Robert Finley brings deep Louisiana soul to Bristol’s floating venue
Words/Photos: Images by Ellis
★★★★★
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You need some imagination to turn the Thekla in Bristol into a Mississippi riverboat, but Robert Finley certainly helped. The Bristol venue seemed to be gently creaking with Saturday-night anticipation and felt a fitting place for a Louisiana bluesman. At times, the night transported these reviewers back to the grimy bars of Beale Street in Memphis: low-lit and alive with music that feels truly lived.
Photo: Images by Ellis
First up was Lady Nade, a Bristol artist and BBC Introducing name returning to home waters with the warm persona of someone who knows how to connect with a room without forcing it. She has clearly developed as a performer since we last saw her at the Jam Jar in Bristol in 2021. Engaging throughout, the centrepiece was that soaring voice, carrying personal lyrics with real emotional clarity. Complicated stood out, while newer songs ‘One of Us’ and ‘Sober’ suggested that her forthcoming album - due in November - will be one to look out for.
Now 72, Robert Finley has become one of soul and blues’ great late-blooming stories. For much of his adult life, music sat alongside his work as a carpenter, gospel singer and street performer. When his eyesight deteriorated because of glaucoma he was forced to retire from carpentry, but, incredibly, it led him to make his recording debut in his early 60s.
He was a natural showman: funny, flirtatious, occasionally edging into the kind of old-fashioned patter that felt slightly uncomfortable, but self-deprecating enough to be forgiven as part of the old-school package. What mattered most was the music. Starting with ‘I Just Want to Tell You’, the intent to entertain was there from the off. His show drew on blues, gospel, Southern soul and swamp funk, often embellished with stories linked to the songs - especially ‘Sharecropper’s Son’, which turned childhood memory into testimony.
He sang of feeling like a brand new man - much of which is down to Dan Auerbach nurturing his talent, allowing him to live out his dreams by releasing three albums on his Easy Eye Sound label. Indeed, Finley will be supporting The Black Keys on a trio of London dates later in the summer.
Legally blind, Finley was supported, in more ways than one, by his eldest daughter Christy Johnson. She sang and looked after him on stage while he commanded the audience throughout. The line-up was completed by the Sierra Band: Liam Hart was fantastic on guitar, his measured solo on ‘Souled Out On You’ standing out, Ollie Hopkins played his seasoned Fender bass, and Charlie Love’s drumming had an old-school looseness that suited the night perfectly.
Set highlights included ‘What Goes Around (Comes Around)’, which strutted with menace, while ‘Livin’ Out A Suitcase’ sounded tailor-made for a man still travelling around the world - the band are off to Australia next. ‘I Can Feel Your Pain’ and ‘Nobody Wants To Be Lonely’ even revealed his astonishingly strong falsetto that seemed to rise from somewhere beyond ordinary lung power.
Newer material from Auerbach-produced album ‘Hallelujah!' Don’t Let The Devil Fool Ya’ worked well. ‘Holy Ghost Party’ did what it said on the tin, turning into a Saturday-night service, while ‘Helping Hand’ and ‘Can’t Take My Joy’ showed how naturally gospel blends with Finley’s blues and R&B roots. By closing time, the Thekla was less a boat and more a juke joint - and Finley had steered us there. All that was missing was the traditional tip jar at the front of the stage.