ShareBeth Hart performing her Better Than Home Tour at Rock City Nottingham on Wednesday 13th May 2015
Images and Review by Kevin Cooper
Having been in the music industry for over 25 years, it is hard to fathom out why Beth Hart is not up there with the greats. She has been through good times, bad times and everything in between and it all goes into her music, delivering songs that channel her turbulent past into deeply personal lyrics.
On the last night of her tour to promote her latest album, Better Than Home, Hart made the show all about her music as she started with Waterfalls and new track, Tell ‘Em To Hold On, perched comfortably behind her piano, before her very talented band joined her for the rest of the set, which saw her foot stomping across this Rock City stage as she belted out versions of her hits, Delicious, Well Well and fans favourite, Bang Bang Boom Boom.
Up-tempo stormers like Monkey Back, a song she described as being about her battle with drug addiction, to the cover of Etta James’ I’d Rather Go Blind, showcased Harts powerful and flawless vocals as this blues icon delivered her heart and soul to the crowd for a solid set of pure blues perfection. It was hard not to compare her to the legendary Janis Joplin.
New track Better Than Home and her moving performance of Sister Heroine showed her more gentle side that allowed us to see that underneath the hard, tattooed exterior, there is a wonderfully warm, talented and vulnerable artist. She brought the house down with a performance that blew us all away from the very first note to her closing chord.
For those that missed this gig at Rock City, they have probably missed the gig of the year up to now, because Beth Hart as a diva, certainly not, but blues icon; most definitely. Nottingham, you were lucky to have her.
