Review: Joan Armatrading at Perth Concert Hall

Jul 29 2008 by Andrew Welsh, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

VETERAN singer-songwriter Joan Armatrading proved she still knows how to put on a show when she played Perth Concert Hall on Saturday.

Armatrading, who was born in St Kitts in the West Indies in 1950 before moving with her family to Birmingham, has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity since the release of her Grammy-nominated Into The Blues album last year.

Currently in the middle of a gruelling touring schedule that has already taken in the USA, Canada and Europe, the guitarist’s return to the big stage was capped by an acclaimed appearance at last month’s Glastonbury Festival.

In front of her clearly diehard fans at the near-full Fair City venue, the 57-year-old showed there’s no substitute for quality and delivered with gusto a set made up of classic material from every phase of her four-decade career, mixed with recent work.

For their part, her dynamic, all-male three-piece backing band displayed a stamina and commitment to the task.

On the evidence of this, the band’s only Scottish show this year, there’s little chance of them flagging on the tour’s next leg, a two-week visit to Germany starting tomorrow.

Into The Blues introduced the Brummie’s classic lead Chicago Blues style to a whole new generation of listeners, and its title track and A Woman In Love inevitably rubbed shoulders here with the likes of timeless folk-jazz foray Love And Affection.

The strident power pop anthem Me, Myself, I upped the pace before Armatrading put down the guitar for a rendition of the gorgeous All The Way From America, encouraging the audience to raise their voices in accompaniment.

Despite boasting a shock of long, straightened hair that frequently covered her face, Armatrading’s glinting eyes and infectious smile were plenty in evidence suggesting she was clearly enjoying her stint in the spotlight.

The diminutive figure was only too willing to engage in some witty between-songs banter during an hour and a half set that was capped by another singalong in Willow, then a rousing Drop The Pilot, and a chance for some audience members to let rip with their favourite dance routines.