Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Derek King may not have been scheduled to perform at this year’s Liverpool Acoustic day at Threshold but nobody would ever complain if he was to get up out of one of the comfortable seats, make his way past the overflowing bar and sidestep the coats, the note takers and the musically in groove to have got up on stage and played a couple of his much admired songs before gently returning to the audience and watching the reminder of the day go past with a smile on his face.

Nobody would protest, not a single person would deprive the ears such a show of cool and pleasure; it was a pleasure that was forthcoming and wonderfully handled as the Saturday, arguably always the best day of the week regardless, took on an edge of immense satisfaction as Derek King made sure there was no gap in the running order due to a last minute cancellation and as Time shrank back slightly as the man made his way through the set, pleasure was imminent and full of absolute power. This was Mr. King at his best, a force of untameable nature bowling all before him, strong, dependable, so in tune with the day it made you believe that providence was not just a set of happy accidents but a fate worth exploring.

Stepping into the breach with dear friends cannot be easy, the moment to prepare lost in the melee of a festival appearance and yet like Henry V, once more into breach was only the signal for the greater prize ahead, this was a domain in which the realm of acoustic music in Liverpool was at its fullest and nobody could have filled the hole with more conviction.

With songs such as Sometimes, To Be A Boy, the fantastic appearance of a new song in Seasons, Sally and Across The Strings thrown into the unexpected day’s recruit, the crowd gathered at the Baltic Social were given one of those rare but distinguished reasons to admit that life sometime gives you a bonus; in Derek King the bonus was clear and proud, a tremendous asset to Liverpool’s overall music scene anyway but one that can hold the day in the palms of his hands and cradle it with warmth, glory and sensitivity.

Ian D. Hall