Back of the Net Housty! (Twice)

I didn’t rush into writing about THE EVENT of November because I wanted to take the time to reflect on what I had seen and heard. Not the
one in the Odyssey by the way, (breathtaking though it was – many thanks Glenn
& Bruce), this one was in the considerably more intimate Empire
Music Hall on 26th November.

First, I love the Empire. Never have seen a bad concert in it, it
seems to bring the best out in both the artist and the audience. It has
the acoustics, the ambience and the good ale (well Guinness but I was
on 5 "A"s in a row there!)and it just feels good to be in.

However, sometimes when you have been looking forward to something
for ages, you have a little sense of trepidation about whether it can
deliver as fully as you might have hoped. No worries there, young
Housty played a stormer. From the gorgeous solo version of "Matthew
Shepherd" to the rock out that was "Sugar Queen" (pardon the 1980s
Radio 1 language!), Brian played with enormous confidence and not a
little swagger.  I won’t deny being a little biased. As another child
of the 60s from the East Side of Belfast, I can identify with so much
of Brian’s writing – buying Vinyl from the independents (anyone
remember the name of the shop in Smithfield that sold a huge range of
Elvis Records?), going into Boots to look at the girls in the white
coats (you had to be there!) etc.

The band was really tight for a bunch of family/friends rather than
a regular touring band and my son was most impressed when I brought
home the drumsticks of Ireland’s best drummer (the paradiddling
pastor).

As the four damp friends ate chips in a car in Abbey Street in a
downpour (in case we got famished before supper) I was minded of the
words of that other great East Belfast poet and musician – "Wouldn’t it
be great if it was like this all the time?"

And then there was more. Destiny connected the two "troubadours"
again in the Bob Harris Saturday NIght show last week* when Brian
appeared to sing a couple of songs and regale us with the story that
connected Brian, Bob and Van and, indeed, "These Days", one of the 3
songs he played on the evening. Brian was warm, funny and, to
paraphrase old Bob himself, VERY EXCELLENT.

Sometimes you get a sense that someone’s time has come. If the email
responses to Brian’s set are anything to go by (not to mention a
similar response when he played Janice Long’s show several weeks ago)
Brian is headed to be (in his own words) "an overnight success after 14
years".

As they might have said in the ‘Yard – "Good on you son, we’re proud of you!"

* check out http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/shows/bobharris from 12:00 am on before it’s too late!

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