Edinburgh Fringe 2024
12th Year! John Hunt Four O’Clock Afternoon Blues and Swing
21st Century Blues Legends
Genre: Music
Venue: The Jazz Bar
Festival: Edinburgh Fringe
Low Down
John Hunt plays a very professional and entertaining gig of original Blues songs and Sinatra numbers to an audience at 4pm at the Jazz Bar during Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Review
John Hunts Four O’clock Afternoon of Blues and Swing does exactly what it says on the tin (and more). In just one hour this seasoned blues and swing musician dazzles audiences with a hand picked catalogue of original blues numbers and Sinatra classics. His incredibly soulful slide guitar playing/unusual looking guitars/crooning voice and eccentric comical tales entice the audience and make for a great afternoon of high quality music and general entertainment. Who would have thought that just one man and a guitar could keep get the whole crowd tapping their toes so effortlessly.
The audience are sold immediately as Hunt breaks in to a fast paced raw blues boogie. This is primarily a blues gig and generally doesn’t stray from this (when it comes to his originals that is).The music is direct and simplistic (in the best and most hard-hitting way). 3 chords and wailing blues solos that rock the house. (if one would close their eyes they’d almost feel as if they were at the crossroads in the Mississippi Delta.) His lyrics are very interesting too. As he is playing the blues you would assume he would go for the old tropes but some of the songs topics are unusual and intriguing – one song is about a preacher who attempted to convert him to Christianity whilst they sat on a small sand island waiting for the tide to move. Another about wanting to get married on a beach. It made the audience reevaluate what the blues could be about. The music was soulful and had elements of pain but a lot of the lyrics were very uplifting and about living your life on your terms. One song was about a woman who stole his white cadillac which some would say a tad cliche but I’m afraid it’s not a real blues gig without at least one stolen car mentioned!
One thing that struck me was that he audience were immediately sold during this gig because Hunt talked to them in his low lulling voice whilst they took their seats. He was very casual and charismatic as he joked about how he will eventually start his set and that time moves differently in the Jazz bar than other places. As he spoke he often leaned in to the mic with a cheeky look in his eye and slowly waved his hands around reminiscent of an old classy jazz singer like Dean Martin. (Immediately it became obvious that this man isn’t just a good musician he’s also a charismatic host). He waggled his finger about whilst telling yarns of times long gone and his distinct hunched demeanor reminded me of an old wise toad (I mean this in the nicest way possible) he looked like a real blues man who had really lived the life to back up the songs. Hunt also had a very interesting assortment of Frankenstein guitars (guitars which he said he had hobbled together from other bits of guitars and paper mache which added visual interest to the show. Also his mic was attached to the guitar which was a very unusual look but it meant he had to lean in more and it made the vibe more intimate when he spoke. He also completely caught the audience off guard when he did a few Sinatra songs midway through showcasing extreme vocal versatility as his voice sounded almost exactly like Sinatra’s.
Overall a very professional gig, old soulful blues songs with intriguing lyrics and a real blues man who’s lived it. Not only that the blues guitar playing was fantastic and his hosting ability gripped the audience from start to finish. Not a dull moment. A great show would recommend.
