Mid-Wales R&B 2025
With complete mastery of his lovely 1910 Vega guitar (and a foray onto his remarkable 10-string Martin Tiple), he worked his way through a memorable set-list encompassing many of the greats in blues history: Mississippi Fred McDowell, Blind Willie McTell, Sleepy John Estes, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Big Bill Broonzy… due respect was paid to each of them in turn.
Dave is clearly steeped in the tradition of the blues, but one of his greatest strengths is the ability to deliver that music authentically, with all the power and commitment it deserves, whilst at the same time never resorting to imitation – always remaining true to his own individual style and personality, which shines through in his entertaining reminiscences between numbers. That’s a difficult balance to strike, but Dave gets it just right. As he said, the music has to matter to you, and you need to sing it from the heart – which he most certainly does.
It was a real treat to hear Dave perform in such intimate and friendly surroundings. It’s hard to pick favourites from such a mighty set-list, but a few stand-out moments included his gentle and sweetly played version of Blind Willie McTell’s “Don’t forget it”, some fine bluesy and slightly countrified string-bending during Lonnie Johnson’s “Tomorrow Night”, his gentle rhythmic guitar work on George Carter’s “Rising River Blues”, and his excellent interpretation of the Memphis Jug Band’s “Stealin Stealin”. Really it was a stream of superb and classic songs – far too many to list them all – it was a lifetime’s education in the blues, condensed into a single evening. Dave picks absolute gems from the dust of history, breathes new life into them, and presents them with his own characteristic charm and flair.