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Posted by The G on May 24, 2013 under G Videos | 
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HD Video by G.
Laura Mvula is gonna be huge. Just press play to find out why. This track, “Let Me Fall” does not appear on Laura’s debut album “Sing To The Moon,” but you can hear a great live version of “Let Me Fall,” below. Enjoy!
Posted by The G on May 23, 2013 under G Videos | Be the First to Comment
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Remember that time that the legendary Tom Jones performed not in a massive theatre but inside the 500 person maximum venue Bowery Ballroom? I was there to capture all the action including this show highlight, a cover of Elvis Presley’s “One Night With You.” Sir Tom talks a little bit about Elvis before the song starts so hear what he has to say by pressing play!
Posted by The G on May 21, 2013 under Encounters with G, G Reviews | Read the First Comment
Photos by G.
Laura Mvula
Here’s a name you need to know: Laura Mvula. The British singer played her first headlining show in New York on May 20, 2013 at Bowery Ballroom and obviously, it was sold out. She had to move the show from the originally scheduled (and much smaller venue) Mercury Lounge date to accommodate overwhelming demand for tickets. Makes perfect sense to me. After a great set by Irish singer Foy Vance, whose voice has an a quality not unlike the voice of Ray LaMontagne, Laura Mvula (pronounced “M. Voola”) hit the stage at 9:30 PM.
Foy Vance
This was my second time seeing Foy Vance and just like the first time I saw him, before the end of the show, he got the entire crowd singing along. He mentioned that he has a new album coming out eminently, so you should definitely check out his music if you are looking to hear the music of a singer/songwriter who has an insanely great voice.
Laura Mvula
Laura Mvula’s music, if you aren’t already familiar with it, has elements of soul and jazz and the internet rightly has mentioned a Nina Simone/Amy Winehouse -esque quality to her voice. In between songs, she told stories about what she was going to play for us and had mentioned that earlier in the day, one of her heroes, Jill Scott, tweeted her seal of approval to Laura. Several hours later, she received the seal of approval from New York as she received thunderous applause after each song.
Laura Mvula
Like some of the “new school” of amazingly talented singers such as Adele, Emeli Sande, Lianne La Havas and Jessie Ware, Laura Mvula has quite a few slow songs that showcase her amazing voice and then when the pace picks up on the faster songs, the performance space turns into an impromptu dance party (see the upbeat “Green Garden” for example). We thought the encore would be final song of the night – a stripped down version of “Human Nature,” (yes, the Michael Jackson song!) but the crowd was not having any part of letting Laura Mvula end the show. Overwhelming applause brought Laura back for a second encore and performed a reprise of “She.” Her debut album “Sing to the Moon” is out now and if you liked any of the descriptions mentioned above, you’d be foolish not to get it.
See the setlist after the jump.
Posted by The G on May 20, 2013 under G Reviews | 4 Comments to Read
Photos by G.
Tom Jones
The legendary Tom Jones dropped by legendary New York venue Bowery Ballroom on May 18, 2013 to showcase his latest album “Spirit In The Room.” Here are 10 observations from the show.
1. I am over 30 years of age and I was the youngest person in the room. By far. Possibly by 30 years.
2. Tom Jones is an amazing performer who deserves the praise he gets as he had the 500 person venue eating out of his hand for the entire show….
3. …despite playing only one of his greatest hits (“Green Green Grass of Home”) in the nearly 2 hour show.
4. All the die hard Tom Jones fans (some who I spoke with admitted to seeing him close to 1000 times) were delighted that he didn’t play any “hits.” The casual fans that came to see the hits walked away from the show bitter.
5. This was the first time I’ve ever seen people in walkers in the front row at Bowery Ballroom and as you know, I’ve been there hundreds of times.
Tom Jones
6. Nobody threw panties or bras onto the stage. And for that, I am truly grateful!
7. Despite not playing his own hits, we heard covers of songs originally by Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Odetta, Paul McCartney, Tom Waits, Richard Thompson, Elvis Presley, Joe Henry and Leonard Cohen.
8. Tom Jones went on stage around 9:15 PM. He entered the building for the first time that day at 9:02 PM.
9. During a slow song, so many people in the audience took the opportunity to yell out “Play ‘Delilah’,” nearly drowning out Tom, but because he is the consummate performer, he overcame the audience jeers and when the song was over, got some of the loudest applause of the night.
10. I would totally go see Tom Jones again.
Bonus observation:
11. I think I better dance now!
Tom Jones
See the setlist after the jump.
Posted by The G on May 14, 2013 under Encounters with G | Be the First to Comment
Photos by G.
Samuel Thomas Fryer (vocals and guitar) of Palma Violets and Geoffrey Dicker
Last week I saw British post-punk rockers Palma Violets perform a sold out show at Bowery Ballroom in New York. I was less than pleased with my concert shots, but I enjoyed the show a lot. It’s obvious why the foreign press are loving them – because they ROCK! After the show, I met the guys and they were all super cool. We shared a laugh, a photo, a signature on my “180″ cd and in some cases a drink.
Alexander Chilli Jesson (vocals, bass) of Palma Violets and Geoffrey Dicker
Jeffrey Peter Mayhew (Keyboards) of Palma Violets and Geoffrey Dicker
William Martin Doyle (Drums) of Palma Violets and Geoffrey Dicker
Thanks again Palma Violets and I am really looking forward to hearing more great things from you!
