Concert bowls over fans at cricket ground
James Morrison wows the
St Lawrence Ground crowd on Saturday night. Picture: Barry
Goodwin
by Katie Alston and Adam Williams
The smack of leather on willow made way for a
chorus of singing crowds as two concerts at the home of Kent County
Cricket Club went down a storm.
British pop sensations The Sugababes and James
Morrison headlined the first Stars Under The Stars event on Friday
and Saturday at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury. Those who
made the trip to the city had only a long wait for the bar as
reason for disappointment.
On Friday night men, women and children dotted
themselves around the hallowed turf to watch chart toppers The
Sugababes perform hits from their back catalogue. The svelte and
sophisticated trio entertained the mixture of ages for what felt
like an intimate gig. Support acts rapper DJ Ironik and 16-year-old
singer/songwriter Alex Root, from Bromley, proved to be more than
worthy of sharing the bill.
After an hour tottering round on stage in
their incredibly high heels, busting moves and hitting the high
notes, it was time for Keisha Buchanan, Heidi Range and Amelle
Berrabah, to clamber back into their chauffer driven Mercedes and
wave good bye to the fans.
Angela Martin, 31, from Wincheap said: “They
were amazing, I can’t believe how close I could get to the
stage.
“It’s a fantastic venue because there just
seems to be bags of room to move around.
“Whether that’s because there aren’t that many
people here or because organisers planned it that way, I don’t
know.
“But if you weren’t here, you definitely
missed out.”
The following evening, a sharp afternoon
shower failed to dampen spirits as first 19-year-old folk-pop
sensation Lisa Mitchell and then soul-funk five-piece Vagabond,
warmed up an estimated 9,000 crowd.
Sugababes Keisha
Buchanan, Heidi Range and Amelle Berrabah on stage on Friday night.
Picture: Chris Davey.
But that was all just a dress rehearsal for
what was to come as Morrison belted out hits from his first two
albums, in a set lasting more than an hour and a half. Backing
singer Beverley Brown stepped in to Nelly Furtado’s shoes for duet
Broken Strings, while the crowd sang along in perfect harmony to
tracks including You Give Me Something and Wonderful World. The
24-year-old revelled in the atmosphere and even managed to work
Canterbury into two or three choruses.
Kelly Jenkins, 16, from Rough Common thought
the show was a huge success.
She said: “It was great, I’m a huge James
Morrison and he didn’t disappoint.
“It’s really cool that a big name like this is
playing in Canterbury and I hope there’s more shows like this in
years to come.”
Sunday, June 28 2009