One of the joys of events such as the Rye Arts Festival is trying something unknown and finding it both a winner and a keeper. This was my experience of Kate Garner and her band at the community centre on Saturday, September 17. To honour our late Queen, Kate had reorganised the evening’s programme. The first half started with songs all related to Elizabeth II, followed by a preview of music from Garner’s Mapp & Lucia, the musical. The second half featured well-known hits from the 1920s.
From the moment Kate walked on stage she established an easy rapport with her audience. She performed beneath a black and white photograph of the young Elizabeth and treated us to charming classics – Bye, Bye, Blackbird and They’re changing the guard at Buckingham Palace, for instance, as well as unfamiliar gems like the song written for the young princess (aged four) and Kate’s version of the theme to the Paddington films completed by her own witty lyrics. She also shared with us a song she had composed for the Queen’s platinum jubilee which recalled the days of music hall and which had prompted a letter of approval from the monarch herself.
Kate is the daughter of the late Chas of Chas and Dave fame and from him, perhaps, she has clearly inherited not only piano-playing skills but also the gift of clever rhyme and ingenious wordplay. The excerpts we heard from her EF Benson musical absolutely complemented that author’s sophisticated, knowing style and whetted the appetite to hear the whole show, preparations for which were interrupted by Covid.
A special moment in the second half was a song dedicated by Kate to the memory of the late musician and creative powerhouse Michel Duvoisin, whose widow was in the audience. At one stage Michel was to have been involved in the Mapp & Lucia project but, sadly, it was not to be.
Kate Garner and her band of bass, clarinet and drums gave us a great night out. These are accomplished musicians, she is a gifted composer and lyricist and I tripped out of the community centre having made a lasting musical discovery.
Image Credits: Kt bruce .