London, seems to me at the moment like an old lover, after all it’s been over ten years since I first moved here, and just when you feel like your finally starting to get sick of the old bat she goes and does something that makes you fall in love with her all over again. Whether it’s discovering that cool bar that you never knew existed or just something happening that makes you look at the city in a hole knew light. Both these things seemed to have happened to me recently and it’s alway’s great to be reminded about what makes London great, even if it’s just to help you forget what makes it not so great. The ‘cool bar’ that I never new existed is the amazing Jamboree, a small tucked away speak easy style bar in Limehouse. And when I say tucked away I mean it because unless you know it’s there then it would be nearly impossible to find. To be honest I was a little worried how this might effect the turnout, as had happened to me before…
But thankfully I was wrong, Jamboree is a venue that survives on is reputation, and the quality music that it hosts, the atmosphere of the place, and the people that come, all make that reputation. The crowd was amazing and clearly there to enjoy live music and this really showed through. This is a model more London venues should follow and what I always look for in venue that hosts live music. Next months gig at Folking Around, a folk night in Kingston upon Thames, is another example of a promoter that shares the same ethos, as I found out from the first time I placed there back in April. I can’t wait to take to the stage this time around on the 2nd of Nov at 9pm with my band. You can RSVP here. But if you can’t make that one pop down to the Hawley Arms in Camden on the 17th Nov, RSVP here.
Which brings me to how I’ve come to look at London at a different light. When ever you do a bit of traveling, as I have in my various european and American tours, you alway’s find you come back home with a slightly different way of looking at things from when you left. And I guess coming back from my time in Nashville has made me realise it is possible to find your own network of like minded people who love the same things you as you do. Despite how corporate London has became I feel it’s still possible to find a hub of artists and creatives to bounce ideas from and to find a sense of belonging and community. And although this is something I have yet to find in London I know it’s out there, all I have to do is look…