The Peoples Music by Diva Publications

UB40 HEADLINE MERIDIAN PARK SHOW IN JULY

n our last issue we featured the visit of Craig David to Meridian Park but since then we’ve had further announcements including a second fantastic day of music featuring the mighty UB40, All Saints and the deeply dippy Right Said Fred who play on Saturday 15th July. Since forming in Birmingham in 1978 UB40 have had more than fifty singles in the UK charts and have sold more than 70 million albums worldwide. Their concerts have earned them a reputation for being one of the best live acts in the country and fans are assured of a great show featuring all the hits and more, including the likes of Red Red Wine, Kingston Town and Can’t Help Falling In Love. 1990s girl band All Saints had a string of hits including Lady Marmalade, Bootie Call and Never Ever before splitting in 2001 but they’re back together and better than ever and they’ll be bringing their own unique style to the event as will Right Said Fred who are sure to be way too sexy for the Prime Meridian. It certainly promises to be a great weekend and you can get more details by visiting the Meridian Park Facebook page.

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And don’t forget that you can win a pair of tickets to one of these great shows by visiting our own Facebook page and leaving a like or a comments on our competition images!

IN THE KNOW

Following his intuition all the way to Meridian Park this summer, the one and only

CRAIG DAVID WITH SUPPORT FROM SIGMA MERIDIAN SHOWGROUND FRIDAY 14TH JULY 2017!

t’s not too often that we get genuine A-listers in town so it’s really exciting that this summer Cleethorpes Meridian Park will play host to UK Garage pioneer and multimillion seller, Craig David.

The Southampton born singer has achieved a lot in his ten year career. With over 13 million record sales, 2 number ones, 14 top ten hits, huge success in America and sold out shows across the world, Craig David is one of the UK music scene’s most successful male solo artists, and somehow he has managed to achieve all this commercial success without ever losing his professional credibility. Years before Disclosure, Rudimental or Clean Bandit arrived on Radio 1, Craig brought everything from UK garage, to stripped back acoustics and electroedged R&B to the UK charts. His 14 top 10 singles, include Fill Me In, 7 Days, Walking Away, What’s Your Flava, Hot Stuff (Let’s Dance), and the incredible duet with Sting, Rise And Fall. They established David as an indisputable commercial success, and proved that British urban music had the power to go pop. He’s also a UN Goodwill Ambassador was part of the celebrity Desert Trek team who walked 100km across the Northern Kenya desert to raise awareness and money for Comic Relief in February 2011.

2016 saw David make a return to the charts. His recent single, When The Bassline Drops, a collaboration with grime artist Big Narstie entered the Official UK Top 10 six weeks after release and has now sold over 300,000 copies, remaining in the top 40 singles chart for over 3 months. His follow up single, Nothing Like This, a collaboration with dance duo Blonde, has already shot straight into the iTunes chart at #6 and has debuted at #4 in the Official UK Chart. With the release of his first studio album in seven years, Following My Intuition, Craig is back out on the road this summer, playing major festivals and gigs up and down the country and he’ll be in Cleethorpes at the Meridian Showground on Friday 14th July with support from DJ and producer duo Sigma. It’s going to be a great night and definitely not one to be missed! For tickets go to www.seetickets.com For more information go to the Meridian Park Facebook page.

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ERASURE BRING A TOUCH OF EIGHTIES MAGIC TO HULL CITY HALL

o City of Culture year has been and gone and what a year it was. From my point of view it meant Jeff Lynne, The Flaming Lips, Ocean Colour Scene and lots more. The question now is whether or not Hull can continue to attract big names, to the new Venue, or the football stadium or my special favourite Zebedee’s Yard for open air gigs and, of course, to the amazing Victorian pile that is the City Hall. Early signs are promising - maybe the City of Culture can do attitude is still around - and we have the likes of Orbital and Chase & Status and local hero Calum Scott lined up for the summer. The year’s major musical events start out with a sold out show from 80s pop legends Erasure at the City Hall. Support comes from up and coming nu-disco star Bright Light Bright Light who is making his second visit to the venue, having played last year’s LGBT rights festival night. He’s got some great catchy songs, a style that’s midway

