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Jimmy Lee And The Edge Of Chaos Orchestra

Venue: Bournemouth Folk Club
Town: Bournemouth
Date: 27th May
Website: http://www.edgeofchaosorchestra.co.uk

For the first time in well too long, I managed to get down to Bournemouth Folk Club for one of the last gigs before the Summer break. With it being such a packed Summer of sport and holiday season, the club traditionally takes some time out for everyone to recharge their batteries. A quick glance at their website tells you they'll need to as there's already a full and exciting schedule planned for the Winter and Autumn.

It's a slightly unusual night tonight in that there is only one act, Jimmy Lee And The Edge Of Chaos Orchestra, At four people, including Jimmy, it's a small orchestra by any standard, but as the old saying goes, it's about the quality, not the quantity and the quality was definitely there. Theres normally five in the combo, but cellist Melanie Wells was missing.

Whilst he's been on the circuit for a good few years, Jimmy Lee is not at artist I'd previously crossed paths with, but a quick bit of Googling told me to expect an evening of folk and roots music from both sides of the pond and some great ballads tinted with an Irish brogue, the gig definitely lived up to that description.

Jimmy Lee is a great storyteller he's got the banter off pat, both during the songs and between them. His philosophy is pretty much to tell it like it is it leads to some fascinating songs. There is a way of saying Daddy, that I think only the Irish can pull off. When I say Daddy it comes across as just another word for father, when Jimmy says Daddy, you know it means a lot more than that, particularly when followed with the words, 'was a hard man'.

"Daddy Was A Hard Man" is one of the best laments and most moving songs I've heard in a while. The focus of the song being about the tragedy of not really knowing the man until after he was dead, discovering the side of him that he's kept private during his life, powerful indeed.

At one stage in his career, Jimmy and the band's fiddle player, Jon Wigg, had spent an extended period in the States and as well as a few great stories, it also gave them a chance to really pick up the sound, so when the band went to country/Americana it sounded bang on the nail, particularly when Clare Juliet added a bit of Tex Mex sounding accordion.

Similarly, I was impressed by the subtlety of Darren Reynolds' bass, especially as he was deputising for regular 4 string man, Gary Holder. It added depth to the material, without you realising it was there, where just the odd note was required for emphasis as well as performing the beat keeping roll.

The Edge Of Chaos Orchestra are small, but perfectly formed and in Jimmy Lee, they have a leader and balladeer that knows how to capture life in his songs. Two sets one good night.

Words & Pictures Neil King