Part 1 -Vox Holloway salutes The Special AKA – In The Studio

This concert is a continuation of a Vox Holloway tradition – we have done many concerts where we highlight the work of the great songwriters and album makers. We have performed arrangements of entire albums The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper, The Kinks’ The Village Green Preservation Society and have performed albums by Clara Sanabras and Monica Vasconcelos with them as lead soloists and their musicians as our band.

Our salute this time is to The Special AKA – the Specials third album, a superb collection of sophisticated pop songs primarily written by Jerry Dammers, covering topics such as freedom – Free Nelson Mandela, conflict – War Crimes, racism – If you have a Racist Friend, loneliness and urban tension – The Bright Lights/The Lonely Crowd.

These serious themes are leavened by the upbeat nature of the music (with ska, reggae and lounge influences) and the humour of a song like What I like most about you is your girlfriend.

Our band and soloist include some of the UK’s finest jazz and reggae artists – Julian Siegel (sax), Harry Brown (trombone), Byron Wallen (trumpet) and Liam Dunachie (piano) with Wills Morgan (solo voice).

Harvey Brough (who was at school with Jerry Dammers and has worked with him over the years) is writing new arrangements for the mighty Vox Holloway and we promise an uplifting and uproarious evening.

Concert Saturday 17th February St. Luke’s Holloway

Doors open at 6.45pm for a 7.30pm start. Bar open before the concert and at the interval.

 

Part 2 – The Sun Does Shine

In June 1988, Anthony Ray Hinton was convicted by an Alabama court of two murders he did not commit, in one of the most shockingly cynical miscarriages of justice in US history. He spent the next 28 years on Death Row, before all charges were dropped and he was released.

The Sun Does Shine is a powerful new musical work by Harvey Brough, with words by Justin Butcher, inspired by the autobiography Hinton wrote about his long fight to prove his innocence. It is both a journey into the heart of darkness and an astonishing story of friendship, resilience and hope. After two sold-out preview performances, it arrives at Hackney Empire with the approval of Hinton himself, who now campaigns for others betrayed by the criminal justice system.

This remarkable story has urgent relevance to us in the UK today. It confronts racism and the inbuilt injustices that keep prisoners locked up for years, while making a powerful case for compassion, a sense of humour, and the possibility of redemption.

Presented by Vox Holloway and Arts Council England.

Concert Saturday 23rd March - Hackney Empire