Mark Ronson's Amy Winehouse tribute gig at Greenwich Summer Sessions
Before Wednesday night, I'd honestly really never bought into the whole Mark Ronson thing.I mean, obviously he's very good at talent spotting- Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen and Adele being just a few of his proteges,but its only when I saw him on stage playing the guitar,then the drums, then DJing a set of massive hits,all of which he'd produced-that I realised quite what a talent he is in his own right.
All of his band 'The Business International' were also brilliant, multi-talented performers- holding their own next to big stars like Mark and guests like Andrew Wyatt from Miike Snow.
I have an awful lot of respect for someone who manages to be professional enough to go on with a gig the day after the funeral of one of his closest friends.He turned what could have been a very sobre evening into a magnificent celebration of good music-opening with Dave from The Zutons singing Valerie, which he originally wrote and Amy later covered. Later on Mark slipped some of Amy's 'Rehab' into his DJ set, and as the final encore, he brought some of Amy's backing singers and band members on stage to lead the crowd in a rendition of Valerie.It was what everyone wanted-a cathartic, public celebration of Amy's life and her music that will last forever.
The noisettes also deserve a mention for their fantastic support set- Shingai looking stunning as ever (you can catch the quick interview I did with her here), the stage decked out with suitably flamboyant feathers and lace-clad backing singers.Shingai's energy on stage never ceases to amaze me-she even did a cartwheel at one point.Whilst singing.Take that,mimers!
Greenwich Summer Sessions continue for a few more nights, closing with Songs in the Key of London on Sunday.
Photos by Katie Antoniou