On Friday April 2, 2010 Mostly Autumn performed a farewell gig for their founding and leading lady Heather Findlay. The band members describe this event as 'the end of a journey, a long and inspiring road stretching back further than thirteen years'. For the last time, Heather Findlay performed as the female lead singer of Mostly Autumn together with her musical friends Bryan Josh (lead guitar), Iain Jennings (keyboards), Andy Smith (bass), Olivia Sparnenn (vocals), Liam Davison (guitars, vocals), Gavin Griffiths (drums) and Anne-Marie Helder (keyboards, flutes, backing vocals). The result has been recorded for the live double album That Night In Leamington, the eleventh (!) live-CD by Mostly Autumn. After listening to both CDs several times, I think they're still in a very good shape. Most of the songs are well-known and during the whole concert the enthusiastic response of the audience after each song is striking. However, Flowers For Guns and Unoriginal Spirit are new to me. Both tracks have been taken from Glass Shadows, but unfortunately I'm not familiar with that album. Although none of the songs on both CDs are badly performed, my best three songs from the first CD are Fading Colours, The Spirit Of Autumn Past (part II) and The Last Bright Light. From the second disc my personal favourites are Carpe Diem, The Dark Before The Dawn, Mother Nature - a brilliant extended seventeen-minute version - Heroes Never Die and Evergreen, Heather Findlay's personal love song for nature. More than once That Night In Leamington shows that Mostly Autumn perfectly knows how to captivate an audience with more than two hours of excellent live music. With the departure of Heather Findlay, the band lost a unique and lovely personality. Now let's wait for the future and see whether Olivia Sparnenn, being the new front lady, is capable to lift the band to an even higher level. **** Cor Smeets (edited by Peter Willemsen) Where to buy? |
