For more than 40 years Steve Tilston has been creating songs which have become folk classics and, therefore, it was no surprise the evening ended on a high with a lively rendition of the 16th century anti-drinking song, Martin said to his Man.

The surprise is it was only at the end of the evening that it felt as if the act was hitting its stride with any consistency as the song was preceded by a splendid version of the Tilston classic, Slip Jigs and Reels, and, for once, the audience sang along.

The early stages were erratic at best with Tilston lacking sparkle for the most part and being outshone by the brilliant instrumentalists, Keith Warmington on harmonica and Stuart Gordon on fiddle.

The instrumental performance of the trio was superb, with the harmonica driving the sound at all times complemented wonderfully by the melodic fiddle. Yet this only served to highlight what was lacking – a powerful delivery of the lyrics. Make no doubt about it, Steve Tilston is a clever and thoughtful songwriter with poetic lyrics which can speak to the heart, but there were too many times when the delivery simply didn’t match up to the power required to convey the words and emotions.

The most memorable parts of the evening were the instrumental interludes and the stunning Jimmy Giuffre inspired jazz piece, Jimmy’s Train. Perhaps it was that the programme order needed adjusting, perhaps it was just one of those nights where the audience didn’t seem to join in, or perhaps it was just because it was a wet February evening, but for some reason it was only at the very end that the evening began to soar. To be honest, if it had been my first encounter with the music of Steve Tilston it might well also have been my last.

Gill O’Donnell