Beans on Toast / Rescue Rooms / Nottingham

In a crazy world that got even more dangerous today with the events in the Ukraine, I don’t think we could have had a better guest at Nottingham’s Rescue Rooms tonight than Beans on Toast, to remind us, in simple words that shouldn’t needs saying “War is bad and killing is wrong”. A folk singer with a passion for the beauty and wonder of the natural world around us, with songs on a range of subjects from joy and love, to marriage, to war, corporations, waste, global warming and animal cruelty.

Beans, or Essex born Jay McAllister has released 14 albums in the last decade and has cut following and is best known on the festival circuit. This was a tour made up predominantly of tracks from his latest album, 2021’s “Survival of the Friendliest”, an incredible album which we reviewed in December 2021 and gave a maximum 10 to: https://www.livewiremusic.org/home/beansontoastalbumreview01122021

Usually a solo performer, “Survival of the Friendliest” was a more collaborative album with a richer sound as a result, and on this tour, Beans was accompanied by Kitty Liv and Jack Flanagan to bring the full experience of the album to the live crowds on the tour.

Indeed, support tonight was provided by Kitty Liv, perhaps best known as part of Kitty, Daisy and Lewis, known for their mix of styles including rock and roll, R&B, blues, soul, punk and rockabilly. Playing a set of nine tracks Kitty entertained the crowd with her wonderful vocals, incredible blues rock guitar style and amazing harmonica player. If you haven’t heard Kitty play, I recommend you check out her 2021 EP “The River that Flows” which includes a simply wonderful version of the classic track Money. A really good start to the night’s entertainment.

Beans set was broken down in to three sections. The whole band came out initially and they played a number of tracks from the new album with Kitty and Jack both providing backing vocals and taking terms on electric guitar and bass. The set opens with the outstanding A Beautiful Place a song about the beauty of the natural world around us, and a happy uplifting song, followed by Blow Volcano Blow about loving life, and freedom (and animal cruelty through the link to animals in cages). We head into Not Everyone Thinks We’re Doomed which felt so poignant today of all days. One of my favourite tracks I’m Home When You Hold Me a song about love and feeling at home, not in the sense of being ‘at home’ but in the persons arms you love the most. We had A War on War which goes down a treat with thew large Rescue Rooms crowd and then N. D. M. Amazing a song about experiences at festivals. Beans joked with the crowd that the final part of the song was actually a lie. That he had actually lost his phone but ended up on the National Express bus alone travelling home, but who wants to ends the song like that !!!!! He told the crowd that it was the only song he’d ever written that wasn’t completely true, and it was his biggest hit !

Then Kitty and Jack left the stage and we had Beans all to our selves for about 40 minutes.

Beans is never happier than when he’s in front of a live audience, and he comes alive. It’s far more than a concert, he chats with, and laughs with the audience and you come away feeling like a friend and having been a part of the experience. What set list there was goes out of the window as Beans stands alone on the stage, asking the audience for their favourites songs from his back catalogue they want to hear.

Beans had been contacted by a fan who had just retired after 35 years working in the NHS and he asked for a song to be played so he played Homerton Hospital (where his daughter had been born) for him. I say he played it, we never actually made it right through. Beans broke down laughing several times as he realised he couldn’t remember the lyrics lol ! At one point he asked if anyone in the audience knew the words and invited a lady on to the stage to help him sing it. He gave it one last go and then gave up “f*ck it, I’ll play you a new track instead if that’s ok ?”

The audience loved it, and it brought a wonderful humanness to everything. After a fantastic rendition of Major Oak (which brought rousing cheers from the locals) we had another conversational interlude as Beans told us about how his record player had been hijacked and he seemed to only hear the Frozen 2 soundtrack, but again made the crowd laugh as he recounted how talking to another Dad he had explained that the film, was actually about our colonial history !

A wonderful moment in the form of the delightful Album of the Day about how, on days he has with his daughter he plays an album right through, how it was meant to be heard by the artist, and using music to help educate and stimulate growth.

Another excellent track was Commons about how most of the countryside and it’s rivers have been taken into private ownership, removing the people’s rights to roam.

Then, Kitty and Jack returned to the stage and they played the rest of the set out together.

The range of topics continued as we were entertained with World Gone Crazy, followed by Humans and then something a little different as we got a brilliant cover of the classic track Break on Through by The Doors. Another conversational and humourous interlude as Beans explained how he had managed to continue to perform through the lockdown by taking on some private wedding work. Hilariously, not keen to do it, he put on a high fee and was surprised to find people wanted him to perform still, so feeling guilty for the high fee, started to write a special song for the couple to make the occasion extra special. However over time he ended up writing a generic song that he could slot their names into lol, and then felt guilty again !!!!!

The theme of love and friendship returned again with Let’s Get Married Again, and Love Yourself.

Beans, Kitty and Jack left the stage and came back on for the inevitable (and eagerly awaited) encore. We got an extra four tracks, starting with Things another new track Back Out on the Road (?) celebrating the return of live shows, and in particular saying thanks to the venue operators, the fans and the staff that make shows so special. We then had the tongue in cheek Harry in a helicopter in which the crowd roared their approval on such a dark day for the Ukraine as he sang the line “War is bad and killing is wrong….” Finally we had the classic On and On.

And that was it, all over. With a main set of over an hour and a half, full of laughs and fun and outstanding music, the crowd finally left thoroughly entertained.

Beans is a man full of a lust for life, happiness at being alive and he wants to share this and the wonders of the world around us with everyone. Quite simply ne of the best shows I’ve been to for a long long time and I can’t wait to see Beans live again. On a dark dark day, a breath of fresh air, of hope and joy…… and love…… Amen to that.