Joe Brown in Concert

Joe Brown

 in Concert

Assembly Hall Theatre

Royal Tunbridge Wells

27th March 2011

A theatrical virtual sell-out is hard for many shows to achieve these days but Mr Brown can still manage to fill an auditorium easily.

But it's not surprising because as a recording artist he is somewhat unique.

Who else could cover everything from an Italian Wedding Waltz from the 1930s to a U2 Cover (I still haven't found what I'm looking for) and get away with it?

The variety and quality of the material are factors which make Joe's shows special. The master of all stringed instruments, including ukulele and banjo, Joe can tackle any type of music and turn it into a string masterpiece. With his incredible collection of guitars, ukuleles, banjos and even a violin at hand you never know what to expect next.

What helps Joe's shows no end though is the quality of the people he surrounds himself with on stage. It's often a family thing with Joe. In the past his daughter and 80's star, Sam, has joined him on stage. This show is no exception as we have son Pete on vocals and strings. He also performs several solo numbers in this gig.

I certainly wasn't complaining about this either. Musical talent definitely runs in the Brown family. Whilst he reminded me of Noel Gallagher , both in looks and sound, I enjoyed Pete a darned site more than I like Oasis!

As for drummer, percussionist and vocalist Phil Capaldi Joe's shows just wouldn't be the same without him. He's been performing with Joe over 20 years now. With the ability to impersonate Elvis Presley brilliantly yet with a vocal range that can even stretch to a spot of yodelling he's a really multi-talented guy.

Completing Joe's current band members are talented vocalists and instrumentalists Roland Jones and Mike Nichols.

This is a good value for money show lasting over 2 and a half hours, including the 20 min interval. With those old hit's from decades long gone, modern cover versions and Joe's own classics including I'm Henry the Eighth I am and surprisingly his only #1 hit Picture of You there's plenty to enjoy.

With a show like this and the loyalty of thousands of fans Joe Brown remains one of the country's most popular regular performers.

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