Tahirah Memory’s performance was heart-warming. It pleased a highly appreciative audience.
My wife and I first saw Tahirah perform when she was last in London on June 15th 2017 and was sharing the spotlight with Jarrod Lawson. It had been a challenging trip for her, as whilst she was, here her father had died.
Tahirah has a beautifully soulful voice with a rich honey like tone which is soothing on the ear. She was supported by a band that worked exceptionally well together: Jarrod Lawson on keyboard, Dylan Sundstrom (bass) and Richard Lawrence (drums). Their travel plans had been disrupted. Their flight was cancelled after a six hour delay and Tahirah, Richard, Dylan’s and Tahirah’s daughter managed to get the last four seats on another flight which arrived the day before, but Jarrod had arrived just after midday on the day of the concert. This did not affect his performance.
The show started with ‘Pride’, the title track from her debut album. All the songs were self-penned and were from that album and her recently released sophomore album ‘Asha’. She played two hour long sets. Most of the songs were slow tempo with a jazz feel to them. The highlight was an emotional rendition of ‘ Lovely Bones’, a song written about her Dad soon after he had passed away. Another highlight was the duet with Jarrod ‘In Love With Love’, during which their voices gelled superbly in sweet harmony.
This was a strong performance warmly applauded by the audience. This audience was one of the best I’ve been a member of; one could have heard a pin drop on stage.
Tahirah Memory is highly recommended to any true music lover. Catch her live if you can before she returns to Portland, Oregon, if not listen to her albums.
Johns London Music Reviews 