Reviews
Artist:Jonathan Kelly
Venue:The Rock
Town:Maltby
Date:21/09/07
When Rob Shaw, organiser of the prestigious Rockingham Arms Folk Club in Wentworth, tapped me on the shoulder sometime early in 2004 and said 'guess who we had here last week doing a one off unannounced appearance?' I could've named literally dozens of artists who had fallen off the gig guide lists in recent years, but I would never have dreamed it would have been a certain Jonathan Kelly. It was one of those 'guess what you missed' moments that tend to cause severe chest pains that really hurt. My first thought was 'how on earth did I miss that? swiftly followed by 'so when's he playing again?' I had to wait fifteen months for that answer.
For most of my generation of music fans, Jonathan Kelly was playing clubs up and down the country when were too young to even be in pubs. We all had the 'Twice Around the Houses' album, with it's enigmatic glossy sleeve depicting a heavily bearded hippie, complete with plaid scarf, black overcoat and Daily Telegraph stuffed in it's pocket, which resided in any self respecting bed-sit, normally in a cardboard box next to the Dansette, but actually seeing him play live was not on the cards just yet. Four years later, when we had managed to grow our hair and could plausibly pass for adults, we were finally ready for upstairs pub rooms and hippie troubadours but of course by then we'd missed the boat. Jonathan had inexplicably fallen off the edge of the planet and was nowhere to be seen.
Still, ever present in the record collection, both 'Twice Around The Houses' and the follow up 'Wait Till They Change the Backdrop' frequently leapt off the shelf for an airing over the ensuing years, and any thought of ever seeing Jonathan Kelly live was well off the radar. That was until April 2005 when Bob Chiswick and Gerald Sables put together a charity concert featuring Jonathan at the Sprotbrough Country Club in Doncaster, and this time, I was present.
Jonathan can be forgiven for not having the same vocal delivery he once had in youth. These songs were written for a younger voice. I do however feel it is important that Jonathan make every attempt to sing them in the same manner, despite the occasional quaver. It would be a shame to hear a Jonathan Kelly song performed by an ageing rocker who has deliberately changed his vocal style to suit an older voice, Dylan springs to mind, or worse, Leonard Cohen's inclination to talk a song. This is fine for them, but not for Jonathan Kelly.
The one thing that remains precisely the same now as back then is Jonathan's warmth and self depreciating wit, which is quite endearing. He seems to be completely bewildered that anyone would want to come out to listen to him. Those who have been touched by Jonathan and his songs know different.
By his own admission, Jonathan still writes prolifically even after all this time. He is of the opinion that 'songs come to visit, and if I'm quick and copy them down before they leave, then I can play them to someone else.' It's almost as if he claims no ownership of the songs that come to visit him, 'many times they just come and slip out of the back door never to be heard of again. It doesn't worry me; it was just nice to have them around for a while.'
Although Jonathan is keen to get some of these newer songs out before they slip out of the back door ("Eileen" being a good example), he is under no illusion that his hardcore fans come to hear familiar songs from their (and his) youth, and on this score Jonathan never disappoints. 'Twice Around The Houses' is always well represented at his gigs and if every song from that album is not played, then it's surely only the omission of a couple. Tonight was no exception as Jonathan kicked off the concert at The Rock with the anthemic "We Are the People", insisting from the get go that the audience become his backing band. Bang things, tap glasses, stamp your feet but most importantly sing. "Rainy Town", "Madeleine", "We're Alright Till Then", "Leave Them Go" and the timeless "Sligo Fair" followed to an enthusiastic response from the packed house.
'Wait Till They Change the Backdrop' however, was less well represented with only "Down on Me" being performed. "Mother Moon", one of the songs from the 'Backdrop' sessions, which didn't quite make the album, was played to a delighted response. I'm sure the imbalance all comes down to time really, for had it been up to Jonathan, who had a request list a mile long at his feet, he would've been only too pleased to play until dawn.
During the second half, Jonathan invited a couple of friends on stage to help him out on a few new songs. Slide guitarist Mike Miller told me they had only just worked out the arrangements prior to the gig, which confirms Jonathan's 'instant' approach to music making. Jonathan and Mike assisted Alexis in a country-tinged song called "Come and Rescue Me", before they performed the quickly rehearsed new songs including "The Loneliness of John South."
As Rob glanced at his watch, reluctantly having to draw the night to a close, Jonathan performed a stunning "Ballad of Cursed Anna" and the beautiful "I Used To Know You", bringing the night almost to an end. I say almost because it's difficult to bring a Jonathan Kelly night to an end. With a bit of an off-the-cuff rock n roll number presumably entitled "Rocking at the Rockingham Arms", even the normally stoic figure of Rob Shaw was moved to get on his feet to dance, jiving with two women no less.
Jonathan Kelly remains an approachable, affable. pleasant sort of character, whose ability to excite an audience even after such a long period of time 'off the scene' seems to come naturally. Although he is still considered to have cult status on the British music scene, he really should be a household name.
Allan Wilkinson