Issue 74 / February 2017

the
atkinson
love folk
festival
—
fri 10 – sat 11
february ‘17
Fairport Convention*
Jon Boden (Solo)*
Sam Kelly & The Lost Boys
Folklaw
Lady Maisery
Luke Jackson
Plus...
Busk Love Folk
Meet The Artist Sessions
And more...
Festival Tickets £48
Saturday Day Ticket £35
*gig tickets available
The Atkinson
Lord Street
Southport
PR8 1DB
theatkinson.co.uk
01704 533 333
(Booking fees apply)
asks for a replacement instrument, explaining
the situation with an apologetic shrug. And
when we heard a rumour he was going to
be playing his new guitar later, made out of
a Dunlop tennis racket, we assumed tonguein-cheek
Hooton Tennis Club larks, but no –
it proved to be true. It’s a relief that Hooton
Tennis Club have lost none of their charm.
Songs from Big Box Of Chocolates, triumph,
the crowd giving them as enthusiastic a
reception as the old songs, the ones that aren’t
so old after all. This new grown up album shows
the band as a tighter, more confident unit than
ever before, with a performance this evening
that does the recordings proud. We are left with
no doubt that Hooton Tennis Club are playing
amongst the big boys and girls now, snapped
strings and novelty tennis rackets or not.
Cath Bore / @cathbore
ESMOND SELWYN
International Guitar Festival Of Great
Britain @ The Floral Pavilion
Wirral’s International Guitar Festival of
Great Britain celebrates its 28th year, quite
an achievement for a Council promoted event
whose stated aim has always been to bring top
class international and national artists (Paco
Hooton Tennis Club (Stuart Moulding / @OohShootStu)
Pena, Jan Akkerman, John Renbourn, Albert Lee)
to the Wirral whilst giving local talent a chance
to shine. The festival has always prided itself
on covering the widest possible range of styles
and repertoire and this year is no different,
featuring jazz, classical, Flamenco, blues, rock
and folk.
Tonight sees the return of jazz guitarist
ESMOND SELWYN, a performer of international
fame (he played for Frank Sinatra at a private
party at the Savoy, and has performed with
Chick Corea and Charlie Byrd and is a noted
teacher). Following a solo performance at
the festival in 2014 tonight he plays with his
quartet, featuring saxophonist Toni Kofi, a band
leader and reputed performer in his own right.
However, it appears that none of the above
plaudits have been capable of generating the
kind of audience that tonight’s subsequent
performance undoubtedly deserves. I walk
into the Blue Room and find myself amidst, or
rather sitting in splendid isolation amongst, an
audience of precisely eight people. For a festival
whose target audience is presumably the kind
of aficionado who would wear knowledge of
Selwyn’s pedigree as a badge of honour this is
totally mystifying. It becomes more so as the
evening unfolds.
The band launch effortlessly into versions
of Charlie Parker’s Cool Blues and Kenny
Dorham’s Blue Bossa. Selwyn cuts a relaxed