Rick Wakeman at Cropredy Folk Festival?!*!

[L33VEY]

How prog can you get?  

It all sounded a bit bizarre, but having gone to Cropredy for the first time last year and enjoyed great weather, the announcement that Mr Wakeman was going to appear with (remnants of) the English Rock Ensemble was too good to miss.  After all, his was the first concert that I went to in 1976.  Sadly the weather was a bit crap this year (mini-tornado and thunderstorm), but as the Easy Stars All-Star reggae band finished their take on Sgt Pepper (no, really, it was good) I prepared to elbow my way to near the front.  I shouldn't have been surprised that the crowd disappeared and I found myself at "stage Pedro" by the barrier at the front.

I'm biased but it was brilliant.  Ashley Holt was in good voice and Lee Pomeroy took a break from Take That and It Bites to do a great job.  The folk crowd booed at the end - because they didn't have time for an encore!

Anyway here's a snippet from near the end of Starship Trooper.  I have a weakness for fast fingered keyboard players..
//http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsA6WYdHHxQ

[MarkOneMusic]

Excellent

Saw his one-man show in Bath Abbey a few weeks ago - just him and the Abbey's *georgous* Steinway 9' model D.  Brilliant.  Met him afterwards too - Mrs One even had a pic with him - thoroughly nice bloke.  We really had intended to catch the ERE show too, but I had it firmly in my mind it was September.  Old age, you see.

I always admire Rick's fluid soloing style.  Ashley has always been one of my fave singers too...

Ah well, I just hope the planned Journey shows next year come off!

[Pedro]

Thanks for that clip, L33VEY.

[owen]

Bloody hell, he's still got it , hasn't he? His rig looks a little more 2010 than that picture you put up Pedro, but I see he's still not a believer in a minimalism!

[davejd]

Brilliant! Me and mrs Davejd are off to see him in sunny chelmsford later this year, cannot wait for this

[ChrisX]

but as the Easy Stars All-Star reggae band finished their take on Sgt Pepper (no, really, it was good)

Hmm... I really didn't like their take on Pepper but they first started with an album called Dub Side Of The Moon which is indeed a reggae version of Pink Floyd's classic. That one is absolutely stellar and has received high praises pretty much everywhere.