Gary A. Gardner at St. Luke’s Church, Liverpool. August 2014.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The last year must seem like a dream to Gary A. Gardener. A man who found his way back into performing, who has played gig after gig in the local area and beyond and who has been roundly supported and appreciated fully. Why this might be a surprise one can only surmise however when you can write songs with clarity and overwhelming sensitivity, the surprise must be taken out to the wood shed, spanked and told that it is not welcome for Mr. Gardener really does fit the bill in terms of very good musicians who can hold an audience’s attention.

Freedom comes with privilege and reticence, but freedom must be sought, it must guarded with the frightening speed of a crafty gazelle out running the adventurous lion, so must freedom in music be looked after and held with caution. For Gary Gardner that liberty is not taken for granted. That in itself is refreshing, for there is no pretension in the man or his songs, there is nothing but a sense of truth and honour.

With a set list that included songs such as Have I Crossed That Bridge Enough For You, the beauty of Human Kind, Wooden Heart, the sublimely written ode to the homeless in Falling Down and the marvellous closer of his newly written song Letting Go, Gary Gardner has seemingly grown in stature in such a short space of time, so much so that the aforementioned new song feels like a natural stepping stone to a new era for the man. This is a very encouraging sign and one that also should be grasped by musician and audience alike.

For the vast majority of time musicians grow when placed in the studio for lengthy, almost lonely, periods, to see someone do so infront of you from start to finish of a half hour set was thrill worth by passing every single other event in the city on a Saturday in August for.

Ian D. Hall