THIS weekend, there’s an opportunity to enjoy a gig that promises some Gallic charm.
Alan Clayson is heading to The Ship Inn arts centre in Thatcham for his show Clayson Sings Chanson.
He explains: “As well as works by Jacques Brel, Charles Aznavour, Scott Walker and other chansonniers, Gallic and English, we – me and keyboard player Andy Lavery – venture into curious but connected realms, ranging from an arrangement of French symbolist poet Paul Verlaine’s Un Grand Sommeil Noir to Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich’s Last Night In Soho.
“This is sung absolutely straight and, by contrast, Sweeney Todd The Barber – which I used to do with my group Clayson and the Argonauts, but hadn’t unveiled in public for a quarter of a century.
“Prefaced by an explanatory talk that is as entertaining as it is educational this show will appeal to both chanson devotees, those interested generally in Gallic culture and folk merely seeking fun.”
Alan is an author, as well as a singer, and has written a biography of Jacques Brel, La Vie Bohème.
And he’s performed at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading recently, which led to some unexpected avenues.
“Consequences of that performance were a short-notice double-header with John Cooper Clarke, and a booking the following weekend for Berkshire’s French Society,” Alan says.
For more details, or to book tickets, costing £12, for Saturday’s show at The Ship Inn, log on to: https://shipinnarts.org/ and https://alanclayson.com/gigs
