Blues Afternoon, Princes St Gardens Spiegeltent, Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival

A three hour show featuring three very different blues acts.  Opening the show was Alabama's Lisa Mills.  Blues songs of broken love and cautious optimism, a driving guitar and clever fingerwork.  And a voice made to sing the blues.  Raspy, towering, intimate, soaring into long held notes, a voice that touches you and shares it's troubles, and yours. Backed up by a hugely infectious smile and natural rapport.  Outstanding.  I went a way a Mills convert.

Second up was Liverpool's Connie Lush Band, and altogether rockier affair with drums, bass, guitar and the smoke and whisky voice of the eponymous veteran singer.  A mix of blues classics and self penned material, some decent guitar solos and some excellent bass work.  But the musicians are very much a backing band and the attention on the vocals and stage antics of Lush, a diminutive but compelling persona with real presence.  Her voice works with a wide range of songs, becomes an instrument in it's own right beyond the lyrics, and often produces the unexpected.  Energetic, energising, uplifting and quite simply great fun.

Headline was Matt Schofield and his band, turning the rock quota up a notch or two.  Drums, bass, keyboard and the man himself on guitar and vocals.  In contrast to Lush this was much more about the music than the singing.  He's got a decent enough voice, but the mid-Atlantic drawl seems affected on a man from Manchester.  On the plus side, he was reminiscent of Gregg Allman at times, so it's not all bad.  But the music compensates for any vocal failings - as long as you're a fan of rock guitar and lenghty solos (my companion thought the performance fell into the 'boys and their toys' category!).  Schofield's playing is full of imagination and variety, whilst remaining faithful to the bluesrock template, and there were good solos from all of the band members to add variety.  A powerful ending to a great afternoon of blues.