Night At The Museum

When I heard that there was a gig at Perth Museum my interest was peaked. When they said the tickets came with a complimentary portion of stovies you couldn’t sign me up quick enough!

Initially when I mentioned the idea to my friend he was reluctant. However, after I convinced him that a) the evening wasn’t an elaborate cover for a heist I had planned and b) that an ancient curse was unlikely to cause the exhibits to come to life and wreak havoc, he was totally onboard.

We arrived at the venue slightly beery, it was my birthday and we had spent a couple of hours in The Green Room as we had foolishly assumed that there would be no drink at the Musuem but after we presented our tickets we were greeted with a free glass of prosecco.

Settling in for the first act, acoustic blues guitarist Dave Lowe accompanied by percussionist Dave Murray on cajon, we were greeted by the familiar strains of Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Rain which gave way to Robert Johnson's Me and the Devil Blue’s, and I knew I was in for a good night. Dave Low is an excellent player and singer, and his assured performance is driven home by the steady beat of the Cajon. I’m a big fan of American folk and enjoy the odd murder ballad or two, so was pleased to be introduced to old-time banjo player Charlie Poole’s tale of the assassination of President McKinley, it was a song I was unfamiliar with but the two Dave’s really sold it and I’ll certainly be checking out the original. Before long Dave breaks out the slide and show what he’s made of with a smoking performance of another Johnson standard Walking Blues.

After a helping of stovies and a couple of cheeky Guinesses it was just about time for the second act, Scottish folk duo A Right Couple of Charlies to take the stage. The pair are made up of Charlie Williamson and Ian (also known as Charlie) Knight who have been playing together for the last couple of years mixing traditional Celtic music with their own contemporary style and humour. This humour is at the forefront with their rip-roaring performance of Jim Douglas’s Is a Dove a Doo and their cover of The Proclaimers 500 miles with the Da da da’s replaced instead with cries of 'Get it up You!'

However, the highlight of their set for me was their spine chilling rendition of traditional song The Massacre of Glencoe. The beautiful melody line and gorgeous harmonies by the Charlies belie a tale of betrayal as the Campbell’s are offered food, warmth and lodging by the MacDonald’s before rising in the middle of the night to massacre their hosts.

It is at this stage of the evening, just as the headline act Mad Ferret took the stage that my note-taking (to be honest at the best of times not my greatest asset) seems to have seriously deteriorated. A random sample reads “mandolin picking was the shredding of the time”. To be fair this does bring to mind a blisteringly fast instrumental whose tempo kept increasing to the point that you thought that it couldn’t possibly get any faster… then it did. The picking by mandolin player Chris Woods was just phenomenal. I just wish I’d written down the song title, I want to say Jim Fairlies cow but i’m not sure.

Elsewhere, I also remember being extremely impressed by the tight bass drumming that guitarist Sandy Stirton managed with just a bass pedal and a cajon and that he alternated between playing rhythm, lead lines and even bass lines at various points of the evening to fill out the sound to great effect. Another highlight was the song Nancy Whiskey which included an opportunity for the audience to provide backing vocals, a task they took to with relish.

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Find out more about Perth Museum and Art Gallery and their upcoming events HERE >>>

They've also got their amazing Lego Brick City Exhibition on until the 7th May. Find out more HERE >>>