Anna Massie

CFC’s host with the most - TK kicks off the evening amusingly noting how nice it was to see such a great audience… ‘in quantity… if not quality’! And thus, the tone was set for an evening of amusement alongside superb musical quality.

I’ve seen Anna Massie a few times in the company of others, for example Blazing Fiddles, Mairearad Green… and many others. Would she be able to capture the audience’s attention for a full evening on her ownsome? Of course she would, it’s Anna Massie.

Anna is one of these blessed people who could read out a cookbook recipe and have us falling about laughing. Small collected observations, milked for their humour, curated then served up to tingle the collective funny bone.

For example, she has a new pair of trousers. It has double pockets at the front. She can’t find anything, capo, plectrum etc. See… when I tell it, it’s not funny. When she tells it with her nuanced timing, inflections, accent… it’s hilarious.

But it’s not a stand-up comedy show, she’s also a master guitarist, singer and songwriter, all of which - with fun tales are woven together, seamlessly to make a totally absorbing, entertaining and warming evening.

She kicks off with ‘The Battle of Waterloo’ and ‘Out on The Ocean’, a couple of guitar tunes. She’s not a fingerpicking guitarist, she uses a plectrum and, gosh, it’s fast and intricate, she’s no strummer, every note is hit with Swiss watch pick precision. I see a big wear mark on the guitar just below her picking hand, she clearly plays a lot!

She follows with ‘Thanks for Writing’ a tune upholding the noble activity that is writing and receiving a letter. It’s such a fun, quirky little song, unusual in its structure, so catchy I’m still singing it days later. While on the subject of writing, her most recent CD comes as a package… ‘a CD for your lugs, a coaster for your mugs and a pen for your... crosswords’ – she couldn’t think of a rhyme for the pen bit – perhaps answers on a postcard.

On Rick Taylor’s ‘Anything from You’, Anna reveals a - to me, thus far - hidden talent – none other than the mouth trumpet. It’s where you purse your lips, vigorously exhale through and make a noise like a trumpet. If anyone remembers Earl Okin, he was a prominent exponent of mouth trumpetism, playing bossa nova tunes and, if you closed your eyes, you’d be convinced someone was playing the trumpet. Anna’s as good as him. I’ve tried it and to be honest it sounds more flatulent than musical, probably best I don’t try it, certainly not on the bus. Anyway, Anna has us all joining in and the collective mouth trumpet sounded great.

So, rounding off, Anna’s CD package was generously donated by her to… the raffle. And, having subtly brought to the review a mention of the raffle, the moment shouldn’t pass without documenting Damon’s MC-ing of the raffle. So professional it was, so amusing fluent and witty. Next time I see him I’ll suggest that if he finds himself strapped for cash, he might think about setting up as a professional raffle caller!

Photos by Peter Salkeld, word by Callum MacLeod