Musical magic at Folk Club’s Paul Gibbons night

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A stylish injection of musical magic from Latin America lit up Bermuda Folk Club’s final show of the year.

The Los Bohemians, a guitar-playing duo, delighted the audience at the Spanish Point Boat Club on Saturday with four fast-paced songs from South America.

Hailing from Ecuador, acoustic guitar players Milton Villamarin and Vinicio Cordova gave a spirited performance of songs from Argentina.

It was hard to fault the playing of Mr Cordova, who interspersed flamenco-style flourishes alongside the lead-playing Spanish guitar of Mr Villamarin.

Singing in Spanish, the duo’s smooth playing became even more fluid as they worked through a rapturously received set, which would surely have been extended by audience request were it not for Mr Villamarin’s admission they had played all their practised songs.

It was the Folk Club’s annual Paul Gibbons Night, in honour of the late club President and performer who passed away in 2004.

Mr Gibbons’ legacy lives on, as was clear from the many heartfelt recollections offered up by performers who knew him personally.

Some of the money raised by the club during the year goes toward an annual scholarly donation, made in Mr Gibbons’ memory, to assist a young music student.

Singer-songwriter Val Sherwood, herself a past President of the club, excelled with a three-song set that included two tunes from her forthcoming album.

The new CD will be well received if the track ‘VFABulous’ is any indication of what is in store.

The touching ballad is the story of a homeless tabby cat on ‘death row’ at an animal shelter, and is a plaintive call for greater responsibility from pet owners.

Ms Sherwood’s great ability as a lyricist is matched by her precision fingerpicking, demonstrated on both this song and ‘Going to South Africa’, which bounces along with a catchy three-chord chorus refrain.

Michael Cacy, one of the starred performers at September’s Lennon Bermuda concert in the Botanical Gardens, opened the evening with a selection of songs highlighting his versatility as a singer and guitarist.

He delivered a well-observed cover of Tom Waits’ ‘House Where Nobody Lives’, and an energetic rendition of Taj Mahal’s ‘She Caught The Katy’.

Mr Cacy also honoured a songwriter from his own part of the world, Portland, Oregon, singing James Low’s ‘Endless River’ and declaring it to be the best song he ever wrote.

One of the hardest working live performers on the Island, Will Black took time away from the Hog Penny stage to showcase a selection of original tunes from his next album ‘Dangerously Close’.

His professionalism shone on the rocking numbers, which were followed by a cover of The Beatles’ ‘You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away’, where he was soon joined by audience members singing along.

Club regular Peter Haynes gets better and better, and he dedicated his cover of Johnny Cash’s ‘I Still Miss Someone’ to the late Mr Gibbons.

The Cash number was one of the evening’s highlights, but Mr Haynes had a bagful of good tunes to deliver and soon the clubhouse audience was singing along as he hit a rich vein of musical merriment with ‘The Star of County Down’ and the Scots/Irish favourite ‘Wild Rover’.

Mr Haynes was joined on stage by singers Sharon and Cathy, who duetted on a rendition of Patsy Cline’s ‘Walkin’ After Midnight’.

There was plenty of energy from both singers which worked best when they were able to match harmonies. Mr Haynes joined in a three-person cover of ‘Adelweiss’ from the musical ‘The Sound of Music.’

The most unexpected song of the evening was surely Mike Davis singing Billy Connolly’s humorous ‘If it Wisnae fir yer Wellies’, which was well received, as was his rendition of Kenny Chesney’s ‘You and Tequila’.

As the evening drew to a close Andy Westhead brought some of his delightful fingerpicking style to the fore with Tom Paxton’s ‘Ramblin Boy’ and a cover of the Liverpool song ‘Mist over the Mersey’.

Jamie Lovell found an unusual track to lighten the end of the night as he burst into ‘Chim Chim Cher-ee’ from the musical ‘Mary Poppins’ and dished up a surprise delight, giving the song just the right amount of passion and vigour to hold the audience’s attention.

He followed with a jazz lounge-infused take on George Gerswin’s classic ‘Summertime’.

Mr Lovell was then joined by former fellow band colleague Adam Melvin for a five-song set that included a punchy version of Johnny Cash’s ‘Ring of Fire’.

The folk club now takes a seasonal break and returns in February.

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