BEARD & PAPPS

Local musical duo Roger Beard and Richard Papps (aka Beard and Papps ) have been entertaining local audiences since 2006 and have finally released their first full length studio-recorded CD , ‘Caught in the Net ‘. And what a delight it is. Variety is the key-note in their selection of fourteen songs from their eclectic genre-defying repertoire of over a hundred. They range from Bob Franke’s brutally honest depiction of the pleasures and pains of love in ‘Hard Love’ through stunning ‘cover’ versions of superbly crafted material from the likes of Keith Pearson, Maddy Prior, the enigmatic Boo Hewerdine , and Dylan to the CD’s joyous finale ‘What A Beautiful Day ‘ Roger plays guitar in a delicate finger-picking style, Richard’s keyboard accompaniments are beautifully simple and their complementary voices sit slightly above the overall track record so you catch the expression of every word. They are joined on some tracks by drummer Joe Gray and accordion player Helen Bennett whose subtle support enhances the two voices, Roger’s full of light and dark, Richard’s more conventionally melodious. I particularly enjoyed Roger’s sensitive singing on Neil Young’s song of ultimate separation ‘Birds’ and his obviously heartfelt version of Dougie Mclean’s autobiographical ‘Talking With my Father’. And Richard’s virtuoso keyboards give a contemporary twist to Rod Argent’s 1960’s song ‘Time of the Season ‘, his powerful depiction of that melting pot of politics, creativity and sexual and social inhibition, the legendary Summer of Love. Keith Pearson’s inspirational ‘More Hills to Climb ‘ was new to me and Beard and Papps’s emotional engagement and insights into the lyrics in old favourites like Robin Laing’s ‘Black Clothes’, and Tom Waits’s surreal ‘Time’ forced me to see them in new, fresh ways. A special word of praise must go to the accomplished recording engineer , Allen Jarvis. The wonderful clarity of the recording shows the highest of professional production values. Roger Beard and Richard Papps may be amongst the elder statesmen of the local music scene but their freshness, enthusiasm and their desire to share the music they value is clear. I can think of no better introduction to the best of contemporary songwriting than ‘Caught in the Net’. You will be intrigued , challenged and thoroughly entertained by it.