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between classic pop and musical theatre and a nice line in restrained ironic showmanship. Plenty of the crowd at the front are obviously fans already and it looks like he’s made a few more by the end of his set. The stage set up for Erasure is a surprise, with the duo separated from each other for most of the show, Andy Bell performing in the narrow space between the front of the stage and a large ziggurat constructed from scaffold and fluorescent tubes atop of which is Vince Clarke with his keyboards and a guitar. There are two dancers and singers who initially occupy frames, also fluorescently defined, on either side of the stage but their contribution is pretty minimal. All eyes are on Bell who dominates proceedings by sheer charismatic presence although Clarke descends from the gods towards the end of the set it almost seems like a one man show. But what a great show it is. Even though I’ve been playing Erasure tracks all week I’m amazed by the strength in depth in their back catalogue. The set kicks off with an eerily gorgeous Oh L’Amour and heads for a climax with Sometimes and Respect but along the way are Stop, Drama, Blue Savannah and a variety of Love related matters including Chains Of, Victims Of and Who Needs It Like That. Tracks from the new album World Be Gone are interspersed throughout and on tonight’s showing it’s a strong piece of work. All around the City Hall it’s pretty much a non stop dance-a-thon, from the main hall to the steep galleries and what more perfect way could there be to celebrate some of the most elegant and romantic pop music ever than dancing the night away. By the time Clarke descends for the last couple of songs you’d imagine that people would be exhausted but of course they’re not and the final Respect is a triumphant statement of the power of great pop music to unite people in joy. Fantastic

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Great music. Great venue. Great weather! Welcome to the best party ever at ...

magine the best party you ever went to. Perfect venue. Great music over four stages. Excellent food. Add in some fairground rides and your favourite radio personalities to make the whole thing go with a swing. Arrange it so it’s free admission (albeit with some minor ticketing and transport expenses). Then arrange for the sun to shine like it’s never going to stop.

Facing page top: Rita Ora on the main stage on Sunday Facing page below: JP Cooper on the Where It Begins stage on Saturday Overleaf: A superb set from Emeli Sande on the main stage on Saturday

Add that all together and you’ve pretty much got the Radio 1 Big Weekend which this year came to Burton Constable Hall, just outside Hull, as part of the City of Culture Celebrations, and in the opinion of many, the highlight of the whole cultural shebang. The Peoples was lucky enough to get an invite and we were treated to fabulous performances by the likes of Little Mix, Rita Ora, Lorde, Kasabian, Imagine Dragons, Rag’n’Bone Man, Haim and of course the headliners, Kings of Leon and Katy Perry. What more could you wish for? Well Alt-J, Biffy Clyro, Emeli Sande, Clean Bandit and Stormzy would be a start.

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The line up offered something for all tastes, from synth beats to rock, from pure bubblegum to grime and hip hop, and from electro-folk to seventies disco (that last one courtesy of the extraordinary Christine and The Queens, all the way from France and absolutely brilliant). Of course with such a line up spread over a huge field you can’t see everything and you can be sure that everyone missed at least one of their favourites, but hey that’s festivals for you, and at least at this one you could be sure that whoever you were missing them for was probably pretty great. Above: Dua Lipa wowing the second stage on Sunday Left: Too cool for old school - James Arthur knockin’ ‘em dead on the main stage on Saturday Overleaf: Katy Perry - superb on Saturday night

Of course it was all happening within the week of the Manchester attack and while no-one was going to let it dampen their spirits it was ever present, the elephant in the field. People were cautious and surprisingly well behaved. I didn’t see any trouble at all during the whole weekend and police reported no arrests. Security was tight at the perimeter but once you were in it was unobtrusive and everyone was helpful and the minutes silence was incredibly moving even to an old cynic like me. I felt really sorry for the guy near me who didn’t realise it had started and who suddenly laughed and swore loudly, only to be angrily shushed by everyone around him.

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It was a day dominated by pop and all the better for it. I don’t get to shoot a lot of chart acts. I see a lot of punk and heavy metal and lo-fi and alt-country but pop just seems to pass me by so seeing the likes of Little Mix, Lorde and Clean Bandit was a big thrill. Above: Little Mix were stars of the main stage on Sunday Left: Sunday headliners - rock superstars Kings of Leon Overleaf left clockwise: AnneMarie, Shawn Mendes, Kasabian, Blossoms Overleaf right: Biffy Clyro

In the end it was the women what won it. Some I’d seen before like AnneMarie who played her own set early in the day in the Where It Begins big top and then came onto the main stage to join Clean Bandit for Rockabye. She gets better every time I see her. Some, like Dua Lipa and Charli XCX were new (or even news) to me but they were great and real ear openers. Highlights? Well it seems a bit redundant to even talk about them because it was one highlight after another all weekend. Best new (to most people) band: Life who I could only hear and not see from my position backstage. A great Hull band on their way to the top and with a new album out. The Amazons were good too. Best new (to me) band: Alt-J. How did I manage to go this long without listening to Alt-J? I remember all the praise heaped on An Awesome Wave but for some reason our paths never crossed. I’m ashamed to admit that with the

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keyboard reference for a name I think I assumed they were another of those techno acts that play laptops and dance on tables. Anyway the good thing is I now have a new favourite band. Best playing laptops and dancing on tables: Galantis and The Chainsmokers joint winners. Impressive balancing skills. Most awesome vocal: Rag’n’Bone Man. The man is a genius.

