Features

When I look back on all the shows I saw there the visit of Rick Wakeman has to be up there with the best. In those days the Caped Crusader, as he became known, was one of the busiest men in rock combining a successful solo career with extensive touring and recording with Yes.

The Earthly Connection tour stopped off in Ipswich and we were treated to a night of superb musicianship and great humour. Rick was back at the venue last year with Jon Anderson and once again was in sparkling form.

This month he plays a one-off UK date with his band The English Rock Ensemble and he's promising epic themes, symphonic rock and stunning visuals. The venue, somewhat surprisingly, is The Waterfront in Norwich.

It's always been one of my favourite venues but not the sort of place I'd have expected to see Rick perform. The fact that it's only 20 or so miles from Rick's home on the Suffolk/Norfolk border is a big factor for a man who tells the days of long tours are over.

The show on Wednesday 16 May will be one of the biggest in The Waterfront's history and it promises to be one the rock highlights of the year here in East Anglia. Get along to UEA's website for a piece of the action.

Ipswich Jazz Club

Every year BBC Radio Suffolk links up with the Ipswich Jazz Club for a blues night which we record for future broadcast. In previous years British blues greats like Dana Gillespie, Mike Sanchez, Connie Lush, Ben Waters, Matt Schofield and The Barcodes have taken part in recordings at The Manor Ballroom.

Ian Siegal

This year the IJC have moved venue and on Sunday 20 May the excellent Ian Siegal Trio will be performing at The California Club in Foxhall Road. The IJC have taken to their new home like a duck to water and have been rewarded with good crowds.

Ian Siegal has one of the most distinctive voices on the UK blues scene (think Howlin' Wolf and you'll get the idea of his style) and is an extremely versatile guitarist. His most record CD/DVD Meat & Potatoes has received rave reviews and he's just about to release a new album on his manager Richard Pavitt's Nugene label.

A few years ago Ian opened for Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings at the Ipswich Regent and since then he's gone from strength to strength carving out a very special place for himself on the European blues circuit. Admission on the night is £11 and the doors open at 7-30pm.

Highlights of the night, and believe me there'll be plenty, will be broadcast on Monday May 28 at 6pm in a Bank Holiday Ian Siegal Special on BBC Radio Suffolk. Check the Ipswich Jazz Club website for details of this and other gigs coming up.

Magnum return

If you don't mind I'd like to wallow in nostalgia again. This time let's turn the clock back to the 1980's when the Midlands rock band Magnum were at the peak of their powers.

I saw them on many occasions, usually at the UEA in Norwich. They really broke through with their Vigilante album and at around that time they put on a stunning show in Ipswich.

Magnum

After that successful tour they played at all the key rock festivals and were quite simply the best British melodic rock band of that era. After a few more albums they called it a day with the two main men Bob Catley and Tony Clarkin forming a band called Hard Rain.

After two CDs that project came to a close. Before long Magnum re-formed and in the last few years have been back to their very best.

Their current CD Princess Alice And The Broken Arrow made it into the album charts and they're touring this month. Naturally enough they've included a date at The UEA.

It's Tuesday May 22. Guitarist and songwriter Clarkin believes the group have surpassed themselves with the new album. It'll be getting a good airing on the tour.

Kinks legend comes to Ipswich

The word legend has become one of the most over used in the English language. Music writers are among the worst culprits but in the case of Ray Davies the use of the word legend is legitimate.

Ray Davies - legend

During his time with The Kinks Ray wrote some of the greatest pop music of all time. Tracks like You Really Got Me, Waterloo Sunset, and Sunny Afternoon helped shape the sounds of the sixties while Lola continued where they left off as The Kinks continued to make their mark in the seventies.

In 2005 The Kinks were quite rightly inducted into the UK Hall Of Fame. The following year Ray released his debut solo album some 40 years after bursting onto the scene fronting The Kinks.

It was a 13 track CD called Other People's Lives which came out on V2 Records. The album was a master class in song writing giving us all a timely reminder of what an icon Ray Davies remains. At the time of writing Ray is about to embark on a rare UK tour which stops off in Ipswich on Friday 25 May for a show at The Regent.

It's a venue he may well remember from his Kinks days. The band played there at the height of their success and then returned in 1981 on their Better Things tours. Check out Ipswich Arts and Entertainment's website for ticket availability but get in quick because this show is sure to sell out.

Juan to watch

Two days after the visit of Ray Davies to Ipswich one of the greatest guitarists in the world brings his Rumbas Originales show to the town's Corn Exchange. Juan Martin is arguably the finest flamenco guitarist on the planet but as his 18 albums have proved there's a whole lot more to his music than that particular genre.

He has toured by people like Rory Gallagher, Richard Thompson, Barney Kessel and Martin Taylor and is known throughout the world. His current album captures him a little more chilled than on some of his previous studio outings.

Juan Martin

Juan has been over in Northern Ireland recently and he CD has been going down a storm there. I've very much hoping Juan will be playing live in the After Six Music Mix on Drivetime on Monday 14 May.

Leigh-on-Sea the place to be

Finally I'd like to recommend a great little pub venue in Leigh-on-Sea which is on the outskirts of Southend. A couple of years back former Kursaal Flyer Paul Shuttleworth invited me along to The Ship to see his band The Ugly Guys.

They played in the upstairs room which lends itself perfectly to live music. The Ugly Guys play country rock and are about to release a wonderful tribute album to Gram Parsons.

Eleanor McEvoy

A few weeks ago I was back at The Ship to see another British country rock outfit, The Redlands Palomino Company, who, just like The Ugly Guys, packed the place out. There are lots of great gigs there every month but there's one in particular that I'd like to highlight.

It's by Irish singer-songwriter Eleanor McEvoy. She's also a much respected multi-instrumentalist and was last in our patch performing at AcoustiCity in Colchester.

On Tuesday 29 May she's the guest of the Anchor Folk Club which meets at The Ship. Doors open at 8pm and for just a fiver you can see and hear one of the most important figures in both contemporary and traditional music. Click the Eleanor McEvoy link on the right for more on the lady and her music.