Heidi Talbot & Boo Hewerdine Queen's Hall Edinburgh 5th December 2024 Review
Heidi Talbot and Boo Hewerdine were at the Queen’s Hall Edinburgh tonight, the last date on their current tour which has seen them travelling often long driving hours to venues that seem to follow (as do many music tours) no logical road route. This is a never ending logistical problem for touring musicians who have to fit their schedules around venue availability.
I have seen both Heidi and Boo perform many times over the years on stage, but often it has been when they have been part of larger musical projects, so this chance to catch one of the most unique voices out there (Heidi) and one of the best songwriters around (Boo) was for me an opportunity not to be missed.
Heidi and Boo have been friends for a long time, and that warmth between the two of them was evident immediately they took to the stage and this was really just two people together happy to be sharing their music with each other and their audience.
Anyone who has seen Boo Hewerdine perform live will know that underneath the often dark and self-depracating humour of this man is a brilliance for writing lyrics and painting pictures with words that few songwriters out there today can match. Heidi Talbot also clearly has a sense of humour, but a very different one from Boo, and watching the two of them together tonight was a little bit at times like watching a classic comedy duo act perform.
Intentionally or not, each seems to know exactly when is the right moment to be supportive of the other. This almost instinctive skill only really comes when two people have worked together for a long time and it was also reflected in the music tonight which for the most part was an alternating songs by each of them format. Interestingly that darkness and light that is so much a part of their warm humour is often reflected in their music too.
Whether it be singing traditional songs, other people’s songs, or her own songs, there is always something very special about Heidi Talbot’s vocals and Heidi also has the ability to fuse all of these very different songs together and make them sound like they have always been her own. Opening the show tonight with the effortless blending of the traditional “Bedlam Boys” and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” was an instant audience pleaser and set the tone for what was to be a very friendly and informal show that obviously made so many people in this audience feel that they were welcome and at home in this bigger than normal room.
Heidi Talbot released her latest album “Sing It For A Lifetime” in 2022, so of course a few songs, including the title track, from this album were performed tonight. There is always something about Heidi Talbot’s voice that can bring real and honest emotion to a song, and “I Let You Go” from this album is a fine example of this ability. Here we have a singer/songwriter not afraid to give us a glimpse through her music into her heart and soul.
To some people it might have come as a surprise this evening that Boo has written so many songs that have either been recorded by other people or featured in films and television over the years. Whether the song tonight was “Sing An Old Song”, “Someone Else’s Blues”, “Honey Be Good”, or perhaps his best known song “Patience of Angels”, Boo Hewerdine is clearly a master songwriter who can take often the simplest of everyday aspects of people’s lives and turn them into something special in music and words. There was also this great counterbalance to his often pessimistic humour throughout the evening with his final song being “What A Wonderful World”.
Heidi Talbot and Boo Hewerdine together was simply an evening full of music, humour and a connection between performer and audience that you all too rarely get these days.
Review by Tom King © 2024
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
I have seen both Heidi and Boo perform many times over the years on stage, but often it has been when they have been part of larger musical projects, so this chance to catch one of the most unique voices out there (Heidi) and one of the best songwriters around (Boo) was for me an opportunity not to be missed.
Heidi and Boo have been friends for a long time, and that warmth between the two of them was evident immediately they took to the stage and this was really just two people together happy to be sharing their music with each other and their audience.
Anyone who has seen Boo Hewerdine perform live will know that underneath the often dark and self-depracating humour of this man is a brilliance for writing lyrics and painting pictures with words that few songwriters out there today can match. Heidi Talbot also clearly has a sense of humour, but a very different one from Boo, and watching the two of them together tonight was a little bit at times like watching a classic comedy duo act perform.
Intentionally or not, each seems to know exactly when is the right moment to be supportive of the other. This almost instinctive skill only really comes when two people have worked together for a long time and it was also reflected in the music tonight which for the most part was an alternating songs by each of them format. Interestingly that darkness and light that is so much a part of their warm humour is often reflected in their music too.
Whether it be singing traditional songs, other people’s songs, or her own songs, there is always something very special about Heidi Talbot’s vocals and Heidi also has the ability to fuse all of these very different songs together and make them sound like they have always been her own. Opening the show tonight with the effortless blending of the traditional “Bedlam Boys” and Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” was an instant audience pleaser and set the tone for what was to be a very friendly and informal show that obviously made so many people in this audience feel that they were welcome and at home in this bigger than normal room.
Heidi Talbot released her latest album “Sing It For A Lifetime” in 2022, so of course a few songs, including the title track, from this album were performed tonight. There is always something about Heidi Talbot’s voice that can bring real and honest emotion to a song, and “I Let You Go” from this album is a fine example of this ability. Here we have a singer/songwriter not afraid to give us a glimpse through her music into her heart and soul.
To some people it might have come as a surprise this evening that Boo has written so many songs that have either been recorded by other people or featured in films and television over the years. Whether the song tonight was “Sing An Old Song”, “Someone Else’s Blues”, “Honey Be Good”, or perhaps his best known song “Patience of Angels”, Boo Hewerdine is clearly a master songwriter who can take often the simplest of everyday aspects of people’s lives and turn them into something special in music and words. There was also this great counterbalance to his often pessimistic humour throughout the evening with his final song being “What A Wonderful World”.
Heidi Talbot and Boo Hewerdine together was simply an evening full of music, humour and a connection between performer and audience that you all too rarely get these days.
Review by Tom King © 2024
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
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