BETH GIBBONS & RUSTIN MAN LIVE IN LIVERPOOL


15 February, 2003

In my view, Beth Gibbons (Portishead) and Rustin Man A.K.A. Paul Webb (Talk Talk) almost single-handed gave us something to crow about in a pretty poor year for British music. The release of Gibbons’ first solo album, OUT OF SEASON came almost too late in the year for us to include in our top 60 albums, but with a record like this you create a little more time and space. Had it arrived sooner and allowed us more time to listen, I’m pretty sure it would have been our album of the year (it was actually placed third). So it was with some excitement that I read that the pair would be performing at Liverpool University, and naturally we pestered the ‘powers that be’ to secure an invite and photo pass.

By around 5pm, the stage was orderly stacked with instrumentation and other equipment ready for the sound-check, which eventually took place over an hour later - but without Beth Gibbons. So skilled were Gibbons’ and Webb’s musicians that the sound-check became an entertainment in itself. As I looked and listened intently, a young lady approached me. She had beautiful dark hair, big brown eyes, olive skin, and sported a bright red hat. I didn’t recognise her immediately but just knew that my luck had not suddenly changed. Staring intently at me just inches from my face, and on realising that I had not recognised her, she declared “It’s me, Carina!” I hadn’t recognised one of my favourite UK singer/songwriters, Carina Round (with the new hairstyle and head gear). She had travelled from her home in Birmingham to catch this performance, no doubt invited by another face I did recognise, Jason of Ben & Jason. Tonight Jason was playing various keyboard instruments for Gibbons. So there were three of my favourite artists in the house and I got the distinct feeling that the evening would be extra special. Wrong I was not!

A further two hours passed before a Rustin Man song from OUT OF SEASON started to recite its electronic sampled elegance, and the lights started playing mind games. At last, the opportunity to savour this extraordinary talent had arrived. But first the six musicians responsible for drums, cello, guitar, bass, violin, keyboards and ‘various’ trooped onto the stage. Rustin Man (Paul Webb) harnessed to an accordion, sat on a chair that only minutes earlier had been bathed in beautifully defined shafts of blue light. Then Gibbons appeared to a mountainous welcome, and explained that she was suffering from a bad throat before mesmerising us with a beautiful and expressive performance of Memories from the new album.

Everything was perfection including the instrumental backing that was more Merino than Shetland. This is the song that I saw Gibbons perform on Jools Holland’s ‘Later’ TV show and, without waiting for a free album review copy, went out the next day and bought it (and also acquired the vinyl version - as one does). And this was my favourite song from the album although I have one serious complaint to voice. It’s far, far too short and tonight it seemed even shorter. It was during the passage of this song that I became convinced that Gibbons is one the most distinctive and expressive singer/songwriters in the world today. It also seemed to me that music is a communication medium that is second nature to her.

The slow, theatrical tones of Romance followed complete with its Broadway style vocal choruses. At one point during the song, Gibbons turned her back to the audience and listened intently to an extended instrumental passage. It quickly became apparent that Gibbons and Webb successfully replicated the quality of the recorded sound on stage, a pretty formidable feat in light of the sometimes quite complex song structures and instrumental arrangements.

The wistful, wandering tones of Drake was next up and the importance of the instrumental arrangements on OUT OF SEASON became clear. In this instance the instruments add depth and drama to another beautiful song, and Gibbons again floors me with her intensity. Resolve is next and proof positive that Gibbons possesses a wide vocal range as she meets the roller-coaster octave challenges of the song.

The journey through OUT OF SEASON continued with the weird, whispered and wonderful Spider Monkey, followed by the next single from the album, epic Tom The Model with its heart-stopping choruses. I puzzled a little over the next song title that appeared on the set list, and then realised that Autumn Leaves was in fact the gentle and captivating tones of Sand River. Then came the musical highlight of the evening for me that also changed my choice of album favourite. Funny Time Of Year performs musical cartwheels as it metamorphoses from a simple, wistful tune into a dark, relentless and threatening tour de force. And it’s here that the instruments build the doom-laden crescendo, with of course Gibbons lending a final raucous vocal hand. This is one of the most stunning songs I’ve ever witnessed in live performance and perhaps appropriately ends the pre-encore session.

The audience of over 600 had been captivated and enveloped by the performance and the simple but effective stage lighting. Gibbons, despite her illness, had performed impeccably along with a band of musicians totally in harmony with the vibe and music. The crowd roared them back and the very short show ended with the moving and optimistic ballad Show (with some heady cello moments), and a song which I didn’t recognise, Candy Says.

This fifty-five minute concert reprised the whole of the new album, and helped cement my view that it is one of the finest released by a UK act in recent times. In live performance terms, the show eclipsed much of what I’d ever seen before with its musicality, emotion, precision and technical mastery. In comparative terms, this was a very short concert without support acts but I didn’t feel short-changed. In fact I thought that the duration facilitated optimum performance from all involved (and let’s face it, 60 minutes of Gibbons and Webb has to be worth 100 minutes of just about anybody else!).

This partnership between these fine artists has hit on something very, very special, with Gibbons proving that she’s ahead of the game and one of the world’s finest and most original performers. All that now remains is for me to try to interview the lady and to find out the what, where and how of this remarkable artist.

A stunning and inspiring night.