By Jove, its Jenkins

By jove, its Jenkins
By Eldred Jiggle
A weekend of praise and celebration (and well done to Hull KR, two rugby teams in the super league now next year - I'm gunna have to learn the rules!) was brought to a great end by taking Dee, Jobes and Donna into the wild wolds of Yarkshire for a Billy Jenkins treat. After steadfastly staying in London for a few years, Jenkins is back on the road with his Songs Of Praise tour to celebrate his 50th birthday. Being Bill, he is playing at a converted woolshed, now village hall, called The Shed, in Hovingham, miles from anywhere (and if you want to see some of the amazing stuff creator Simon Thackray does there, click here). Being Bill fans, we relish the opportunity for some off-roading en route to venue. Most village hall fare is likely to involve jams/tombolas or line dances, so let me put your mind at rest. Jenkins is a blues improviser of amazing skill, but he is just so dang watchable. Cue sheets fall all over the place, he performs one song lying flat on his back, barks instructions to his amazing five-piece band, and leads us on a loosely-conceptual journey through his 30-year music career. It includes Jazz Had A Baby (And They Called It Avant-Garde), First Time The Earth Shook, the haunting jazz of Bhopal and audience sing songs through What A Wonderful World and Everybody's Talkin'. Jenkins' guitar sounds like a beast he can barely control but it's amazing stuff. Stewart Lee said that if "Clapton is God, then Jenkins is the giant turtleon which the entire universe stands". Well said, I think.Wanna hear some on Rupert's MYSpace? Click here