Perth gig review by Gavin Matthews

A smaller-than-hoped-for crowd enjoyed a good night of blues inspired music from Lins Honeyman and friends in Perth on Saturday 28th August. Although a veteran of countless pub gigs around Perth over the last 10 years, Honeyman's performances have significantly matured and developed over the last year. While his guitar playing remains solid, his vocal delivery has gained a new harsher edge suggesting that either he has taken up smoking 20 cigars a day or that Ray Charles left him a fully functioning set of vocal chords in his will. Either way, his songs gained a new dimension from the enhanced vocals, helped by good sound production. Following a solo acoustic set, which featured a good mix of his older and newer songs, Honeyman was reunited on stage with his old comrades from the Still Waters Blues Band; Bruce Cameron (slide guitar), Chuck Reid (blues harp), alongside a new rhythm section, Paul Hardingham (drums) and Derek Alder (bass). The new band had a great rapport, were tight and sounded good together and were obviously enjoying themselves as they stormed through a set of Honeyman and Cameron penned numbers such as "Goodbye Mr Blue Sky" and "Ask In My Name". A surprising cover version of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground" was thrown in for good measure too. Although not a ministry event per se, it was great to spend an evening in the company of talented musicians whose faith in Christ came through as a very natural element of their songwriting and banter between numbers. From songs about "my first car" to "One Way Street" (a warning about running from God) there was a happy harnessing together of real faith and everyday life - and the crowd loved it.