The Waterboys @ Warwicks Arts Centre, Butterworth Hall, 2nd February 2011

And so to see a rare outing of The Waterboys at Warwick Arts Centre’s Butterworth Hall.

Now if you thought you were going to get a set of Waterboys classics you’d be wrong. Tonight we have “An Appointment with Mr. Yeats.” This set, in its entirety, sees Mike Scott’s passion for Irish poet W.B. Yeates (1865-1939) merged with the music of The Waterboys in, we are told, a truly unique and ambitious musical undertaking.

According to their website, Scott described the arrangements as being “psychedelic, intense, kaleidoscopic, a mix of rock, folk and faery music…” This should be interesting as it is a set of UNRECORDED ENTIRELY UNKNOWN songs – Scott: “I appreciate you all paying to see us play songs you’ve never heard…”

Scott formed The Waterboys in ‘83, with keyboardist Karl Wallinger (notable for going on to form World Party) and saxophonist Anthony Thistlewaite (who subsequently went onto perform with the Saw Doctors, Psychedelic Furs, Fairground Attraction and The Mission amongst others). Wallinger and Thistlewaite both left, Scott dropped The Waterboys name, went solo, only to re-incarnate it again around 2000.

Over the years, over fifty different musicians have performed live as a Waterboy including Eddi Reader and Guy Chambers. Tonight’s line-up of an incredibly talented ten musicians features an eclectic mix including Irish fiddle maestro Steve Wickham, Irish singer Kate Kim, Dublin singer-songwriter Joe Chester Flook, flautist Sarah Allen and Catalan trombonist Blaise Margail.

Scott first wrote a musical accompaniment for Yeates’ classic poem “The Stolen Child”, during the making of ‘Fisherman’s Blues’. Five years later he set another Yeats poem to music, “Love and Death”, which appeared on their ‘Dream Harder’ album. Scott is truly talented. He still has the distinctive voice, tousled hair and tonight is dressed in stripped trousers and leather jacket. Songs cover twenty years of Yeats’ poems, spanning both famous and lesser known works, from the wry to the romantic, the political to the mythological. The musical interpretation is as equally varied – from classic Waterboys ‘big sound’ to traditional folk and Irish melodies, with band members appearing and disappearing on and off stage as required.

The cracked nursery rhyme about Jack & Jill “Full Moon in March” has overtones of Clannad in the harmonies, while ‘Sweet Dancer’ with fiddle accompaniment is quite commercial. “White birds”, based on a love poem, is traditional folk with rising classic Waterboys crescendo featuring a clever bird sound from the fiddler, making you feel just like you were by the sea.

Then the blues and onto 70’s prog rock, complete with mystic face masks, spoken word segments and a battle between the trombonist and the fiddler.

I should point out we had a heckler, who clearly didn’t know what this gig was all about. Shouting the odd comment, slow clapping, in what was a very refined seated audience environment. Increasingly annoying and after retorts from audience members to shut up, Scott responded: “I remember when I had my first drink too. Oh deary, deary me….” A couple of songs later the heckler left… “I’m off home ‘cos you’re rubbish” – the audience applauded – he’d missed the entire point of tonight’s gig.

Scott said his interpretations allowed him to use one poem in a song, or two, or elements of different poems. “Yeates” as he said, “wasn’t around to argue.” “Let The Earth Bear Witness”(available on You Tube) is a striking song made up in such a way, with a video accompaniment of Iranian protests, the ‘Sea of Green’, from 2005. Quite poignant, given the current protests across the middle east.

The last song “The Faeries” ended with each member finishing their piece and standing at the front of the stage. To a standing ovation from the audience.

And then to the encore and to say thank you, Scott gave us three classics – the haunting “The Stolen Child” (based on the Yeates poem, from ‘Fisherman’s Blues’), the epic “Don’t Bang the Drum” (from ‘This is the Sea’) completing with the iconic hit “Whole of the Moon.” The later could be seen as a cop out but think of the mystical lyrics – it was accompanied with archive footage of Yeates himself. Scott: “Thank you WB Yeates.”

Then a promise to return in the Autumn… “when we’ve recorded all this stuff.” If you return to the Midlands go to the Symphony Hall – your musical talent will be given far more justice.
You could say tonight’s set was self-indulgent. Few established bands come out and play a set of entirely new and unrecorded songs these days. But then again, many less talented 80s bands are out on greatest hits tours as part of the nostalgia cash in. And it would have been easy for Scott to roll out The Waterboys and do the same.

I would say this was brave, this was different – almost classical, almost concept ‘album’, part art installation, certainly a performance – Scott has a very focussed, intense view on his masterpiece and him and the band clearly enjoyed tonight’s gig.

This was one a handful of UK dates following some Irish dates. If you are a Waterboys fan and are prepared to see them play entirely unknown songs and know what you are in for, they are indeed worth seeing. But be warned some elements are a little beyond what to what you may be used to from traditional Waterboys and tickets also could be seen to be a tad pricey side at £30.

Once recorded, the tracks from “An Appointment with Mr Yeates” are certainly worth a listen. Go to their website and YouTube to take a peek at what it’s all about. Listen, see if you like what you hear, go and see.

Review – Zyllah Moranne- Brown
Photos – Ken Harrison

Listening:
“An Appointment with Mr. Yeats” is planned for recording later this year.
You can also hear tracks, songs and mashups from Mike Scott’s home studio on Soundcloud via http://www.mikescottwaterboys.com/
“Let the Earth Bear Witness” Mike Scott, available on YouTube

Classic Waterboys listening:
The Waterboys (1983)
A Pagan Place (1984)
This is The Sea (1985)
Fishermans Blues (1988)

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