The Fisherman’s Friends / Royal Concert Hall / Nottingham

May 11

May 11 The Fisherman’s Friends / Royal Concert Hall / Nottingham

Almost 30 years ago, a group of friends, bound together by a love of music, got together to on the Platt (harbour) in their home town of Port Isaac to raise some money for charity as The Fisherman’s Friends. How things have changed over those years !

They’ve gone on to perform at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations, the Hyde Park Proms in the Park, to 80,000 rugby fans at Twickenham and on the prestigious Pyramid Stage at the iconic Glastonbury festival. They’ve release ten albums, a best selling book, TV documentary, a musical, and two feature films that have grossed $15 million at the UK box office.

All this while still holding down their daytime jobs ! The line up may have changed over the years but tonight we welcome Bill (a Potter), Cleavie (a Shop owner & author), Jason and Jeremy (Fishermen), John (a Builder), Lefty (a Farmer & Engineer), Toby (a TV & Film Producer) and their latest member, Marcus Bonfanti (a Singer & Songwriter).

The Royal Concert Hall is absolutely packed tonight, there’s not a free seat around and it’s great to see a real mix in the audience. Yes, there are a lot of older fans, but there’s young couples, children all around the auditorium too.

There’s no support act, The Fisherman’s Friends perform two 60+ minute sets with an interval. The lights dim and the guys walk out on to the stage. There is no fancy set, no tricks, smoke or flashing lights, just a large Cornish flag draped behind them with sailing flags either side of it. You could hear a pin drop before they started with Jon Kanaka a bright and breezy, up tempo classic fun shanty, that has the crowd clapping and singing along with gusto.

On the whole the first set is more mellow, with a mix of folk and shanty songs. The band talk at ease with the audience throughout, and the repour with their audience is all part of the charm. At one point Cleavie, looking at the crowd suggests that they set sail, the remarks that looking at us and you…. its more like a Saga cruise down the Danube, in calm waters, sipping Blue Nun or Liebfraumilch !

There are light hearted and fun shanties in there too, such as Being a Pirate about how you can’t be a pirate with all your body parts. Speaking to the crowd, Jeremy tells us that next is a song performed by Toby, who only ever sings dark songs. When originally written The Golden Vanity had one death in it, the poor cabin boy. But Jeremy tells us that Toby re-wrote it. How many die now Toby he asked…. Everybody Toby replied in a menacing tone lol.

Sweet Maid of Madeira is a song about Cornishmen doing what Cornishmen do best and salvage everything they can from a ship that ran aground, but one young fellow admiring and falling in love with the beautiful figurehead. For me, the song of the first set was a beautiful rendition of Pay Me My Money Down which highlights their beautiful harmonies perfectly.

A well earner rest for the vocal chords (and a chance for us to refresh ourselves) and we eagerly return to our seats for part two. Part two starts with Nelson’s Blood a song about sailors risking a flogging for the chance to sip from the barrel of brandy in which Nelson’s body was held on its return to England.

Perhaps the highlight of the night was a heart-felt, and stirring rendition of Cornwall My Home a tribute to their homeland, their Eden. Beautifully sung, the audience sat in silence and you could see some getting quite emotional !

A lighter moment again with the wonderful Billy O’Shea a tongue in cheek song about young Billy, press-ganged into service having fallen drunk in Bristol Docks, and a life of hardship aboard a ship. Another one that the audience eagerly sing along with.

There’s no frontman, or leader in the Fisherman’s Friends, with each group member leading the singing of songs, and the accordion, guitar and mandolin adding a folk feel to the songs. There delivery and vocal skills are incredible, with rich harmonies and beautiful capellas.

As the second set draws to a close, the Bonny Ship the Diamond is a sing-a-long classic about a whaling ship, followed by the rousing song No Hopers, Jokers and Rogues a rallying cry – drop your tools, slow that potters wheel and turn off your engines and enjoy life, with the rousing chorus “Come all you no hopers, you jokers and rogues. We're on the road to nowhere, let's find out where it goes. It might be a ladder to the stars, who knows? Come all you no hopers, you jokers and rogues!”

I’m not sure there’s a better song to end any set.

The applause and shouts are deafening as the audience cry out for more, and of course the men from Cornwall comply, serving up a three song encore, ending with the fun, light-hearted Drunken Sailor before ending on South Australia a song of the long haul journey round the Cape to Australia, one where Cleavie’s baritone vocals shine through in the mix.

An incredible performance, and thoroughly enjoyable throughout. The Fisherman’s Friends still regularly perform on the Platt in Port Isacc, and I’m sure if you closed your eyes, you could feel as if you were there !