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The Bronte Music Club is proudly sponsored by Banbridge District Council in conjunction with Frontier Promotions ELIZA GILKYSON The Bronte Centre June 1 You have to hand it to Andy Peters who for the last couple of years has been devoting nearly every minute of his spare time to bringing in quality performers to play in this part of the world, firstly in the Frontier Music club in Newry and more lately in the Bronte Centre in the foothills of the famous mountains of Mourne. And they come to these gigs from far and near – in fact judging from tonight’s show they came mostly from afar. Andy commented on the irony that despite the fact that the Bronte is just a few miles from his home patch Rathfriland, only a few natives from that fine municipality were in attendance at this gig. The rest of the audience was made up of citizens and music lovers happy to travel many miles to see and hear the wonderful Eliza Gilkyson. And fair play too to the good people in Banbridge District Council’s Tourism Department – especially Karen - who sponsor these gigs in the Bronte, they must have been delighted to see this wonderful little venue packed to capacity. Anyway enough of the plaudits and on to tonight’s show which nearly got full marks from yours truly and would have but for the odd omission of one of Eliza’s best known songs Hard Times In Babylon – a minor gripe which at my time of life I am entitled to! The last time I had the pleasure of seeing and hearing Ms Gilkyson was in May 2005 when she was accompanied by the redoubtable Jeff Plankenhorn mainly on acoustic guitar and Dobro. Tonight we had the pleasure of the company of Robert McEntee (Carole King, Jimmy LaFave, and Dan Fogelberg) whose electric guitar gave the music a harder, edgier feel. So it was great to get the two sides of Eliza. As I sat enjoying the music I realised that Eliza’s songs could be divided into three main themes, spiritual, political and compassionate. Sometimes you get all three in the same song. That her late father is a major influence on her is beyond doubt. He was a little known but influential folk singer/songwriter in the 50s and 60s who wrote many songs including The Bare Necessities and Tell the Captain, which is better known as Sloop John B. We aren’t long into the show before Eliza references her father in Beauty Way, which is a semi-autobiographical song about the plight of the guitar player who has plummeted to the depths of despair and grief. It clearly reflects emotional turmoil caused by the break up of a relationship and the death of her father. Green Fields was written by Terry Gilkyson and there was real emotion in her voice as Eliza said that he had written it as a song of love and despair when his wife (Eliza’s mother) left him. Eliza’s rendition was soft and gentle and you could have heard a pin drop. The family connection continued with Jedidiah 1777, which is based on letters written by her ancestor Jedidiah Huntingdon who was a Major General who fought in the American Revolutionary War in the 1700s. Huntington described this in one of his letters as a ’necessary war’ which is in stark contrast with the sentiments expressed in Eliza’s own searing Man of God, which can best be described as an open attack on the great white leader who sits in the White House: The cowboy came from out of the west With his snakeskin boots and his bullet proof vest Gang of goons and his big war chest If you don’t know the song I am sure you get the picture. The theme continued with the politically charged Highway 9 whose subject is the innocents caught up in the war in Iraq and the moving Tender Mercies about suicide bombers. No Eliza gig would be complete without a nod to Bob and she obliged with Love Minus Zero/No Limit. By now if anyone in the audience hadn’t cottoned on to the fact that that Eliza is not a recent arrival on the folk/Americana scene she set the record straight and demonstrated both her vintage and her pedigree by performing a song called Tennessee Road which she wrote in 1977 about a certain Mr Presley. A fascinating song was the epic, almost biblical The Great Correction which sounded as if it could/should have been written by the great Mr Dylan. Maybe it was but I haven’t been able to find any reference to it – maybe someone reading this has the answer? It seemed to be about the need for mankind to wise up and sort itself out before “the great correction comes.” Wonderful stuff. A word about Robert McEntee – his guitar at times blazed then soothed and occasionally delivered a mesmerising solo, especially on the Texas love song True Companions – not to mention his 3 opening solo numbers that showed he is no slouch when it comes to writing and delivering a good song. Having started the show with a reference to her father it was fitting that she should close it with another. This time it was the sing along Bare Necessities, which he wrote for Disney’s Jungle Book. It was a happy way to end a very enjoyable evening and I am already looking forward to Eliza’s return visit. Patrick Donaghy