Easy like Sunday Morning
There’s a pretty sparse crowd for Ben Poole but then he is the opening act on the third stage on a Sunday morning! Those that are here though grow increasingly appreciative of his blues tinged rock as his set progresses. There is one simple reason for this and it’s that he gives a masterclass in fretwork and whilst the material is a little out of place here, he gives a thoroughly engaging performance.
Poole takes vocal duties as well and his voice has just the right amount of gravel in it to pull off that classic blues sound. Some of the songs don’t exactly grab you but there’s enough in his playing to hold the interest even here. Much like when Hendrix was playing you didn’t tend to notice the rest of the band (in this case just bass and drums) but I make the effort and find them to be a solid rhythm unit but with few frills, not that it matters too much as when all is said and done they act as a foil for Poole.
Like all really good guitarists he makes it look effortless and for that alone we must hate him! He pulls a few dubious faces (like they do) but all in all he is a joy to watch. I’m not a huge blues fan and a longer set might have seen me lose interest but it’s been an impressive twenty five minutes and Mr Poole is well worth checking out if you get the chance.