First up was an Anglo-American duo with a difference. Brooks Williams was the Stateside representative, but those familiar with his work will be aware of his longstanding English residency alongside an impressive array of roots-influenced music knowledge and skills. Teaming up with Brooks for this show was English fiddle player Aaron Catlow, an established figure on the folk scene through collaborations and the band Sheelanagig. The pair have been working together for a couple of years dating back to the last solo Brooks Williams album. Obviously live performances have been at a premium over this period; a circumstance both look to rectify on the evidence of their gratitude to open the year for the library.
The pair have been most productive recently in releasing the album GHOST OWL. This is an instrumental record inspired by being sent a spectacularly shot wildlife film of barn owls in the lowland pastures of Eastern England. To offer a flavour of the album and the film to which they gladly accepted the request to compose some kind of score, three tracks were played accompanied by a snippet of the film shown on a projected screen. Not quite the fully immersive show presented by Jenny Sturgeon at the back end of last year. Nevertheless an eye-catching sample of how music and film can interact.
The majority of the two-set show was songs sung and guitar picked by Brooks interwoven with some sparkling fiddle work from Aaron. These songs were mainly borrowed from others notably out of the vast traditional American song vault. Whether drawing influence from old time fiddle, bluegrass, blues, country or contemporary singer-songwriter folk, the songs were right on the tee of what drives Brooks Williams - the artist - and perfectly compatible with where Aaron Catlow can divert his extraordinary fiddle work.
By the end of the evening a solid opening night Thimblemill turnout had brought into the wares and ideals of the two invited guests. Of course both musicians have been doing this to new crowds for many years and this evening was a pointer to how much mileage there is left in seeking new audiences to what is niche music. The good news is that Brooks Williams and Aaron Catlow seem set to renew their working relationship into the near future. A new album is on the horizon alongside plenty of live opportunities. Having seen Brooks play mainly solo several times over the last decade, it was positive to see how the addition of exemplary fiddle enhanced his overall sound. Aaron had only been seen live once before - in a duo format with Kit Hawes -, but you are left with the feeling that his skills are compatible in a multitude of situations spanning folk music's wide environment.
Overall this was a therapeutic and re-affirming start to the gig year. We know good music is just around the corner and maybe the delayed start whetted the appetite a little further. Thinblemill Library is set to be a regular feature on the West Midlands roots gig circuit in 2022 with some enticing shows already lined up. Let's get this live show on the road.