Tag Archives: Hamish Gill

Paul Simon’s Graceland Live

★★★★

Shepherd’s Bush Empire & UK Tour

Paul Simons Graceland Live

Paul Simon’s Graceland Live

Shepherd’s Bush Empire

Reviewed – 14th October 2019

★★★★

 

“Turner does a great job with some Simon classics and some lesser-known favourites”

 

For many adults and indeed children of the 1980s, Paul Simon’s Graceland album remains iconic. Hits such as ‘You Can Call Me Al’ and the album’s namesake track remain staples on party playlists over 30 years after its release. And for many born long after 1986, the chance to hear the album live would have been unthinkable – especially since Simon’s step away from touring in 2018. Until now.

Maple Tree Entertainment have already found success with The Simon and Garfunkel Story, which now tours worldwide to rapturous audiences, and so it’s perhaps unsurprising that they have continued to mine the clear vein of enthusiasm for all things Paul Simon. Hence this new production, which calls upon the remarkable talents of the UK-based South African Cultural Choir to add the essential vocals so beloved of fans of Graceland – including the remarkable lilting refrains of ‘Homeless’, originally provided so memorably by Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Fans expecting a repeat of The Simon and Garfunkel story, which deploys singers with at least a passing resemblance to the pair and casts them as actors as well as musicians, might be surprised. This is not quite the same show, and this at first takes some adjustment. Young American YouTuber Josh Turner takes Simon’s part here, and for all that he’s clearly a remarkable guitarist, handling the fast fingerwork of ‘Anji’ with apparent ease, he is no voice-alike of Simon and nor does he pretend to be. This quickly becomes irrelevant, but it’s best to approach the performance as a tribute rather than a likeness.

The shape of the production becomes even clearer when the night opens with ‘Kodachrome’ – an absolute banger of a Simon track, certainly, but not from the Graceland album. Turner explains the format: we’ll hear some Simon tracks in the first half, and meet the choir who’ll remind us just why Simon fell in love with South African township music and went on to make Graceland. In the second half, we’ll hear the Graceland album in full. The audience rustles in anticipation; this is what people have come for.

It’s credit, then, to the virtuoso work of all and especially the SACTUK and its charismatic lead, that the first half is still so warmly received. Gorgeous costumes of coloured beads, neckpieces and rustling skirts set off the astonishing performances from the choir, including the wonderful ‘Shosholoza’ – and in fact, to call this troupe of nine just a choir undersells them, as the dancing on display shows amazing skill and athleticism. And Turner does a great job with some Simon classics and some lesser-known favourites; ‘Homeward Bound’, especially, is heartfelt, and the gradual introduction of choir and full band in ‘Peace Like a River’ works a treat. The closing refrains of ‘The Only Living Boy in New York’, wrapping up the first half, are moving.

Naturally, though, it’s for part two that most have come, and from the opening refrains of ‘The Boy in the Bubble’ the audience melt. This largely seated performance sees everyone on their feet for the irresistible ‘You Can Call Me Al’ with an execution made even more brilliant by the fact that those on stage also seem to be having the time of their lives. Guitar and bass guitar solos taken by Turner’s band are performed with absolute aplomb and clear relish (although the full saxophone solo in ‘That Was Your Mother’ was missed), and rich colours light the stage to mark the warmth of the celebration.

Simon became hooked on South African music after hearing a bootleg cassette, and the rest is history. From the reception to this vigorous, joyful rendition of Graceland 33 years after its release, it’s clear that Simon’s own work, in turn, has hooked generations. Long may it last.

 

Reviewed by Abi Davies

Photography by Hamish Gill

 

Paul Simon’s Graceland Live

Shepherd’s Bush Empire & UK Tour

 

Other recent reviews by Abi:
Constellations | ★★ | Lilian Baylis Studio | June 2019
Kill Climate Deniers | ★★★★ | Pleasance Theatre | June 2019
The Incident Pit | ★½ | Tristan Bates Theatre | July 2019
Alpha Who? | ★★★ | Cockpit Theatre | August 2019
The Indecent Musings Of Miss Doncaster 2007 | ★★★½ | Camden People’s Theatre | August 2019
1mm Au Dessus Du Sol | ★★★★ | Lilian Baylis Studio | September 2019
Jade City | ★★★ | The Bunker | September 2019
The Life I Lead | ★★★★ | Wyndham’s Theatre | September 2019
Murder On The Dance Floor | ★★★ | Pleasance Theatre | October 2019
The Ice Cream Boys | ★★★★ | Jermyn Street Theatre | October 2019

 

Click here to see our most recent reviews

 

The Simon & Garfunkel Story
★★★

Lyric Theatre

The Simon & Garfunkel Story

The Simon & Garfunkel Story

Lyric Theatre

Reviewed – 29th April 2019

★★★

 

“the musicianship is excellent, and it’s quite a phenomenal showcase of ability”

 

It’s been fifty years since Simon and Garfunkel were hitting the charts, but it seems their popularity has yet to wane, as can be seen with the ongoing demand for ‘The Simon and Garfunkel Story’. Even after a sizeable run in London last year and a world tour following that, still, two months in to another season in London, a giddy full-house eagerly awaits.

New stars of the show, Adam Dickinson (Paul Simon) and Kingsley Judd (Art Garfunkel) open with a perfect rendition of ‘The Sound of Silence’. They share a fair likeness with their characters, and their silvery vocals harmonise beautifully so that if you closed your eyes you might just be fooled.

However, as soon as the first track finishes, we’re greeted with two very English accents, and a story told in the third person. It makes you wonder why they bothered with the costumes if suspension of disbelief was only going to come to a screeching halt five minutes in.

It’s a strange combination of production choices – Dickinson and Judd do at least sing with American accents, and both have appeared to study the mannerisms of their characters’ musical performances but as soon as each song is finished, they’re back to being two English lads. There’s no set besides a projector screen, and the ‘story’ is mostly made up of geographical locations of both singers and the chronology of the music, told in cheesy gobbets between numbers.

The costumes change according to the era (Everly Brothers-style shirts and black ties are swapped for seventies polo necks, and then eighties blazers and t-shirts) but the effect is so minimal they may as well not have bothered – particularly as the rest of the band remain in their shirts and ties throughout.

That being said, the musicianship is excellent, and it’s quite a phenomenal showcase of ability. More than that, it’s a pleasure to see how much they’re enjoying the performance – the drummer (Mat Swales) sweetly mouths the words of nearly every song, and the bassist (Leon Camfield) emanates a contagious enthusiasm.

It’s clear that vocal ability and aesthetic were the reigning considerations in casting Kingsley Judd: his manner of addressing the audience is overly sentimental, as though talking to an audience of senile geriatrics, and his performance is uncomfortable to watch. Dickinson, making his professional debut, seems much more at home as a front man, though he does have the advantage of having a guitar to hide behind, where Judd is left desperately trying to work out what to do with his hands – there’s only so many times you can meaningfully grab the mic stand.

Of course it’s entertaining listening to brilliant musicians performing huge hits, but it’s not a theatre production. The set-up is that of a gig (minus a dancefloor), and there’s little to no acting required or story told.

 

Reviewed by Miriam Sallon

Photography by Hamish Gill

 


The Simon & Garfunkel Story

Lyric Theatre – Monday 20th May & Monday 24th June

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:
The Simon & Garfunkel Story | ★★★★ | July 2018
A Beautiful Noise | ★★★★★ | February 2019

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