WASN'T it enough for Kelly Joe Phelps that he can play guitar better than any of us can dream of?

So why did he then have to add insult to guitar wizardry by proving he could play whilst simultaneously torturing his body into strange shapes.

One moment he would lean back with an agonised expression on his face and seeming to wrestle notes out of his guitar.

The next he was jogging it on his knee or thrusting the guitar body back and forward. We get the message. You can play guitar.

Actually during this intimate evening at the Town Hall, he played both slide and normal (if you see what I mean) acoustic guitar.

His music is very much in the blues, folk and traditional styles. It is the kind of music you can imagine easing out of a cafe bar on a bright Sunday morning.

This image is helped by the relaxed throaty-voiced singing style.

An affecting Without the Light was one of the highlights of the evening. Elsewhere his picking had a delightful bounce.

And then on the Woody Guthrie song Pastures of Plenty each note seemed to have been picked out with the utmost care and rang out clear.

The first half would have been improved with a bit more patter perhaps. It would have been good to know a little more about him, maybe the odd throwaway line, some clues about the origins of the songs.

He obviously relaxed into the show in the second half and this made for an all-round more entertaining show.

February 14, 2002 13:38