Worcester Music Forum

Show of Hands 
Huntingdon Hall (Worcester) 2/11/07

As one of Englands most well respected Roots and Folk acts I was greatly looking forward to hearing this duo in the impeccable acoustics of Huntingdon Hall. Singer/songwriter Steve Knightley and multi instrumentalist Phil Beer both grew up in Exeter and played on and off together for many years before establishing themselves as a full time act in 1991. Since then they have released nine studio albums and built up a large fan-base to the extent that they have sold out The Royal Albert Hall three times in their career.
The show illustrated what a consummate and powerful act they are, their easy going and warm banter making me feel at ease immediately. The songs that impressed me most were those that allowed Steve Knightleys compelling and intense lyrics to draw the audience in. The most breathtaking example of this was The Preacher, a song that told the story of a lonely man of God brooding over a love rival. You could almost feel the searing jealousy of the preacher and the cold, desolate surroundings of the narrative. The impact was heightened by Steves percussive use of the Cuatro, a kind of small guitar from Latin America with four strings that produces a haunting drone due to its unusual re-entrant tuning.
Another wonderful song was Poppy Day from Steves recent solo album Cruel River, an interesting juxtaposition of a jaunty tune with cutting lyrics dealing with Opium farming in Afghanistan.

Show of Hands covered a lot of ground during their two set show, from stomping rhythm and blues through folk ballads such as Blackwaterside to flat out jigs and reels in which Phil Beers fiery fiddle playing came to the fore. On the whole I would have preferred a few less diddly-dit-dee-dee type folk tunes (they bore me after a few minutes even with the best players) and more of the storytelling and political songs that have made Show of Hands known in the media as being a voice for the rural poor.

Both Phil and Steve switched from Guitar to Mandolin to god knows what else with nonchalant ease throughout the evening and shared vocal duties and harmonies to great effect. The show finished with Steve singing unamplified (no, I cant remember the name of the effin song) whilst Phil wandered through the audience playing his fiddle a lovely intimate end to the evening. I was left scratching my head wondering which of their many albums to buy.

Review by Paul J Rose  www.myspace.com/pauljrose