Jazz breaking news: Marley’s Catch A Fire goes epic at Royal Festival Hall
Friday, July 12, 2013
The jazz-edged tribute to Bob Marley’s Catch a Fire, returns to the South Bank this Saturday 13 July after its initial sell-out performance last year at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, this time moving to the much larger Royal Festival Hall.
The rambunctious interpretation of Bob Marley and the Wailers’ iconic 1973 album now boasts bigger-than-ever musical resources, led by Gary Crosby’s Jazz Jamaica All Stars, with strings provided by the Urban Soul Orchestra and special guest vocals from Aswad’s Brinsley Forde (pictured left). Where last year’s show featured a modest 80 voices, this year’s choir is four times the size in the form of the Southbank’s 240-person Voicelab choir; all of which promises to get the audience’s hips shaking.
Adapted and expanded from the iconic original album, the tough, socially conscious side of Marley’s strident reggae is tempered here by expanded orchestral harmonies, while Jazz Jamaica add a little swing to the album’s timeless grooves. Strings and an a capella trio bring more lustre, while the big band provide harmonic depth and, along with the orchestral and choral muscle, creates a much larger sonic representation of Marley’s music that should fill the RFH with ease. All of which highlights the power, and continued relevance, of Marley’s message of freedom 40 years on from Catch A Fire’s original release and a fitting celebration of 50 years of Jamaican independence.
– Matthew Wright
For m tickets call 0844 8750073 or more info go to www.southbankcentre.co.uk