Made In Tennessee

Made In Tennessee

Sutton Coldfield Town Hall

Friday 2nd June 2023

By Nigel Gambles

Photography – Nigel Gambles Photography

Last night Nashville came to Sutton Coldfield by means of the “Made In Tennessee” show.

The show took us through the decades of the nations fastest growing music  genre, from Country’s origin in the Southern States of America to modern day Country  heard around the world.

The two lead singers performed excellently and treated us to some superb versions of classics like Rose Garden, Jolene, Ring Of Fire, The Weight, and a very rarely heard number by George Jones that I cant remember the title to (If anyone knows it please let me know thanks)

In the second half we were treated to some more classics and some new ones such as The Devil went down to Georgia ,with some excellent fiddle work , Garth Brooks Friends In Low places and a particular highlight for me Chris Stapleton’s Tennessee Whiskey which was superb

If you like Country music then I recommend you catch this show. Superb musicians great vocals and fantastic fun.

Another Busy Weekend At The Town Hall

Last night kicked off another busy weekend at the Town Hall with the Shania – 25 Live Come On Over Tribute.

The show celebrates Shania’s ground breaking album “Come On Over” and some very well performed country classics.

“Shania” had a great stage presence and soon had the audience singing and clapping away . She is supported by a very tight and proficient band with some excellent guitar and fiddle work.

If you are fan of Shania and country music you don’t want to miss this show it is excellent and full of life.

 

 

Magnificent Sixties at The Town Hall

The Counterfeit Sixties  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The sixties returned to Sutton Town Hall last night in the shape of “The Counterfeit Sixties Show” there was nothing counterfeit about this show, taking the audience back to those fabulous swinging sixties bringing alive everything from that period including flashbacks from TV history, shows adverts and clips from the original bands.

We were treated to some of the best music from the era by bands such as The Beatles, The Who, The Dave Clark Five, The Kinks, Amen Corner and many more including a medley of one hit wonders.

Magnificent Sixties at The Town Hall

The Counterfeit Sixties  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The sixties returned to Sutton Town Hall last night in the shape of “The Counterfeit Sixties Show” there was nothing counterfeit about this show, taking the audience back to those fabulous swinging sixties bringing alive everything from that period including flashbacks from TV history, shows adverts and clips from the original bands.

We were treated to some of the best music from the era by bands such as The Beatles, The Who, The Dave Clark Five, The Kinks, Amen Corner and many more including a medley of one hit wonders.

Soul Sisters

This fantastic new soul musical stopped off at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall last night as part of its UK tour. Starring Amelle Berrabah from “Sugababes”, Nicole Faraday “Bad Girls” and Wendy Harriott from “The Voice UK”

The story of three friends who used to be an 80’s chart topping trio known as “The Fabulettes” visiting a classic holiday camp Soul Weekender as they try to that elusive closeness they had as teenagers, they do so by expressing themselves the only way they can through their music.

Can they pull off a performance of a lifetime do they still have what it takes, can they forgive and forget.

This musical rollercoaster is full of light-hearted fun, totally relatable and full of soul. A great night out if you missed this try and catch it at another stop on its uk tour

Soul Sisters

 

Oh What A Night – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The boys from “Oh What A Night” returned to Sutton Coldfield Town Hall. . Featuring the classic hits Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, they did not disappoint the full house. The audience lapped up the wonderful vocals and slick dance moves and total energy and nostalgia of this fantastic show.

Picture Credit ©Lee Williams for Whats On In Sutton Coldfield

Reliving Sutton’s Sounds

A 1970’s band who hailed from Sutton Coldfield are about to be cast back into the spotlight one more time thanks to a new compilation CD being released by Cherry Red Records called “Once upon a Time In The West Midlands – The Bostin’ Sounds of Brumrock  1966-1974”

Kansas Hook who recored a number of sessions for Radio 1 will be joined on the CD by the likes of ELO, The Move, Slade, The Spencer Davies Group, Wizzard and Judas Priest. The 3 CD Box Set is available to buy now and is available to stream on most services including Spotify.

Trinity Players New Show – Showstoppers

Trinity Players invites you to celebrate the return of theatre in this toe-tapping concert, featuring a century of hit songs from the West End, Broadway and Hollywood. The show takes you on a fabulous, musical journey with many hit songs from a whole host of shows spanning a century of theatre.  It is to be performed at Streetly Community Centre from 2nd – 4th December 2021.

From the classic big band numbers of golden age movie musicals to ballads from current hit shows, ‘Showstoppers’ is a celebration of everything we love (and have missed) about musical theatre.

Trinity Players annual concert is highly anticipated and has sold out for the past few years. We cannot wait to welcome you back!

