rashbre central: Billy Bragg in Islington

Friday 22 November 2019

Billy Bragg in Islington


Time for a topup of Billy Bragg at the Islington Assembly Hall. As luck would have it, this was the middle day of a row of three, during which he played from his 'chop and clang' repertoire, which comprises all the songs I know best and can sing along.

So, it would seem, did much of the rest of the audience gathered, and Milkman of Human Kindness and New England were largely crowd assisted.

Billy Bragg's banter with the crowd was as fine as ever and he did that thing of bringing an immediate new and newsy item to the stage, when he told us about Jeremy Corbyn's latest election pledge, which most of us would have missed, being in transit to the gig.

Then we were treated to an express train of his songs, accompanied on the shiny guitar, the green Burns Steer and the acoustic, all three of which he's played on for much of his gigging time, even sporting the same straps.

In between, he speaks with conviction and fervour about the state of the Union and which side are you on? (clue: vote tactically) The largely London audience were suitably contemptuous of their ex-mayor and some of those little fibs he's been spouting.

A glorious evening of entertainment, with Billy's tunes still ringing in our ears as we made our way back to the tube.

I didn't take pictures, instead here's waiting for the great leap forwards from Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop, where Billy blends some racing handlebars into the lyrics.

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