| Show of Hands |
Album
cover for Anglicana (1999)
|
| Background
information |
| Origin |
England |
| Genre(s) |
Roots,
Folk,
Acoustic |
| Years active |
1991 to present |
| Website |
www.showofhands.co.uk |
| Members |
Steve
Knightley
Phil
Beer |
| Notable instrument(s) |
| Cello-mandolin,
Mandolin,
Cuatro, Fiddle |
Show of Hands is an English acoustic roots
and folk
duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve
Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil
Beer. Their appeal is based on the combined power of
Knightley's original songs, the quality of their vocals and harmonies,
and their multi-instrumental virtuosity. Their performances feature guitars, mandolin, mandocello,
fiddle, cuatro, viola and concertina.
|
Contents
- 1 History
- 2 Discography
- 2.1 Cassettes
- 2.2 Studio
albums
- 2.3 Live
albums
- 2.4 Compilations
- 2.5 Singles
- 2.6 Videos
& DVDs
- 3 External
links
|
History
Steve Knightley and Phil Beer met as teenagers while playing
in different bands in Exeter, Devon, where they grew up. They eventually got
together and for a short period played in pubs and clubs, even
undertaking a disastrous summer tour of Sweden when they were both 16. As school
finished, their lives went separate ways. Knightley went to university
in Coventry,
collected a degree and teaching qualifications, and ended up in London playing
music in a rock band in his spare time. For Phil Beer the leap to
professional musician was immediate. Throughout the years he played
with many different people, including the Arizona Smoke Review and then
from 1984
with the Albion
Band. In the mid 1980s
Knightley returned to live in the West Country, and so he and Phil Beer
got together casually to play a few shows. This continued until 1991 when it became
obvious that the partnership had the potential to become a full time
career. Beer left the Albion Band and Show of Hands was born.
The first Show of Hands recordings were three cassettes,
recorded on home studios. A selection of the best tracks from those
cassettes was later released on the Backlog
compilation album in 1995.
Their first album was, unusually, a live album. Recorded at the Bull
Hotel in Bridport,
Dorset,
and titled Live '92,
the excellent reviews it garnered helped them break into the festival
circuit of 1993,
and later that same year they toured with Ralph
McTell on his autumn tour.
During 1992
Knightley and Beer were invited to join an inter-cultural music project
which involved working with three exiled Chilean musicians. Out of this the band Alianza
was formed and an album made. Alianza toured throughout 1992 and 1993
and influenced the duo greatly. They were introduced to a new range of
rhythms and instruments and Steve was inspired to write songs that are
now favourites with Show of Hands fans including "Santiago", "Armadas"
and "Columbus Didn't Find America". Some of these found their way onto
the first Show of Hands studio album Beat
about the Bush, which was released in 1994.
In 1995
Show of Hands released their second studio album Lie
of the Land. The album proved a turning point
as it gathered in reviews from major publications hailing it as a
masterpiece and a classic. Mojo said the album created "a powerful,
fresh sounding music with both integrity and widespread appeal", while Q magazine
called it a "startlingly good" album and went one further in voting it
their folk album of the year in 1996.
With thousands of fans on their mailing
list, Show of Hands had long wanted to play a concert big enough to
gather all those fans together. Different ideas were brought up but
none seemed right until London's Royal
Albert Hall was suggested; the perfect venue, prestigious and big
enough! The undertaking required a huge gamble by the duo and their
management, but the show sold out in advance and took place on the
evening of March
24, 1996.
As is implied by the album name, Covers,
the studio album released in 2000, contained only cover
versions of songs by other artists. The songs were selected from ones
that the duo had performed at concerts or sound checks over the years,
and included music from artists such as Jethro Tull, Peter
Gabriel, Bob Dylan and Ralph
McTell.
In 2001
Show of Hands celebrated their tenth anniversary with another sell out
show at the Royal Albert Hall. The concert was recorded by Carlton TV
for network transmission and was shown as two dedicated half-hour
programmes.
Their next studio album Cold
Frontier was released in 2001 and was the first
album to be recorded by Mick Dolan, who took responsibility for the
Show of Hands sound after producer/manager Gerard O'Farrell returned to
his native Australia.
The
Path, the first instrumental album by Show of
Hands, was released in 2003
and is a celebration of the sights and sounds of the West Country
coast. Each track is named after a different location, and creates an
atmospheric musical portrait of the sea, and the seaside. In October
2003, the album Country Life
was released. This studio recording of Knightley's most recent songs
also featured a special bonus CD with alternative mixes of selected
tracks.
Show of Hands won the Best Live Act award
at the 2004 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. The
winning of that particular award was especially pleasing to the duo as
for that year it was voted on by the public and not by the usual panel
of judges. At the 2005
awards they were nominated for Best Duo and were
part of the Oysterband
Big Session group that won the Best Group award.
For their extensive tour in autumn 2004 the duo temporarily
became a trio when they were joined by Miranda Sykes on double
bass and vocals. Although initially reluctant, audience enthusiasm
convinced them that the time was right for another Show of Hands live
album. "We realised that we had the raw material to create a double
album that would hopefully capture a song, a set or a moment in all of
our musical lives." - Steve Knightley. As You
Were, a live double-album, was released in 2005 and comprised 22
tracks recorded at various venues during the autumn tour. Miranda has
since toured extensively with Show of Hands, and there were few shows
in 2005 and 2006 where she was absent from the lineup.
In May 2006, Show of Hands released their ninth studio album Witness.
The album was produced by Simon Emmerson and Simon ‘Mass’
Massey from the Afro Celts.
In November 2006, they were voted the "Greatest Devonians" in
Devon County Council's competition, with more than a third of the
votes. Other contenders included Sir
Francis Drake, Charles Babbage, Agatha
Christie and Muse. For more details see http://www.devon.gov.uk/press_greatest_devonian_-_result.
Their support of local good causes has ranged from continued
fundraising for a children's hospice in the county to playing a special
St
George's Day concert in Sandford to raise money to save the village
Post Office there.
Show of Hands played London's Royal
Albert Hall for a concert on the April 8, 2007, which was their 3rd performance there.
This was to celebrate their 15 year partnership as Show of Hands.
Discography
Cassettes
- Show of Hands (1987)
- Tall Ships (1990)
- Out for the Count (1991)
Studio albums
- Beat about the Bush
(1994)
- Lie of the Land
(1995)
- Dark Fields
(1997)
- Folk Music
(1998)
- Covers (2000)
- Cold Frontier
(2001)
- The Path (2003)
- Country Life
(2003)
- Witness
(2006)
Live albums
- Live '92
(1994)
- Live at the Royal
Albert Hall (1996)
- Cold Cuts (2002)
- As You Were
(2005)
Compilations
- Backlog (1995)
- Anglicana (1999)
- No Song to Sing (2000)
- Show of Hands (2000)
Singles
- Columbus EP (1995)
- Crazy Boy (1997)
- Crooked Man (2004)
- Witness (2006)
- Roots (2007)
Videos & DVDs
- Acoustic Workshop (1996)
- Stairway To Devon (1998)
- The Big Gig (2001)
- Show of Hands on Film - The Video Collection
(2004)
External links
