Jez Lowe ~ 2011 July 3 ~ Summerfest Folk Festival, New Bedford, MA
Jez Lowe on vocals, accompanying himself with guitar, cittern, mandolin, and harmonica
Set Lists
(Kruger Street Stage): Will of the People - Taking on Men - The Judas Bus - Another Man's Wife - Ex-Pitman's Potholing Pub Quiz Team - Galloways - Waiting for the All Clear - High Part of the Town
(National Park Visitor Center): Durham Gaol - Black Diamonds - Coal Town Days - The Bergen - Latchkey Lover - Military Road - The Net My Father Left Me - Propping Up Walls - You Can't Take It With You When You Go
Scroll down past the videos for review; photo gallery to the right.
Videos
"The Bergen":
"Another Man's Wife":
Review
It's my opinion that singer/songwriter/musician Jez Lowe represents the best that today's folk music has to offer. Hailing from the northeast of England, from the former mining town of Durham, Jez writes songs that are contemporary in subject matter but sound like they've been around for hundreds of years. He has a mastery of melody, lyric and arrangement that makes his songs seem like classics that have stood the test of time, but are brand new.
Jez often performs with his band, the Bad Pennies, but this time he was solo, with his left-handed guitar, cittern and mandolin. He performed two sets on July 3, one in the outdoor Kruger Street Stage (see pictures) and one in an indoor venue at the National Park Visitor Center. He had also performed two sets the day before at this weekend folk festival, but I was unable to get to those.
As well as being a skilled songwriter, singer and musician, Jez is also a witty entertainer and always has the audience laughing, and sometimes getting teary eyed. He always has interesting comments and explanations about his songs; for instance, the song "Galloways" is about the type of pony that was formerly used in the mines, and lost their eyesight from being below ground all the time. He was promoting his most recent album and performed several songs from it, including the very funny "Ex-Pitman's Potholing Pub Quiz Team," a cowboy song (that's right, cowboy song) about a group of laid-off coal miners who will take on any challengers in a trivia contest.
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