Transformer man
Texan soul man practises his new R&B moves in a small club.
“TICKETLESS FANS ARE HAPPY TO LISTEN TO THE GIG WHILE STANDING IN THE DRIZZLE.”
The last time Leon Bridges played in London, back in April 2016, he comfortably sold out the 4,900-capacity O2 Academy Brixton, meaning that the pavement outside this club show for an audience of 420 is abuzz with ticketless fans desperate to gain access. In the event, those who can’t get in are happy to listen to the gig while standing in the drizzle. Inside, as Bridges unleashes his set-to-stun soul voice on tried-andfreshly-minted tested opener Smooth Sailin’, the crowd is instantly awed. It’s immediate proof of why this 28-year-old Texan was fast-tracked from his dishwashing-in-a-diner days of 2014 to the Top 10 transatlantic status of his Coming Home debut album only a year later. For its follow-up, Good Thing, Bridges has attempted a tricksy timeslip from his ‘60s vintage soul moves to modernist R&B, as evidenced second song in tonight with the D’Angelo-ish good-foot groove of Bad Bad News. As the show progresses, a slight awkwardness is evident though – not in Bridges’ faultless performances on the mike, but physically, particularly when he attempts a pas de deux with backing vocalist Brittni Jessie. Sometimes, his lyrics let him down too, as in newie (and clumsy ode to coyness) Shy. Far better is ballad Beyond, which matches a sterling melody to a cosmic declaration of devotion to a potential partner through “space and time and the afterlife”. Of the six new songs aired tonight, it has the greatest potential to be his biggest hit. Throughout, Bridges’ six-piece band – squeezed together on the confines of The Jazz Café stage – are utterly superb, and clearly having a ball, safe in the knowledge that they’re cooking up the good stuff. Drummer Rico Allen and keyboardist Erskine Hawkins frequently share knowing grins. The ’50s doo wop of Lisa Sawyer, always a highlight of his shows, remains a standout, but if anything, you can see the ensemble digging harder into the new material, particularly the pristine late-’70s-fashioned funk of If It Feels Good (Then It Must Be). The disconnect between the retro and contemporary elements of Coming Home and Good Thing is less evident on stage than on record, but there remains a strong sense that record company voices are whispering into Bridges’ ears, telling him that a more modern approach could yield greater dividends. Strange, then, that tonight he omits from his set You Don’t Know, his latest album’s brilliant take on Off The Wall-era Michael Jackson, with its likely mass appeal Get Lucky/Uptown Funk dancefloor shapes. Instead, he relies on his now traditional showstopper spiritual, the Sam Cooke-like River, to absolutely beam his star power. But, ultimately, this warm-up gig catches Bridges at a key transitional point. If he’s given his own space and time to develop, and to truly mesh together his disparate R&B styles, he could be with us for a long, long time.