I always enjoy a good evening out on St. Patrick’s Night and this year, it was great to see country music star, Nathan Carter, as Birmingham Symphony Hall. Nathan, born and raised in Liverpool to Northern Irish parents, is one of the leading names on the country scene in both the United Kingdom and Ireland and certainly provides a great evening of entertainment .
The show began with a little bit of singing and comedy from Birmingham based Ulsterman, Bob Brolly, who got us into the swing of things in his usual lively and entertaining fashion and this was followed by rising country artiste, Claudia Buckley, who showed not only great singing talent, but a powerful stage presence and is definitely someone to watch for the future.
Nathan Carter is a fine singer and also, an accomplished and versatile musician, who is skilled on accordian, piano and guitar and managed to bring his musicianship into a variety of songs during the evening. We were able to enjoy uptempo numbers which had us on out feet singing and clapping, ballads and even, a hymn. Nathan also has the sense of humour which comes so naturally to both Ulster folk and Liverpudlians and this added to the sense of fun that permeated the whole evening. The photograph that accompanies this was taken form the stage on the night and hopefully, conveys something of the atmosphere.
With the usual eclectic musical mixture of country and Irish, this was a thoroughly enjoyable way to spend St. Patrick’s Night and as well as the entertainers, special mention must be made of the staff at Symphony Hall. They were unfailingly courteous and helpful, especially to my wife, who has a disability. A big thank you also to John and Flick for arranging the visit for me and I will certainly have happy memories of a night well spent.
