The singer-songwriter Sarah Gillespie played a set of her own original music to an appreciative audience when she appeared at The Hub at St Mary’s.
With bass player Ruth Goller, electric guitarist Chris Montague and her acoustic guitar and strong vocals, the sounds ranged from straight ahead jazz and blues shuffles to more eclectic pieces, such as the cosmic square dance and country guitar that lit up some of the songs in the second half.
She had something of Lou Reed and Ray Davies in terms of looking at the world through a different prism, and songs such as Molly of the Salt Sea was an adapted murder ballad, while How The Monkey Falls was a pop-blues swagge and Half Cut and Gloria were also both well performed with some sterling guitar playing throughout.
The note choices were always novel and caught the ear, and the vocal phrasing at times owed more to woodwind instruments than it did to other singers.
The concert finished with an old favourite, Talk to Juliet, and showed the pedigree and originality of the trio.