Nigel Clark of Dodgy live stream gig review | 23rd April 2020
I moved to my then new home a few years back. As tradition dictates, I of course, explored the local pubs for the most welcoming. On one such occasion whilst stood at the bar, an obviously known regular jumped the queue and proffered the landlord a small pile of concise magazines; the regular did me the honour of offering a smile-laden nod to acknowledge the serious breach of pub etiquette…
Protocol dictates and our pubs are now closed as a result of the lockdown. Consequently, we have to explore social platforms to find a welcome distraction. And it was with a real sense of trepidation that I logged onto the interweb following a dodgy invite to view a middle-aged man performing for free in his basement. I need not have worried as the very foundations of this gig were laid some years ago. Our genial host – Nigel Clark – is an accomplished frontman and the easy-going atmosphere he exudes is apparently effortless, even in front of a flat screen. Even though he was distracted by the lack of applause – “a bit naff to say that” – the stalwart of the stage still gave the gathered virtual crowd a festival worthy performance. The urgent admittance that he, “missed playing with his band and playing for you all,” merely underlined how at ease and driven our well-travelled minstrel is to perform regularly.
Encountering the regular in town, over the last couple of years, he always acknowledged me with an amiable and assured grin…
Tonight’s assured performance backed by a DIY anonymised backdrop, aided by a school disco light show, bejewelled with plastic kitsch and readily available sign was memorable for all the written reasons. Our basement troubadour can write songs and write songs well. The opening song “Melodies Haunt You”, a highly melodious song that explores the songwriter’s drive to pen his own words, songs and yes, melodies was more than sleight of hand. The top hat he conjures seemingly endless songs, inspired endless unconditional comments, typed in real time throughout the course of the gig.
Of course with my limited word count there is not enough space to mention any of the comments, such as they were: “smiling and singing along….you’re making our night…what a wonderful hour…loved it…so happy to see this on the US West Coast…Don’t want this to finish these are the best nights I’ve had in lockdown and [I’ve] got 6 more beers in the fridge!” Sadly, as we all know social media is an unwelcoming and unforgiving wasteland.
Forgive me but it took an extended period to realise it was Nigel Clark of Dodgy that I regularly encountered and believe me the affable stage-persona is not an act.
Actively engaged in the gig throughout the hour I was still distracted by the “One Love” sign behind Clarky. Most of us know that Bob Marley recorded the song but how many of you know that Marley was a juvenile palm-reader and fortune teller? Well, as for our future it is obvious we are staying in for the summer, however, beyond that there is no welcoming visit to our favourite pub in sight. Yet, the summer nights will be made easier by impromptu gigs, where we can dodge the boredom with a festival of live streams and of course Nigel Clark has just jumped the list of must see acts…again!
By: The Swilgate Scuttler