Monday 31 March 2025.

Monday 31 March 2025...5.45pm to 8.45pm... OH FREEDOM! FESTIVAL - media showcase launch - World Heart Beat , Embassy Gardens, 3 Ponton Street, Nine Elms, London SW11. Nice to be at at this newish venue and recording studio , near the new American Embassy, in this area that has been fully re-developed . The auditorium seats 120 in luxurious hand-made chairs. THE OH FREEDOM! FESTIVAL - BRAND NEW FESTIVAL OF GOSPEL BLUES & INSPIRING STORIES. CELEBRATING MUSIC'S POWER TO UNITE TAKES PLACE FROM FRIDAY 2ND TO MONDAY 5TH MAY 2025 - ACROSS 4 ICONIC LOCATIONS IN CENTRAL LONDON. It will celebrate the power and soul of gospel & blues music. This immersive and powerful event will explore the rich history and enduring spirit of these musical genres which have their roots in the stories struggles and resilience of the transatlantic slave trade. OVIE OKENARHE the festival founder says: "_This festival isn't just about music it's about giving voice to a history that shaped the world the spirituals and work songs born from struggle the gospel that carried hope and the blues that told our stories. Through 16 performances across historic church venues we will honour these legacies while investing in the future providing paid internships for young creatives from the Global Majority and Black communities_." This is an excellent opportunity to witness and learn about the history of soul, blues and gospel music and how it came to be in the UK - And the music and food will be very excellent as well! At 7.15pm we had a 60 mins showcase highlights performance from the two hour show. Four vocalists ( 3 female / 1 male ) a narrator and piano player. This cosy intimate seated venue was perfect to hear the quality of the vocalists and piano player tonight. Tracks including ' Amazing Grace' were superb. There was then a Q n A session after. Great to see Mark Taylor here. We had complimentary lagers and beers from Red Dog Saloon. www.spotlightliveuk.com - Visit their website here for more info and tickets. ------------------------------------- ------------------------------------- Sunday 30 March 2025. THE WHO + LEVEL 42 live at The Royal Albert Hall . The Who return to play their second show of the week. It is the last of the seven TCT shows at RAH. ------------- Simply had to go back and see The Who again after their stunning show here on Thursday . Again it is rammed solid sold out . LEVEL 42 on at 7.30pm for their 45 mins set. Level 42 play the same set and are excellent again. Their big funky sound , is actually more tighter than The Who's, mainly due to the three man brass section and to the amazing slap bass style of Mark King and their top notch drummer Phil Gould whose massive drum kit is the size to match any of the big heavy rock bands lo Ike Metallica etc. During the interval we have a standing ovation for SJM concerts rep Chris York who helped Roger Daltrey put each years bill together and sadly passed away recently. We then had the TCT video and specches. THE WHO on at 9pm for their 1 hour 55 mins set. A slight setlist change as 'Cry If You Want' and 'Tea & Theatre' were dropped and ' The Song is Over ' was added and a couple of stop starts and a bit more stage banter equalled things out. Roger had a couple of monitor sound issues and messed a couple of lyrics up , but his vocals were still pretty incredible, as the big screens showed how much he effort was putting into singing the songs. Pete treated us to a couple of ' windmills ' tonight. Soooo many great songs in another fantastic show.

Posted 31st March 2025