For tickets and enquiries:

  1. Call our box office on 07843 928830
  2. Book online at Ticket Source Trinity Players

Picture Credit Lee Williams Photography for What’s On In Sutton Coldfield

Dick Whittington ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Dick Whittington – CLOC Musical Theatre Company

Sutton Coldfield Town Hall

Wednesday 5th February

By Nigel Gambles

CLOC MTC return to the town hall with their annual pantomime, this year see’s them performing Dick Whittington, now I remember the story streets of gold and all that but don’t remember ever seeing the pantomime  so I took my seat with much anticipation and a little curiosity.

This is a great production and all the parts are played enthusiastically and professionally. The jokes and humour being current and the audience participation sections led wonderfully by our dame, Sarah the Cook played by Krystian Wharton who is excellent and his costumes are amazing he is aided by Idle Jack  wonderfully played by Lee Walker his outfit after the ship wreck scene has to be seen!

The show opens to a rapturous round of boos and hissing from the audience as King Rat and his little Prince enter the stage. King Rat played by Anthony Henn who normally lands some of the nicer roles but on this occasion digs deep to deliver a really villainous performance. As he lays out his dastardly plane he is confronted by Fairy Bowbells played beautifully by Juliette Fisher with a cute cockney accent.

We are introduced to Dick and Tommy the cat played played by Sam Rogers and Erin Mooney, this is Erins first principle role and she totally embraces even if she only has a few lines and a lot of meowing.

The show is produced by Stacey Muxlow, this is her first venture into producing but you would never guess, the show is full of life and gusto, filled with wonderful songs and dance routines all performed by the extremely talented cast.

This is a really wonderful show and should not be missed you will leave will leave filled with a fabulous feel good factor

Tickets are still available but hurry you only have until Saturday to catch Dick Whittington and his friends.  http://www.cloc.org.uk/contact-us/

 

 

Swing That Music

PRESS RELEASE – Sutton Coldfield Town Hall

30th December 2019

Swing That Music 24th January 2020

 

Back in 2018, Down for the Count wowed audiences at Sutton Coldfield’s Concerts in the Park, supporting the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in front of 4,000 people.  Now they are returning to Sutton Coldfield Town Hall on Friday 24th January with their theatre show SWING THAT MUSIC.

The show evokes the atmosphere of the ballrooms and jazz clubs of the swing era – combining top class musicianship with authentic dance performances from local Lindy hop dance group, The Swing Era.  

Described as “one hellova celebration of vintage music” by TimeOut London, the SWING THAT MUSIC show breathes new life into some of the best music of the 20th Century, treating audiences to joyous instrumental solos, sublime vocal performances, energetic dance routines and Down for the Count’s irresistible humour and on-stage banter.

Expect to hear songs from the likes of Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Count Basie and Glenn Miller, and classics from singers such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat ‘King’ Cole.

SWING THAT MUSIC has had a string of sell-out shows in 2019, at venues including the world-famous Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London, and the tour marks the release of Down for the Count’s new album, also called SWING THAT MUSIC. The album is available to buy from the band’s website www.dftcswingorchestra.co.uk. Band leader Mike Paul-Smith describes the album as “a celebration of my favourite musicians and singers from the Swing Era. At that time young people were cramming themselves into ballrooms to listen and dance to incredible music from pioneering musicians – and our album and show aims to recreate that energy and sound.”

The band’s previous album, LETS DANCE, was featured on Clare Teal’s BBC Radio 2 show in 2017.

The band was formed by Mike Paul-Smith in 2005 whilst he was still at school. “We always loved playing jazz and soul music, but it was when we started getting asked to play for swing dance events that we really started to love the big band music we play nowadays. It’s such a thrill to see people interpret the music you play through dance, and it wasn’t long before I began taking Lindy hop dance classes myself. Because the band started when we were so young, we’re only in our late 20s and early 30s now – and we find that audiences are often surprised to see people of our age playing vintage music. It’s great that Swing dancing has become increasingly popular with younger people too.” 

Since then, Down for the Count has become a favourite amongst fans of retro nostalgia, making regular appearances at events such as Twinwood Vintage Festival, who described them as “a breath of fresh air on the swing scene”. The band are regulars at London jazz clubs and have even performed at the oldest jazz club in Europe, Le Caveau de la Huchette in Paris, which featured in the film La La Land. The band includes award-winning jazz musicians and West End performers, who have performed at events across the globe.

The format of the band’s show means that no two performances are ever exactly the same. As Mike said, “we make sure our show is entertaining, bringing our own humour and personalities to the stage, recreating the atmosphere of swing era dance nights and jazz clubs so that every moment feels spontaneous and exciting. Ultimately the music is the star of the show, and we want audiences watching and listening to feel as uplifted as we do when playing. We hope our joie de vivre is infectious and that audiences leave sharing our love for all that swings!”

Swing That Music at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall

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Press and PR Contact details

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Videos

The band’s new single Swing That Music can be found here:

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