Last night I went to see Vin Garbutt at The Sage, Gateshead. He cost Me the princely sum of £3.50! I think it’s not bad to see two acts (support came in the form of Jez Lowe) in one beautiful venue. This was the third time I’ve seen Vin live, the first time he was a kid dragged around by my mom (I think he had an extra ticket or something), and he never fails to impress.

The title of this blog is a line he came out with during this recent concert, and a prime example of his ingenuity between songs. This, unbeknownst to me, was his 60th birthday concert, and when he took the stage, most of the audience greeted him by singing Happy Birthday.

So, I hear most of you wondering, who the heck is Vin Garbutt? Well, he’s a folksinger from Middlesbrough. Born on the South Bank (still Middlesbrough, not London!), he became a professional musician at 21 and hasn’t stopped working ever since. He tours the world every year and sells out concerts all over the world… including the one last night.

However, most people never seem to have heard his name. Unless you’re especially into folk music… Vin is a big name, probably one of the biggest, on the British folk scene. It even won Best Live Act at the BBC Radio 2 Popular Awards in 2001. this is traditional folk (but not just traditional songs… most of the songs are written by Mr. Garbutt himself) . These are songs about the lives and hardships of real people, tackling the big issues out there, like seeking asylum, working for pennies, nature (and its destruction), and mining for coal and potash.

The lyrics are clever and thought-provoking, as well as humorous in places. My favorites this time were from Land Of Three Rivers (“In the land of three rivers I long to be/Where Tyne, Wear and Tees meet the rolling North sea”) and Punjabi Girl (“I never thought I’d fall in love from someone from another world/Until I met and fell in love with a dark Punjabi girl”).

As someone coming from my hometown (which, although recently voted the worst place in Britain for location, location, location), I really like it and feel nostalgic for it. It has its merits: beautiful countryside and nearby coastal towns, people kind etc. But I’m straying… this is not the intended topic of this blog post!) and sings about it with pride, I always find the ‘local’ lyrical references particularly poignant. The first of the letters quoted above exemplifies the pride people feel in this region… their region; the affinity for him really means something to the people of the Northeast (despite what the lovely Kirstie Allsopp might say). It is a region that is truly in our hearts.

Punjabi Girl I found this really touching as, despite being a lovely and warm people, the people of Middlesbrough are not a people I would consider (obviously, I am generalizing wildly) to be particularly open-minded in their cultural beliefs. This song therefore evoked in me the feeling of someone who overcame the prejudices I had previously had… sadly, in the song, their families couldn’t do this, but love still reigned :o) I seriously struggled not to cry . several times during the concert.

I also laughed. As I said earlier, Vin is a very witty and likeable man. The one that made me laugh the most was:

“…my current cd. I’m one of the few artists who sells flavored cds”

Obviously this works best out loud because of the homonyms, but I’m sure you can imagine.

There was also a great cover of Bob Fortune’s Teesbay, which conjures up the image of a city on the sea, made up of ships and ocean liners… a city that’s always on the move, but always alive with bright lights.

He’s an excellent live artist and I’ll definitely go see him again in the future (and hopefully he’ll sing my favorite song of his, If I Had A Son, which he didn’t this time). Perhaps, however, as a friend I ran into observed, this was not the best place for him. The Sage is absolutely stunning, but there just isn’t the right atmosphere for singing in a folk club…it feels too formal.

Try to catch it and see what you think… I seriously doubt you’ll be impressed (or even without a CD in hand – never seems! This time it was his last Persona… Grata). And no excuses about where you live… this man has played everywhere!