High above the streets of Liverpool, almost within eye-line of the St. John’s Beacon that stands eerily out when the sea mist and fog attempt to cover the city in a sense of gloom and bone-jarring cold, a multitude of people gathered for a cause which has become arguably the most serious of concerns for a generation. The plight of the homeless, the shocking betrayal by our government of its people, a damning indication of what their priorities actually are, that is to cause distress and anguish and the hope that the privileged few back them to the hilt, that the majority left untouched by this disgrace will fall over themselves to walk away from the problem in the promise that they wring their hands in time with the sound of Christmas bells chiming and tills chirping.
We should feel ashamed at this turn of events in which it seems the Victorian era attitudes to the poor and helpless, the vulnerable and the disassociated have almost become politically fashionable once more, a small step to the return of the work house, and one that has already seen unforgiveable deaths on the streets and abandoned places in every town and city in the U.K.
In quiet corners and thoughts revolutions are started, perhaps not the overthrow of the corrupt just yet, but to the ideals they espouse with hand on reckless and stony heart. Revolutions are conceived in such adversity, bringing people together to understand the mess and terror in which they might not have realised they are just a few pay-checks short of joining and for one night at least, although the project is only just beginning to take superb shape, the 6th floor room of the Shankly Hotel played host to both the talented Satin Beige and one of Liverpool’s seminal bands, Space, as the message of helping the homeless became the urgent talk of the evening.
It is within the Signature Live Sessions of both sets of artists that much needed money was raised, music was enjoyed by those ready to lend a hand, music, artists of all persuasions willing to eradicate the greatest and deplorable actions imposed on a set of people, a gig in name perhaps but one that went deeper than a night out, that struck a chord with those in the room and out on the roof top terrace, the memory of Andy Parle, cruelly taken at a young age was etched upon the faces, dancing, bouncing, taking time to enjoy the support and the main act, but respectful to the charity in which they both supported.
Not necessarily a gig, but an absolute belter of an event, a first half showing by the phenomenally talented Satin Beige as she played songs such as Goodnight Manhattan, Love Drunk, Like You Did Before, a passionate rendition of Santa Baby and the explosive Being Me, and a sensational, heavy sound, blistering in its intensity and emotionally brutal and charming in equal measure rampaging through Space’s set, the sublime Tommy Scott, the electric and feverishly playful Franny Griffiths, the prowling majesty of Phil Hartley and the calm precision and deft hand of Allan Jones all combined to produce one of the finest of shows. Songs such as Charlie M, Begin Again, Happy Clowns, Be There, Strange World, the excellent Avenging Angels, Mister Psycho, the glorious Female of the Species, the apt title of Me and You Against the World and Neighbourhood marking the evening with their individual prowess and searing lyrics.
An event, an occasion with hard truths about the world displayed and raising issues to their prominent position, never mind what way jam and cream go on a scone, never mind the close reading and interpretation of a children’s book for internet argument or the adulation of soap operas, we have surely bigger fights, larger battles that must be fought, and homelessness is one of them. A tremendously important evening in Liverpool, displayed with passion by Satin Beige and Space.
Ian D. Hall