Liane Carroll: Live at The Cowshed

A packed audience at The Cowshed in the depths of North Hertfordshire were delighted by an evening of jazz with a smattering of humour in the capable hands of Liane Carroll and her trio.

Pianist and singer Liane Carroll is someone I’ve heard of and caught snatches of through the years, and it was a delight to hear her in two complete sets at The Cowshed as it celebrated its first anniversary.

She brought with her Loz Garratt (bass guitar) and Russell Field (drums), who play regularly with her, but are also much in demand with some of the UK’s other top musicians.

As usual, the evening was hosted by The Cowshed's Artistic Director, Italian pianist Marco Marconi. He continues to book performers of the highest calibre in the jazz world and this evening was no exception.

Together, the trio wended their way with humour and great dexterity through jazz standards, pop tunes and an eclectic choice that included Tom Waits’s Take Me Home and Laura Nyro’s California Shoeshine Boys.

I was particularly delighted by her first two tracks in the second half - Walk Between Raindrops from Donald Fagen’s superlative The Nightfly album and then Lou Reed’s Walk on the Wildside, which only missed Ronnie Ross’s brilliant baritone sax solo from the original.

Charismatic is a word much overused but absolutely applicable to Liane. She not only played fantastic piano, but she sang emotively and evocatively and told great jokes. Audience and musicians spent most of the evening smiling, even with some difficult personal stories that put the songs in context.

Liane’s mic control is superlative and her vocal range is vast - both in terms of octaves and in dynamics. But she’s a true entertainer and finishing her set with Carole King’s You’ve Got a Friend left us all feeling we were in the presence of friends.

I may never have seen a full Liane Carroll performance before, but I’ll be seeking out another one soon.

Catch forthcoming jazz performances at The Cowshed and help them in their support of live music and local charities