Previous page: Norwegian popstrel Zara Larsson opening the main stage on Saturday Left: Galantis Above: Rag’n’Bone Man, one of the highlights of Saturday Overleaf: Lorde delivered a spectacular set on the main stage on Saturday

Best dancing: Lorde. I’m going to practice till I can do it too. Lorde also gets the most photogenic performance award. I could photograph Lorde all day and never get bored. Nicest surprise: Little Mix. Little Mix pretty much sum up the kinds of bands I don’t get to see but they were great, even if they did get themselves temporarily thrown off the iPlayer. Ah, the exuberance of youth. Best bubblegum bubble blown live on stage: Nathan Followill, drummer from Kings of Leon. Impressive size and symmetry and great breath control, blowing, bursting and retrieving all in perfect time to the music. And the highlight of the weekend? Well that has to be Katy Perry. She brought the set from her world tour with her and just lit the evening on fire. It’s a fact that some performers don’t give it a hundred percent for festival stages, but Katy Perry gave it everything. Sensational. I can’t remember ever seeing a performance so perfect. So thanks to Radio 1 for arranging the best party Hull has ever seen and if you could arrange to bring it back next year that would be just great.

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Legendary rockers Dr Feelgood to headline ...

Cleethorpes Blues, Rhythm & Rock Festival 2017 P

romoters Solid Entertainments have announced the full line up for the 7th annual Cleethorpes Blues, Rhythm & Rock Festival which will be returning for to Pleasure Island on Sunday 18th June 2017 and it looks like being quite an event!

On this page clockwise from top: Dr Feelgood, Albany Down, Aynsley Lister. Overleaf : Debbie Bond,Kyla Brox, The Brian Rawson Band.

There are eleven acts performing over two stages, and headliners will be Canvey Islandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s favourite sons, Dr Feelgood. Formed on Canvey Island in Essex in the early 1970s, Dr Feelgood remains one of the most popular and exciting live rhythm and blues acts in the world. They have also enjoyed global success with a string of hit singles including Roxette, Back in the Night, Milk and Alcohol, Down at the Doctors, She Does it Right, Going Back Home and See You Later Alligator - which gave the group their first gold record. In addition to the Feelgoods the Main Street Stage will play host to blues guitarist Aynsley Lister, soul singer Kyla Brox and her band, Alabama singer songwriter Debbie Bond, no nonsense rockers Albany Down

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JESS & THE BANDITS: LIVE AT FRUIT, HULL

ast September, just as Jess Clemmons was setting out with The Bandits on a UK tour in support of her new album, the gospel influenced Smoke And Mirrors, Hurricane Harvey struck her hometown of Houston, Texas, causing extensive damage to her mother’s home and necessitating the cancellation of the tour. Five months on and she’s back with us, kicking off the rearranged tour at Fruit in Hull and proving to the doubters (if there were any) that the change of style hasn’t diminished her ability to create some of the finest cast iron ballads and torch songs you’ll ever hear. Opening the show is up and coming Glaswegian country pop artist Kevin McGuire, who is also on a roll at the moment with the release of 2017’s debut EP Foreign Country leading to performances for the BBC and at the Nashville Meets London Festival. Highlights of his set include the new single Late, 3am which is an unusual up tempo break up song written from the perspective of a rejected lover who now unwillingly finds himself in demand again, and the last song of the set, Alright Tonight, which I’d recommend checking out soonest you have the chance. McGuire is one of a growing number of home grown country performers who seem confident enough to produce authentically British country music without the need to slavishly follow US music, although he is clearly influenced by the likes of Rascal Flatts and Sam Hunt. Jess Clemmons has changed the line up of her band since

I saw them last. They’re still bandits of course, but they’re different bandits, better suited to her new sound, on display on the fine new album, Smoke And Mirrors. There are still plenty of high powered country rock grooves of course, she hasn’t gone all wimpy on us all of sudden, and the show kicks off with My Name Is Trouble straight out of our favourites playbook before swinging into love Like That, another favourite and I’m Not Going Home, whose power shows the close connection between both sets of songs old and new. Vocally she’s in fine form voice is in fine form - she’s as good a country singer as I’ve ever heard live - capable of a wide range of emotional colour plus considerably more out and out charismatic sexiness than one person really ought to possess. It’s not fair really it isn’t. The set is a mix of the best of the two albums with highlights including The World’s Still Round, whose brooding verse explodes into some great rock and roll, White Lies which slows things down a little but has a classic broken lives and shattered dreams feel to it, Gone Girl for which Clemmons channels her inner Dolly Parton and Nitty Gritty which has the whole room singing. By tradition the set includes a couple of covers - on this occasion it’s Mama told Me not To Come and Bonnie Raitt’s Love Sneaking Up which is followed by the outstanding track from Smoke And Mirrors, the gospel anthem of empowerment Sister. And of course the show ends with some of real favourites - bring the house down rocker Ready Set, the emotionally supercharged Fault Lines and to round it all off Single Tonight. A fine show from one of our favourite performers and if I get the chance I’ll try to catch another show later in the year. If you get the chance you should too.