March 2009
Fish wrote:
WOW - what an explosive Prestatyn Weekender that was - 2009 will probably be remembered for it's superb live acts, all quite brilliant in their own right. From a 'Modern' perspective MARCELL & THE TRUTH on Friday night were awesome, while Saturday was all about the amazing INCOGNITO featuring the vocals of Tony Momrelle, Joy Rose and Vanessa Haynes.
For close on two hours they belted out hit after hit and had the crowd in the palm of their hand right until the very end. Two hours were over in a flash, and as far as the crowd were concerned they'd have been more than happy for them to perform for another hour !! - and believe me, this is a very rare occurrence at a 'Weekender' these days, where the crowd can quite easily drift off into another room - not so here though !!
I must also give a special mention to my wife Sandy for all her hard work over the weekend that mostly goes un-noticed (it is really appreciated), to all the dj's over the weekend who worked tirelessly to keep the large crowd happy with some fantastic music played in both the 'House Of Soul' and main 'Modern Soul' rooms. The feedback received for the new layout in both rooms was amazing, with the big new stage in 'Arena 2' an absolute revelation, creating a whole new vibe to the room with totally crystal clear quality sound - amazing !!!
Fish
Steve Handbury wrote:
As previously stated, in a time of financial uncertainty and global economic meltdown, the recent Prestatyn weekender proved to be more than successful! In a time of woe and misfortune, it was nice to see so many folks attend the North Wales event proving that the northern and modern soul weekender still has something to offer in the current climate and, what a good do it was too!
As Friday arrived and the majority of people raced home from work eager to take in a weekend of all things soulful, it became very apparent that the event was going to be very busy. The big giveaway was the fact that the car park had swelled to beyond capacity. Many had said that they had to park in Cardiff before walking some distance to the heart of the venue. It really was no exaggeration, well not for us non-walkers anyway!
In all, almost 4000 attended the event which must come close to something of a record considering the economic climate. The merchandising area had been expanded taking in some of the adjoining room which, to be honest, may have proved to be a wise move by all concerned. It created much more visible space for the Saturday night showcase allowing not only those in the tiered seating area to view the show, but those outside the normal arena to get viewing space too.
As far as DJ’s go, both Friday and Saturday nights created highlights from a number of DJ’s, one of which was “new kid on the block” Jamie Taylor who had the modern room buzzing. He continued to do the same throughout the weekend with more sets in the soulful house arena. He’s certainly someone to watch for the future and that doesn’t just come from me. The general feedback was nothing short of great. As far as soulful house goes, the main track for the weekend had to be Jose Burgos featuring Kenny Bobien with a great tune called “For Your Love”. That alone could be the biggest tune of the year so far having the same affect in northern and modern rooms as did Neo’s “Smile” in the year gone by. Marcel and the Truth had a huge crowd but many seemed distracted. It was a different feeling when Bluey and Incognito played the stage in the modern room on Saturday. They seemed to have something of a hold on the audience captivating everyone with their huge catalogue of tunes released both here and in other soulful areas of the world. They really are asset to take on the Universe.
The main show in the northern room saw a massive audience witnessing Lenis Guess, Benny Troy, Bobby Patterson, Eula Cooper and the Volumes singing the songs which gave them fame way back when. Lenis sang the much anticipated “Just Ask Me” along with a couple of other tunes. Benny, who could have done more sang “I Wanna Give You Tomorrow”. Eula coped well with “Beggars Can’t Be Choosy” but, with admiral appreciation, did her best on “Let Our Love Grow Higher”, a song which would test the best of anyone with a voice such are the demands of notes, octaves and anything vocal. I’m biased in my opinion but, to be honest, it was Benny Troy who stole the show. His passion, delivery and sincerity said it all on stage. He made no mention of being given just one song to sing. After all, it was the one that everyone knew and wanted to hear. It may not have shown off his multitude of vocal styles, but it certainly showed off his commitment, dedication and passion for the music he loves. His response from the crowd was above and beyond any other act and came from the heart of all who watched his performance. Don’t let that detract from the others. They all performed beyond expectations and the band was behind them all the way with not a whisper of a hiccup. Even the Volumes, who surprised many with their versions of Magnetics classics, not knowing that many of the members were of the same group, harmonised superbly to put on a great show. As the artists made their way into the café to sign autographs, the night, and indeed the whole weekend, continued with nothing but excellent music from all the DJ’s concerned.
With Chuck Jackson already lined up for October, the success of this event is set to continue.
Steve Handbury
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