Since aspects of the live music scene re-assembled in May, there has been countless occasions of empathy with performers overcome by the opportunity to practise their craft again in the in-person environment. This occurred once again in the rural confines of Elford, Staffordshire with one significant difference. The accurate prediction of 2021 being the live domain of the homegrown artist has come to fruition, but for those whose button is pressed by those bringing a flavour from afar things are starting to change. As much as Nathan Bell was forever grateful of a warm reception when resuming his European touring adventures, there were members of the audience on a similar plateau of gratitude that their chosen path of live music engagement was entering a stage of rebirth.
Nathan Bell is the embodiment of the travelling troubadour. Americana to the core in terms of drawing influence from a wide range of styles not exclusive to a love of folk, blues and jazz when you throw into the mix a slice of country and soul. Most of all an essence of the land he treads fills the halls played entwined in the stories, inspiration, music and songs. This land could be any point from east to west and north to south, but you distinctly feel the spirit of the heartland and a journey from Bell's origins of Iowa across to the steel mills of Pennsylvania.
The autumn (or fall) of 2021 is proving a seismic time for an artist proudly proclaiming as to the owner of two distinctly different music careers split by a stint in the mundane world of earning a crust to fuel the profits of others. The UK tour not only represents a post-pandemic return to the spotlight, but a change of tactic is providing exposure to fresh eyes. This is all glued together by a new album - long in the can, expansive in style and ripe for framing who Nathan Bell is as a performer and a person.
The blues is Nathan Bell's first love and threaded by an exquisite guitar playing style that illuminates a live show. However this is just a starting point. From using the iconic Gill Scott Heron as inspiration for the new album to sealing the deal with the most gorgeous of song now dedicated to a late father, there are so many interesting facets used to hold a new audience in the palm of your hands.
Fresh eyes can be joined with fresh ears as Nathan Bell moves from my periphery to centre stage. The new album has occupied a significant listening space in recent times, but the added dimension of a full two hour plus live exposure has the tendency to turn things inside out. For me the process of the album and the gig is an ideal cocktail to at least start to grasp what an artist means to those successfully wooed. The album review could now be re-jigged but creating reflections are not immune to the presence of the here and now.
Despite a billing of now being a native of Tennessee, there was a resemblance to a certain artist prone to telling stories from further north. The image of Springsteen was visualised in the side profile and magnified in the sincerity.
What made this inaugural Nathan Bell show special for probably most of those present in Elford Village Hall, including yours truly, was that he strode onto the stage an unknown entity and departed a genuine humble talented singer-songwriter of which you could imagine knowing for a bulk of the last fourteen years since his musical resurrection. This is a troubadour art form, which when executed as well as this evening makes the phrase 'just passing through your town' factually correct but spiritually short.
The chugging train of Nathan Bell regularly stops to pick up new passengers. There is plenty of room to join the well-informed and connected who jumped on a few years ago with no desire to leave. The Staffordshire outpost of Elford has hailed him down and a few from even wider afield hopped on. This is what touring Americana music from a romanticised hotbed of stark reality is all about. You take the tough with the tender and the grit with the gratitude. Nathan Bell reignited a passion on October 2nd 2021.
Review of Red, White and American Blues (It Couldn't Happen Here)