LIVE REVIEW: WARD THOMAS, THE WANDERING HEARTS, BIRD - THE LONDON PALLADIUM
With at least two other major Country/Americana events happening on the same evening, it's worth reflecting quite how far things have come in the 10 years since "Cartwheels" was released. When it hit the the top slot in the album charts on its first week of release, it was something of a shock, there were articles in The Daily Telegraph, and on BBC News, that somehow this genre of music had burst through without anyone noticing. Tonight the plush surroundings of The London Palladium would play host to a celebration of the release of that record.
Opening proceedings would be Bird - the non de plume of Janie Price, who would appear in a slightly unusual cello / guitar combo as she played a short selection of songs including some from her album "Held Here Together". With the stage bathed in red light she was clearly buzzing at playing the Palladium, she'd open with "The Tides" before firmly establishing her bona fides with a John Paul White ( Civil Wars ) co write on "She's Like A Rainbow" which came with the sort of engaging vocal hooks you'd imagine from such a collaboration.
An unlikely cover would come in the shape of Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay", an influence passed down from her dad. Moving between plucking the cello strings and using her bow, another co write this tine with Andy Dunlop of Travis produced the orchestra sound of "Sunny Days". Her short but engaging set would close with "The Exorcist" which would close with a final bow across the cello in dramatic style!
It was probably also ten years ago that #TEAMw21 first encountered The Wandering Hearts in a unique piece of scheduling that had them supporting Brothers Osborne, at Dingwalls in Camden, for a post C2C show. Then a four piece, they also seemed set to break through the glass ceiling holding back UK acts, and while nabbing some notable attention radio wise, they never quite got the same levels of exposure as Ward Thomas or The Shires. Blessed with the same child / career balancing conundrum facing Ward Thomas, tonight would prove they are still blessed with the harmonies that have entertained us many times across the years.
With AJ's guitar initially providing the only instrumentation, the combination of vocals on "Burning Bridges" were an instant reminder if one were needed, of just how good The Wandering Hearts are on their day.
Their ability to effortlessly entwine their vocals came into full effect on "Running With Ghosts" from their 2023 "Hesperus" EP, soaring up into the gods at full volume.
As Chess would observe in 2019 when they last toured together, there were no children around between them and Ward Thomas and now combined they had reached seven! It therefore informed their choice of playing "Teach Your Children" from their "Deja Vu" album covering the original en masse from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. It would add a tambourine into the overall sound, and at one point, see the two girls share a microphone.
With only a relatively short performing time and having just performed a cover, it was maybe odd that they should then move to a Simon & Garfunkel medley, mixing Scarborough Fair into The Sound Of Silence.
It was a magical weaving of the two songs together and so much as we'd have probably have preferred a Wandering Hearts original, there can be no denying that this was a most magnificent performance.
There would enough time for a run of Wandering Hearts originals, "Gold" came with an introduction pulling in the Japanese art form Kintsugi, repairing pottery with gold. From the dramatic guitar intro and AJ's opening prominent opening vocals, it was a reminder that the Wandering Hearts can mix it up and add in some volume when required. Chess would add a mandolin to the mix for "Build A Fire" and with Tara giving the tambourine some firm thwacking, the audience were encourage to provide some additional clapping. Leaving the best to last, The Wandering Hearts would leave us with a bravura rendition of "Wish I Could", a welcome reminder that on their day, they are still a most formidable band.
Ward Thomas have spent much of the last few years, circling the UK in acoustic tours, so it was a great to see them return to playing with a full band. This was a celebration of "Cartwheels", complete with a shiny new vinyl edition, full of Nashville reinterpretations, as well as a double vinyl edition of the debut album "From Where We Stand", as it is the deluxe cd edition, combined they would provide the backbone for tonight's show.
Three drum clicks, would see the band playing the opening to "Guilty Flowers", as they waited for Catherine and Lizzie to appear. When they did, it was a rolling back of the years, with the blistering opening salvo also including "Lose Me" and "When It's Not Me", before a word was even spoken. It may have been a full band show however the volume was definitely more set to moderate, which may have lessened their overall oomph, however the contributions on guitar and especially on keyboards were much easier to pick out.
It was the keyboards that would open "Breathe", a song which would really burst into life on the choruses. The crisp drum intro to "Almost Easy" would bring us one of the evenings first highlights , full of dramatic little sections always eventually leading back to the soaring chorus. This first section of the show would close with the "Where The Sky Is", initially just the two vocals and the piano, the additional band members only joining in a relatively muted fashion letting Catherine and Lizzie to continue to lead the overall mix.
The band would then leave the stage, leaving Catherine and Lizzie to perform "Cartwheels" as a duo under a white spotlight. The band would then drip feed back to the stage, first guitarist Billy Adamson would rejoin on mandolin for "Proof", he'd then switch to banjo, as bassist Steve returned for a version of "Dirt and Gold". The addition of percussionist Simon, led to a bluegrass version of "Boomerang" which while an entertaining diversion lacked the pop punch of the original. The final band member to return, and star on the night, Pete Lee on keyboards, provided the soulful intro to "One More Goodbye" one of the few, post Cartwheels songs given an airing and sounding magnificent.
The final batch of "Cartwheels" songs came with the gentle "Who I'm Not", in a most delicate of versions, with Pete on keys again stealing the show, as the sound subtly built to a crescendo. Some songs certainly aged better, "Material", sounded more Fleetwood Mac than it seemed previously. The closing album track "Safe" played mainly to just a soft piano would be so fragile that it seemed it might fall apart at any moment, it would see the other band members add some considered flourishes to only the final moments.
No country show at the moment can pass without a reference to Dolly, and so the Ward Thomas tribute pulled in "Coat Of Many Colours". A big drum intro, and funky bass would then take us back to the first album for "Way Back When", which gave the band a chance to at last, really find some volume, followed by "Push For The Stride". It was a timely reminder of just how invigorating a breath of fresh air they were back in the day, with this version given a new lease of life with a keyboard solo. Similarly "Next To You" kept up the volume and was far superior to the recorded version, letting Billy finally let rip with a screeching guitar solo that had far more oomph. This exhilarating part of the show would close with "Carry You Home" with the traditional crowd participation. Having their latest single "Hold It All Together" follow was fun however it didn't carry the weight of the songs that surrounded it.
The encore would see the crowd clap along to the band as they played a recurring note while waiting for Ward Thomas to reappear. Once the additional notes that signalled the intro to "9 To 5", kicked in, they would find an additional level of appreciation, on the second Dolly tribute on the night. It would provide a fitting punchy close to an overall highly entertaining evening.
Ward Thomas hit the road for more acoustic dates in 2027 with an array of special guests which should prove a highly entertaining run of shows.
