with an ABBA gem, 'Waterloo'....... in Swedish.  Rich never fails to surprise! 

It was turning in to a music marathon now and next on stage, The Nameless, played a crafted short set, finishing with a crowd pleaser, 'Knocking on Heaven's Door' 

before Open Mic regulars Ollie and Jake (on the left) tried out a couple of new songs 'Sweet child o' Mine' and 'The Joker' 

Newport favourite Zoe Churm was next to the podium. Accompanied by her usual musical partner, Dave Whiteman on guitar, she delighted the audience with unrehearsed songs 'One of Us' by Joan Osbourne, and Keanes' 'Somewhere only we know'.  Rehearsal...who needs to rehearse when you sing like this?

Just time for the multi-talented Remynie Faith who, at aged 15, pleased a few of the bands by lowering the average age quite considerably! Keyboardist, drummer, but tonight just her and a guitar, she raised the crowd with 'Pricetag' from Jessie J, before silencing them with a beautiful rendition of 'Hallelujah'

So, the closing ceremony of this musical Olympics comes to an end. No torch lighting, no Danny Boyle and no £27 million, but lots of medal winners.  All you need for a fantastic night of live music is ONE POUND, including the raffle and it is held every Tues at the Royal Naval Association in Bellman’s Yard, Newport, start time 8pm.

Next week’s Open Mic features an extended set from local rock band ‘Old’s Cool’ who are debuting their brilliant new vocalist. I know who it is, but my lips are sealed…you will just have to come and see for yourself! Plenty of stage time for other performers, but please get there early to avoid disappointment. Further information from Jude at Hey Jude’s in the market hall every week, at heyjudes@another.com or on 07949 793738.