The Gospel Blues show has become the event to attend for anybody who loves good music. Yesterday’s show surpassed the standard set at the previous show and sent the audience home with smiles on their faces and a warm glow in their hearts.
Yesterday’s singers were Daniel Thomas, Sharleen Linton and Samantha Smith. The show started well with a strong rendition of ‘Lovely Day’ featuring all three singers. However none of us were prepared for what happened next. Samantha Smith took the mike to sing ‘Go Down Moses’ a song that Daniel has sung very well at the last two shows. Samantha’s vocal was amazing, she transported us to the US, we were all in the the chain gang laying the railroad tracks in the Deep South. The whole room was entranced by the quality of the vocal and the raw emotion in her voice. In baseball terms she knocked the ball so far out of the park that it would end up in a different state. Daniel and Sharleen showed their appreciation of the quality of the performance and then responded with breath-taking performances of their own.
Sharleen had moved me four weeks earlier with a stunning rendition of ‘At Last’ and she matched it with an equally stunning interpretation of ‘A Change is Gonna Come’, Daniel moved us all with his version of ‘Grandma’s Hands’ and Daniel and Sharleen duetted so well on ‘Aint No Mountain High Enough’ that it reminded me of Marvyn Gaye and Tammi Terrell in their pomp. Samantha was not finished either, she gave us a stunning version of ‘God Bless the Child’ and another spiritual made famous by Mahalia Jackson.
Daniel together with Wayne Hernandez and Beverley Skeete had combined two weeks earlier to give us some great entertainment but this show was even better as the singers just fed off of each other’s energy and pure vocal brilliance. Throughout they were supported by the brilliant band of Jason Thompson, John Jackson, Clint Williams and Kenny Barry.
The show in on October 14th, I hear, will feature Daniel, Samantha and a third vocalist, if you enjoy Gospel and Blue you must be there, in fact if you enjoy music it is a must attend event.
Johns London Music Reviews 