The Coal Porters are led by the former frontman of the
esteemed US alt country rock band the Long Ryders, although Sid Griffin has a
lot more to his cultural arsenal than an eighties cover slot on the NME. He has
assembled a wonderful set of musicians to bring many original compositions to
life alongside several imaginative covers that you would not expect to hear at
a gig steeped in this music style. Sid, in a dry and slightly quirky manner,
led the band for a twin pair of outstanding sets spanning several of their
album releases including the latest titled FIND THE ONE, which unsurprisingly he
was keen to plug.
From this 2013 release, the sold out audience were treated
to such gems as ‘Barefoot On The
Courthouse Lawn’, ‘Never Right His Wrong’, ‘Gospel Shore’ and the splendid
instrumental ‘The Betsey Trotwood’.
The latter being a tribute to the established London roots venue of the same
name, a place dear to the band’s hearts. This fine record also housed a couple
of covers which the band played on the night. Their version of Bowie’s ‘Heroes’ has been proving a popular rendition
and its performance tonight was spot on, just as the encore decision to give ‘Paint it Black’ a bluegrass makeover.
Adele’s ‘Rolling In The Deep’ went
down really well with the crowd and a personal highlight was a splendid version
of the Only Ones new wave classic ‘Another Girl,
Another Planet’. However it was not all about contemporary pop music with a
twist as a version of ‘Pike County
Breakdown’ respected the traditional side of the genre.
Sid was a charming and humorous front guy, excelling on
mandolin and bribing potential CD buyers with potential tales of the 80’s LA
scene with reference to The Bangles, Dwight Yokham and Fats Domino. However the
two sets were an exemplary presentation of roots music, packed with inspired
solos, vibrant audience interaction and an unplugged finale of ‘New Cut Road’.
Of course The Coal Porters is not just about Sid Griffin, in
fact he shares vocals and writing on many tracks with Scotsman Neil Robert
Herd. There are also several sublime vocal contributions from Carly Frey along
with her dynamic fiddle playing. John Breeze plays some mean banjo and it is
somewhat unfair to always leave the bass player until last as the rhythm of
Tali Trow kept the sound together throughout the evening.
Over the years the Kitchen Garden Café has hosted many fine
gigs but it has to be said that a splendid evening in the company of The Coal
Porters is right up there with the very best. Having only recently fully
explored their work, it was a pleasure to witness them live for the first time
and hopefully this will be the rekindling of a beautiful relationship with West
Midlands roots music fans.