Tuesday night in Manchester, and Retro’s downstairs bar is the intimate setting for the launch of ‘Armchair Anarchy’, the LONG-awaited second album from prodigiously talented Moston singer songwriter LEE GRIFFITHS.
Despite the presence of a superstar grand-slam award-winner in town (get this: top-whack tickets to see Barbara Streisand - £550!), the place is packed, with friends, family and gobshites alike out in force to celebrate the return of a local hero.
Discovered originally by Paul Morley and signed to ZTT, Griffiths was on the brink of great things but eventually disowned his debut album, ‘Northern Songs’ following a well-documented dispute with producer Trevor Horn. That move effectively ended his chances of commercial success, consigning yet another mercurial talent to the scrapheap. Or so we thought. Tonight’s crowd is upbeat, and there’s also a shared sense of relief - the new record is absolutely stunning, and apart from the wonders it must work for Lee’s self-belief, it heralds his return from the wilderness in fine style.
The no-bullshit songwriter played two sets, with the help of close friends and long-time collaborators Colin Ridyard and Cheyne Towers, who added a second acoustic guitar and bass respectively. Between them, the three jammed out a superb combination of the old, the new and the highly unlikely to kick off the night in fine style. There were cheers of recognition for ‘It’s A Shame’, one of the highlights of ‘Northern Songs’ - and belly laughs at the sudden pause during a blues-y rendition of Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’:
“I heard it on the radio on the way up, and thought it would be great at a gig” Lee explained with a smile and a scratch of the head: “but I can’t remember the last verse”!
Ripping up the setlist, the freshly-cropped guitarist continued to experiment by treating us to a brand-new work-in-progress - launching into the absorbing tale of self-admonishment and self-centredness with the words: “This is the story of my life”. His absorbing, blues-steeped style (guitar de-tuned and re-tuned from one song to the next) is still as breathtaking as ever. As for his vocal power, it’s immense! This is a man who wears his heart on his sleeve and delivers with passion – though I’ve seen him follow full bands to instantly transform noisy clubs into places where you can hear a pin drop, the intimacy of his material made perfect sense out of the size of tonight’s venue.
From the new album, he rounded off with the luscious ‘Meet Me Halfway’ before making way for tonight’s special guest, the aptly-named VINNY PECULIAR.
The gangly and eccentric veteran endeared himself to the audience in no time Beginning with a performance poem about his paranoid fear of hairdressers’ shops, he postured and cast his eyes towards the ceiling, placing auspicious emphasis on certain words, a bit like a distressed John Hegley:
“Yes, it IS a bit like going to the dentist” he agreed with a delighted woman near the front as he bowed awkwardly during the applause. Gripping his acoustic, he treated us to a selection taken from his insightful album ‘The Fall And Rise Of Vinny Peculiar’.
The titles alone of songs like ‘Everlasting Teenage Bedroom’ and ‘Jesus Stole My Girlfriend’ are full of incisive humour and hit-the-nail-on-the-head truth. Vinny’s delivery was all the more startling during an acoustic performance that saw him spiral frequently to hit the dizzy heights before floating gently back down again - despite him bearing the full weight of each number (and what seemed like the world) on his shoulders.
Everyone was grinning or laughing when the awkward performer gave us ‘Confessions Of A Sperm Donor’, and his short set worked wonders in easing the tension that Griffiths cranks up during his heartfelt performances:
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Back onstage, Lee's scathing humour in between songs kept the laughter flowing. Creepy, sychophantic A&R men bore the brunt of his sardonic wit, along with Londoners (for their general lack of social skills) and anyone else who dared to walk ‘round ‘shite-shod’, a Griffiths pet hate of long-standing. His merciless attacks on awful bowling-type ‘leisure’ footwear in particular had the whole room glancing at their pals’ feet. Amidst the pointing and laughter he lifted a leg to reveal his own foot residing snugly inside a Gazelle 2. What this revealed about him was crystal-clear, but he still spelt it out, to howls of mirth:
“I – do – NOT – fuck – about!” he announced emphatically between pauses for effect, eyes dancing as he struggled to keep the grin from his face.
There was a drummer onstage too: “This man has had only an hour to rehearse” announced Lee, as he led the applause for the percussionist, whose shuffling patterns provided a subtle but solid backdrop as the new record was brilliantly showcased. ‘Paranoid’ and the very apt ‘Back On My Feet’ were both a reflection of his undoubted talent and the defiant/delicate nature of it, whilst the gorgeous ‘Everybody’s Leaving’ sounded as soulful and utterly fragile as ever, even as momentum gathered quickly.
Cooking with gas now, the full force of his performance spiced with a frisson of venom – Griffiths making it clear that the falling-out over ‘Northern Songs’ still rankled – this was a wild celebration of a record that will surely signal his explosive return to the limelight.
Thanking the friends who ‘saved his sanity’, he held the room spellbound with ‘Scared’. Superb, effortless and again full of soul, it was followed in turn by the scream-in-your-face frustration of ‘Golden Rule’, and the white-hot 6T’s counter-culture expose ‘Hippy Dippy’. Filled with pop-art references to The Beatles, Griffiths applies his songwriting skill to a juxtaposition of images in strong support of the argument that “Dylan never should have gone electric in ‘65”. The results are spectacular, and sure to be released as a future single
Back on top form, Lee Griffiths has matured into one of the best acoustic singer/songwriters in the country. The fact that he’s without a record deal is one that puts the music industry to shame. Even in the pop world, where it’s taken as read that ever-changing trends already dictate that most talent is lost under the wheels of whatever bandwagon is being jumped at the time, it beggars belief that he’s yet to find another label. Fergawdsake, the man is GIFTED!
On the strength of his new material, things in that department are surely academic. LEE GRIFFITHS looks set to bounce back with a vengeance, forgetting his ZTT nightmare for good as part of the process. Though he really shouldn’t need it at all, we wish him the best of luck.
**ARMCHAIR ANARCHY was released on itunes on July 9th, and is now available from record stores across the country
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