Sunday 28.7.2024 Razorlight; The Coral; Toploader; The South live by the sea.
Some photos and a few notes on the Poole Harbour Festival. I just went on the Sunday of this three day harbourside festival, having flown back from a holiday a few days before. Jet lag meant waking up at 11.50am on the alarm from a heavy sleep…. but I wasn’t going to miss The South. 55 minutes later I was slumped in my camping chair as The South came on stage – The South being formed from some of the remains of The Beautiful South. Unfortunately today the female vocalist and first Beautiful South vocalist, Alison Wheeler, was off sick.
The Sunday pretty much included all the bands I wanted to see at this year’s festival, with most of the other days being tribute acts. It was all well laid out and the beautiful sunny day helped deliver one of the best days I’ve had at this excellent value local event – advanced day ticket £16, and I can walk home as required.
Queue free drinks tent – yes expensive as usual but not as much as an O2 Academy or most festivals. Toilets fine unless you want to sit/ hover. There is a second stage and a dance tent. I was happy not flitting about and instead taking the break between main stage bands and you wouldn’t catch me in a dance tent anyway. I parked my chair near the front right of the permitted chair horseshoe and stood and wandered at will.
The South brought out a string of hits and got the singalongs going by the second half. I was a bit disappointed not to hear Alison Wheeler sing but it was fine for an early start and you can’t help but smile with the blue sunny sky and songs such as Rotterdam, Don’t Marry Her and A Little Time.
I didn’t get my camera out at this point as still in a state of slumber and I wasn’t sure who anyone was. Later investigation revealed original Beautiful South members to be the absent Alison Wheeler and the original saxophonist who now sings up front: Gaz Birtles.
The best band of the day was The Coral in my book. Solid, melodic rock’n’roll with their distinct sound.
Toploader next. One of the bands that saved me in lockdown with a socially distanced indoor gig when all else was lost. It got me listening to their material and refreshed my memory of their better known tracks from their successful album Onka’s Big Monka, which of course they played Dancing in the Moonlight from.
Full of sun and adequately refreshed with ale, the early finish was perfect for me and Razorlight it was, to take us to 7pm. Another band that surprises with their familiarity when they get going – the ‘oh yes I know that one’ reaction to most of the set, even without having ever bought anything by them. They were big back in 2004-2008.
Nowadays they do a lot of smaller festivals and fill a niche – I must have seen then four or five times by now and the band still has a familiar look and sound. It is only frontman Johnny Borrell who has survived all the band member reshuffles.
There we go. Poole Harbour Festival. Astonishing value with an early bird ticket and hopefully I shall be at the whole weekend next year.
Gigs with Ivan 