Saturday
From US legend to UK one and a man I'd last seen…oh yes yesterday doing the Mojo Interview in the Club Tent :. Joking aside Roy Harper is a man I've not quite managed to see for more years than I care to remember.
The set starts with a couple of technical issues, which I thought might put Roy off aa bit, but as it was it laughed them off and continued on unphased, just as he wasn't phased when he was gloriously lit up by the setting sun, it made from impressive lighting on the stage, but must have been an absolute nightmare to look into from the stage.
Roy Harper(Nick's dad) was a grumpy old man before his time and has a fantastic repertoire of angry songs and ranting songs, songs that tackle the injustices of life. You know that when the anti-race song "White Man" comes out in the first three numbers, here's a man that means business for the night, so much business, in fact, he overruns by some fifteen odd minutes and with a big handover to Clannad to come, the chance of the stage closing on time are somewhere between Bob and no.
In all honesty, I have heard him perform better, but this was a great set of moody brooding songs. Listening to a lot of today's more political writers, you can hear Roy's influence and it was great to hear it direct from source. Somehow, despite already over-running he was invited back for an encore, an event I've not known for a good few years. I've known artists to take some time out of their minutes so they can put an encore here, but that definitely wasn't the case here.
It's a bit of a gamble, whilst Roy is only one man and a guitar, the next band on, Clannad, are stage filling multi-instrumentalists with more d.i. connections than you can shake a stick at. They've even brought their own desk as a bolt on to the main festival system.
The gamble doesn't pay off. Whilst the sound crew are doing their usual great job of getting gear off and on stage and getting it all plugged in, there are technical difficulties. The crowd start getting a little restless, the big balloon thing that has been bouncing around is being hit with less enthusiasm than before.
Suddenly, the lights dim, the compere comes on stage, it's all systems go and for the first time in 21 years or so Clannad step onto the main stage at Cambridge, playing here indoors for the first time. What followed was pretty much a greatest hits package.
Starting off with "The Magical Ring" the set was a delicious combination of their best known songs and a couple of other favourites thrown in for good measure. At times there really did seem to be a wall of 'Celtic' inspired sound.
I know it sounds a bit shallow, but for me, the highlight was "Robin (The Hooded Man)" simply because of all the memories it invoked. I was hoping they would cut into "Scarlet Inside" for a "Legend" medley, but knew it wasn't going to happen.
I really enjoyed this, but it was more than a trip down memory lane. There's a brand spanking new Clannad album due out in September and we were offered tantalising glimpses of what going to be on offer. Looks like being a great Autumn.
That just lead two more Celts to close Mainstage. I had been tempted to head to Stage Two and watch the Afro-jazz fusion combo, JuJu, but I knew that it really was time for a little more nostalgia and a light and frothy end to the evening with the Proclaimers.
The last time the duo played Cambridge they were pretty much at either end of the stage. The mics had moved a little closer this year, but there was still a good distance between them. Who knows maybe next time you'll be able to easily get them both in the same shot! Happy to walk 500 miles and then to walk 500 more, but a few yards on a stage for a decent shot together, no.
The band have been recording now for over 20 years, with their most recent album "Like Comedy" coming out as recently as May and naturally was a prime feature of the set and a reminder as to how good the Reid brothers are at songwriting, particularly in that pop/rock 'n' roll crossover area.
This was what I imaged skiffle coffee bars would have morphed into had they grown into giant stages. The audience sang-a-long to the hits and listened respectfully to the newer material. I really do love Cambridge audiences for how they do that
This was, a good, fun gig and a great way to end a highly enjoyable and dry day. Watched the second half from the main bar, enjoying a pint with friends, thinking that this is what festivals are all about.