Thu 5th July, 2018
8:00 pm - 10:30 pm (Doors: 7:30pm)
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The Cafe is open this evening, last orders at 6.30pm
Luke is a Singer/Songwriter from Canterbury, Kent, who in 2013 was nominated in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards for both the Horizon Award for Best Emerging Talent and The Young Folk Category. With a bold, distinctive voice and a sweet, percussive guitar style, Luke is a confident and captivating live performer. He was also winner of Fatea’s “Male Artist of the Year” in both 2014 and 2016.
Over the past few years he has steadily been developing a reputation for himself in the Folk & Roots circuits either through his solo shows, many festival appearances or when opening for such luminaries as Show of Hands, Steve Knightley, Martyn Joseph, Seth Lakeman, Karine Polwart, Oysterband, Paul Brady, Glen Tilbrook, Sarah Jarosz and Lucy Ward. As well as playing solo, Luke performs as a Trio, or as a duo with bassist Andy Sharps.
He has also completed several tours of Scotland, with the last 2 years including playing 2 sold out nights at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He regularly tours across Europe playing in France, Belgium, The Netherlands and Germany and in he has visited the USA to play at the International Folk Alliance conference in Kansas in both 2016 and 2017. He has also undertaken 3 joint headline shows with Grammy Award winner Amy Wadge.
His debut album ‘More Than Boys’, produced by the acclaimed Welsh Singer-Songwriter Martyn Joseph, was released in 2012 to great reviews, as was the follow up ‘Fumes and Faith’ in early 2014. In 2015 he released a 7 track EP with his trio, ‘This Family Tree’, which was described in a 5 star Maverick review as ”Two words. Bloody brilliant”.
November 2016 saw the release of Luke’s 3rd full studio album, “Tall Tales and Rumours” to universal critical acclaim, which Maverick, in a 5 star review, described as “a brilliant, thoughtful album – Jackson shows talent beyond his years”. Whilst Acoustic Magazine noted “Jackson has been compared to a young Richard Thompson and for once these are not empty words”.
He consolidated his reputation as a live performer with the release of “Solo:Duo:Trio” in February 2018, which has already received extensive airplay and positive reviews,and Luke is an ever present in the live music scene, gigging relentlessly all over, and he remains a prolific songwriter in demand across the United Kingdom and Europe.
What They Say:
Reminds me of Jeff Buckley, which can only be a good thing – Mark Radcliffe BBC Radio 2
Every so often a new voice emerges, one so stunning that it knocks you sideways. Jackson has been compared to a young Richard Thompson and for once these are not empty words – Acoustic Magazine
Two words, bloody brilliant – Maverick 5 star review
One of the most dynamic and exciting live performers of his generation – Folk Radio UK
Luke has already acquired both an unmistakable voice and a strikingly individual vision – fRoots Magazine
It comes as no surprise that Luke Jackson is continually feted as one of the British folk scene’s bright young things – R2 Magazine
One of the great voices of the new youngsters on the folk scene – and a terrific songwriter too – Mike Harding
He has a stage presence that many artists would kill for and a voice and guitar style that make you think that he’s a sixty year veteran who happens to have discovered the fountain of eternal youth – Fatea Magazine
If you think previous comparisons to Richard Thompson jump the gun, think again; because there’s something that sets this performance a discreet cut above the rest – Edinburgh Fringe Festival Review
A sumptuous voice loaded with maturity and a melodically blessed guitar style – Spiral Earth
Luke Jackson sings with an extraordinarily rich voice and possesses a guitar technique astonishing for one so young. I first heard him sing four years ago and even then his songwriting suggested a performer of rare promise” – Steve Knightley, Show of Hands
Luke Jackson has an incredibly mature and expressive voice that can holler the blues or give sensitive treatment to his own more personal tales – R2 magazine