Dorset musician and singer/songwriter Jason Lloyd-Bevis has been playing and performing music for over 36 years in various bands all over the UK. Recently he has decided to focus on creating his own original material, which was motivated after the death of his beloved Step Father who tragically passed away some years ago after a short and aggressive battle with cancer. Joining together with his Step Father’s best friend Peter Sherburne, the two found some comfort in making music that he would have approved of. The 12 track album entitled “Face To Face” was put together with the help of Matt Black at Hangover Hill studios in Wimborne and a host of hand-picked musicians. The records orchestration provides echoes of Pink Floyd, King Crimson and Chris Rea; with a host Americana, Country, Rock and Blues sounds to grace your ears.
The album opens with the track “Onwards & Upwards”, a tune originally created by a late friend Martin “Donk” Donkersly while in a band called “Coldwater” in 1999. The song was partly rewritten along with some totally new instrumentation. Opening to the sound of Si Genaro’s atmospheric harmonica, joined with some poignant guitar and we are introduced to Jason’s fine vocals, who delivers the meaningful lyrics harmoniously. “Build Me a City” is about the world closing in and personal conflict inside, its about breaking out and pushing forward to achieve your goal. Matt Black’s fingers across the ivories joins the Gilmour style strings and the rhythm gives the song its significant propulsion.
On Track three “Forget About Tonight”, we take a detour onto another musical path with some initial Spanish style guitar; with a song that was written about Royal Ballet Prima Ballerina Assoluta Margo Fontain, a dancer for over 40 years until her demise from cancer in February 1991 at the age of 72. The songs lyrics detail her life struggles and her relationship with the British press. The songs instrumentation is slow and moody, the band bring some beautiful emotive sounds very fitting of the subject matter. “Confidence is Provence” is about the inner struggle against self-belief and the ability to push through with confidence and see your own self worth. The acoustic and electric guitars pull together meandering in and out of piano, harmonica and Jason’s smooth vocal. The shimmeringly vibrant blues-style guitar solo is the proverbial cherry on the cake on this well crafted piece.
Another fork in the road as “Mesmerised” opens with a bit of Matt Black’s boogie-woogie piano, before we are joined by yet more rich guitar sounds with not one but two guitarists’ Peter Sherburne and Frank Smithland taking up the mantle. The tune takes up the story of a man and woman going out to the same bar and getting lost in each other. The song is one of the stand-out numbers on this record as there is so much to enjoy with the infectious rhythms, guitar solos and harmonica all excelling on this firecracker of a tune. Halfway through we find “Grass Roots” a number that features a significant change in personnel with Tabitha Sansom taking over beautifully on lead vocal, with South Coast sensation Chris Payn guesting on lead guitar with fantastic results. The passionately created lyrics ascertain to prove that love can overcome parts of life by holding on together through thick and thin.
In stark contrast to the last track “Snake in the Grass” is about the breakdown of a relationship that has been pushed too far and is broken. Jason’s animated vocals, coupled with the emotive sounding guitar creates the background for this song that is fraught with pain and retribution. The emotive theme continues with “My Heart Bleeds”, which was a difficult song for JLB to create as this was his late Step Father’s favourite song that he had written. Originally it was never properly finished and the release of this album was a chance to put that straight. Once again the two lead guitarists return to provide the deep stirring riffs that gifts the tune its own sentimentality. The two guitarists may hold the limelight, however the dependable bassist Rob Baxter has provided rock solid backing for this and many of the other songs on this collection. “My Heart Bleeds” is another of the stand out tracks and one that ceremoniously pulls at the heartstrings.
“My Kin” is a creation written about a soldiers life; joining with mates, training, to sitting in a bar reminiscing and toasting to empty glasses and fallen friends. When joining such a profession you are put together with strangers who have your back and vice versa and soon in such an environment an unbreakable bond is undoubtably built. This tune features all the rudiments of the previous songs, along with some notable synth sounds that add a slightly different dimension, further complementing the other instrumentation.
“Kickin on Down” is probably one of my favourite tunes of the collection, it instantly hits the spot with its forthright lyrics and sentiments about Jason’s wife. From Matt Black’s opening piano piece and the wonderous vocal delivery, which is clearly sung from the heart; the meanderings of the guitar and subtle rhythms are just perfect, I can just hear this being played in a Blues club with music connoisseurs acutely listening. It’s also a very radio friendly piece with an instant hook that listeners will latch on to very quickly. The penultimate song was probably the first song I heard on this collection and local legend Si Genaro really excels with his harmonica on this one, the haunting sounds set you up for the arrangements ahead. This is a tune that is smooth and dynamic with some velvety twin-guitar work and I for one would love to hear this live with the full band in attendance. The two guitarists both have different styles but compliment each other so well. I feel this is one of the most complex of all the tracks to put together and one that was well worth all the effort put into its creation. The songs lyrics detail the courage it takes to start a relationship after that initial love at first sight moment.
The final track of this significant collection is “Mary Writes”, a story of a woman who is in a bad relationship, who bravely leaves and goes on to find her ‘soul mate’. This track features the aforementioned musicians, along with backing vocals from “Millers Daughter” – a duo comprising of twin sisters Lou & Christine Miller. This tune has an real Americana feel to it with prominent drumming from Brian Wright along with a killer chorus that grabs you straight away with the three-part harmonies really punching the words right out there. Of course, for the guitar lovers there is one last guitar solo to savour and it’s well worth waiting until the end for. There is no filler here with a great track to leave you with, then again hit the repeat button and play it all again as there is so much to enjoy on this record.
“Face To Face” has been a labour of love for its instigator Jason Lloyd-Bevis, here he has gathered some hand-picked musicians and probably called in a few favours to bring a fantastic cast together for what I can only say is a great album full of impressive tracks that show some wonderful creativity. It would be great if they could all get together at some time in the future and play this record live, as the tracks would lend themselves to be played on stage with a full band.
Involved Musicians…
Jason Lloyd-Bevis
Matt Black
Peter Sherburne
Frank Smithland
Rob Baxter
Tabitha Sansom
Chris Payn
Si Genaro
Brian Wright
Millers Daughter Duo
Track Listing
Onwards and Upwards
Build Me a City
Forget about Tonight
Confidence is Provence
Mesmerized
Grass Roots
Snake in The Grass
My Heart Bleeds
My Kin
Kickin’ On Down
Breaking On Through
Mary Writes
Links
https://www.facebook.com/JLB.music.UK
https://jlbandco.bandcamp.com
Article by David Chinery (Chinners)
