If anyone still doubts that
nineteen-year-old Katie Melua can sing then they should have come to see her live at the
UEA on 13th March, 2004. From the acoustic beginnings of
Faraway Voice - her tribute to the late Eva Cassidy - Katie's own voice dominated
the capacity-filled hall and we were left in no doubt as to her great vocal talents.
From the mellow whispers of the acoustic numbers at one extreme to a particularly
belting rendition of the Mockingbird Song, Katie proved she could handle all
styles but, on Learnin' the Blues she also showed that she could inject so
much emotion into her delivery that you found yourself believing that the blues were
haunting her personally.
Backed by a band of accomplished musicians which included Mike Batt on piano, the almost legendary Jim Cregan on guitar accompanied by Henry Spinetti (drums), Lisa Featherstone (bass), Matt Condon (keyboards) and Dominic Glover (trumpet), we were presented with renditions of every song from Katie's first album, Call Off The Search. Additionally, in a set that lasted an hour and a half, we heard 'B'-side tracks from the singles: the Mike Batt composition, Thank You, Stars plus Katie's self-penned Downstairs to the Sun and Shirt Of A Ghost both of which demonstrate that the girl can write as well as sing. The latter was introduced by Katie with the announcement that she'd first conceived the song while doing the ironing! Additionally, there were tasters from the next album: Spider's Web (a song about racism) and, co-written between Katie and Mike, Joan of Arc, Jack the Lad. These songs suggest that the range of both style and subject on the new album could be wider than that of 'Search'.
After an acoustic interval where Katie performed alone on the aforementioned Downstairs to the Sun (during which, unfortunately, it appeared that someone in the crowd about fifteen feet to my left collapsed and had to be hauled away) and Lilac Wine the band returned for a performance of Love Cats, the old Cure song, which was jazzed up with an altogether tighter rendition than that heard recently at the Brits where Katie dueted with Jamie Cullum. The latter was also used as a showcase for each of the other members of the band to demonstrate their musical prowess during the extended middle instrumental.
The last 'official'
song before the end of the show was the first single, The
Closest Thing To Crazy, which is still (as of 15th March) lingering in the Top 40
after a three-month presence. The welcome encore provided us with two songs the first of
which was an extended version of I Put A Spell On You, used as another rocking
display of the band's talents, and followed by the final acoustic number, a cover of
Eva Cassidy's The Anniversary Song.
In all, a well-delivered and well-received gig. Katie's performance throughout was both professional and powerful despite her youth, and she and all the band were clearly enjoying themselves. The unrehearsed banter with the crowd from both Katie and Mike were other elements which endeared them to the audience (especially when Katie said, "I've spilt some water here - just thought I'd tell you that in case you thought I'd pissed myself").
With her growing popularity it could be that Norwich, with its size-limited venues, may not be large enough for her to consider returning again. So this may have been her first and possibly last appearance in the county - though I certainly hope not.
Links:
Katie's Web Site
Song Lyrics at 'Rare Lyrics'
VH1's Katie page
Mike Batt's web site
