Johnny Dickinson Recent Press Reviews

Castles & Old Kings Review
Newcastle Evening Chronicle
CASTLE & OLD KINGS - REVIEW

“The Most Potent Slide Player in the UK”.  I first saw Johnny Dickinson perform solo in the classic folk club setting  - the upstairs room in a pub on a cold Sunday night not a mile from the North Sea coast. Two things struck me that night. Firstly, his guitar tone was immaculate; a fine, precise, shimmering presence which was at once spooky and sparse!  The second thing was the languid, full-ranged vocal style, which hinted at rock rather than folk origins but had a timeless, earthy quality.  Whereas the lower register was reminiscent of Paul Rodgers and Lowell George this guy had an effortless country yodel, too!

Of course, he did not acquire such technique overnight. A life of gigging around the country with a variety of bands had polished his innate skills. From his own local band, Splitcrow, he became a founder member of Paul Lamb & the Kingsnakes then, two years later he formed the wildly eclectic Hillbillies From Outer Space. All three had their roots in Johnny’s native Northumberland but he also had a spell in the London-based Western Swing outfit, the Moonshine Boys.

Anyway, forget the history for it is the present and future, which will occupy the thoughts of this laid-back yet totally aware musician. When this CD - recorded in the late summer of 2002 - was ready for release Johnny was recently recovered from a year-long illness and it is almost as if the period of contemplation which goes with protracted inactivity gave him the impetus to try his own writing alongside some traditional material from the folk repertoire.  Originals like Beach Road, Something in the Breeze and Simple Life in particular are, to these ears, classic minimalist works, which are grounded, like the composer himself, in his home county. Feel the wind and hear it howl through the glass-slide on the pinkie of his left hand ! The title track, needless to say, could be a latter day Northumbrian anthem as well as a depiction of the magnetic pull of the USA during his formative years.

Familiar folk favourites She Moved Through The Fair and Black Jack Davy are tastefully re-worked but Jock 0’ Hazeldene gets a quirky make-over (and tempo change) which shows he is not afraid to take a risk or two! The instrumental tracks have an instant (and lasting) appeal and The Strayaway Child, with its Moorish intro and Celtic melody, exemplify his eclecticism.

Live, as I discovered on that cold Sunday night, Johnny Dickinson is likely to show you a whole lot more than this, too!  More originals, certainly and his own renditions of songs by Willie Dixon, Hank Williams and K.C.Douglas  - among others - prove how deep his well is. Grab a bucketful and it will invigorate you for a long time.

Alan Nichol (Newcastle Evening Chronicle)



Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh
The Scotsman
Johnny Dickinson ***
Edinburgh Pleasance Theatre

AMBLE, in Northumberland, is a very long way from America’s Deep South, so it would be hard to describe the bottleneck slide playing of Johnny Dickinson, one of that seaside town’s sons, as authentic. Until you hear it, that is.

Dickinson stepped unassumingly onstage ready to impress the folk-hardened audience at The Pleasance last night with an odd yet perfect mix of delta blues, Celtic airs and, no kidding, Japanese and Middle-Eastern melodies, all on slide guitar.

If this had been an edition of The Old Grey Whistle Test, broadcast on national TV, Dickinson would be a guitar hero by tea-time tomorrow.

As it is, he’ll just have to travel the length of the country gently playing his "twists and bends" and singing with his rich, addictive voice to a few hundred at a time until he finally gets the recognition he deserves (Martin Lenon)


Border Ballads Review
www.folking.com
Johnny Dickinson – Border Ballads (Mawson & Wareham Music MWMCDSP63)

“Praise be”…a CD with something new to offer! Now, I’m not going to say this album will be to everyone’s taste but if you’re looking for something strikingly different I think you’ll be hard pushed to find it. Johnny Dickinson is a great singer who hails from Northumbria and he wears this accolade with his heart on his sleeve. He draws on his knowledge of the area by combining lyrics from A C Swinburne’s collection of Border Ballads with his own tunes and in doing so treads where no man has trod before (at least to my knowledge). Unlike say Bob Fox who takes a more commercial (OK ‘folky’) approach utilising the original melodies Johnny comes in from a totally different tack and in doing so has more in common with say Alan Hull in his Pipedream period. In fact I could almost hear a touch of Kenny Craddock in the arrangements. Now my reason for drawing your attention to this is to give the layman a better perspective of where (at least to me) the album falls when trying to compare it. There are several standout tracks on the album but for me it has to be ‘The Jolly Beggar’ with its quirky re-interpretation set to a waltz and read instead of sung. So you can forget your Jack The Lad treatment with its jolly-up cheerfulness and instead listen with new ears and a treatment that would do The Bonzo Dog Doo-Daa Band proud. As I said opening up this review this is the kind of recording that will prove startling not least because it’s fresh and exciting like the first time you came across Steve Earle or Ry Cooder. For me personally – it’s blow away! Further info from www.johnnydickinson.com (Pete Fyfe)



Border Ballads Review
MOJO UK
MOJO FOLK ALBUM OF THE MONTH - February 2005

Tyneside singer and guitarist follows up the acclaimed Castles & Old Kings with a sure-footed journey deeper into his Northumbrian roots.  Dickinson had always been in bands with the likes of Paul Lamb, Moonshine Boys and Hillbillies From Outer Space, but choosing a solo career after recovering from a long illness has been the making of him.  There's a delicious ease about his slide guitar playing and his strong blues grounding allows him to approach the border ballads of the title from an entirely different angle.  It starts of with the simmering atmospherics of a Ry Cooder soundtrack and quickly settles into a relaxed rhythm to restructure some potent traditional material.  There are particularly good versions of Lyke Wake Dirge and Jolly Beggar, though it's Dickinson's sure touch that creates the beautifully relaxed feel that gently lures you into its clutches.  An album of understatement and intrigue.  (Colin Irwin)

English Summer Review
The Informer
I first experienced Johnny Dickinson in the incomprable 'Hillbillies From Outer Space' who are well inside my top ten live bands of all time - if he could stand out as a barnstorming guitarist in that squad he was worth twenty others - but it was always obvious that Johnny had lots more to offer.  'English Summer' is a beautifully written and crafted, subtle and restrained album.  On first listening nothing leaps out and grabs you by the throat, but it will quickly capture your heart by deception and stealth.  This isn't a summer of candy floss and fairgrounds, Johnny's laid-back vocals and melancholy blues influenced folk songs (or should it be the other way round?) reveal a real English Summer, with the emotional barometer falling toward sadness and times lost, never to be regained.  The album states its intentions with the beautiful intro to 'Into The Deep'.  J.D's vocal style gives away little of his Nortumbrian roots, but many of his themes and sounds go straight back in time to the Border Ballads.  'Matter of Time' is enhanced by John McKusker's evocative Low Whistle and the elegant backing vocals of Chris and Kellie While.  Indeed, they say you can tell a man by the company he keeps and J.D's assembled group includes the very respected Neil Harland on upright and electric bass, Dave Thomlinson on Wurlitzer piano and Hammond organ and Keith Angel on percussion.  Highlights for me include 'If I Could Only' with its subtle hook that drives straight into your heart, the growing oriental theme of 'Map Of The World' and 'Hold Back The Tide' - a melancholy lament of someone who has loved and lost.  A very adult, reflective set of songs for real people, English Summer is well worth the price of admission.

Peter Dixon (The Informer Magazine)