Piano & Voice - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

I had the pleasure of seeing Alec perform in this shatteringly intimate arrangement back at SJQ in London a few years ago. I was invited spontaneously by a songwriter friend and collaborator of mine after our session - he had a spare guest list ticket via some music journalist and so I, ever keen for a freebie, snapped up the offer and made my way through the rain to Dalston. As I submerged into the basement, I had no idea what to expect. Only damp feet and umbrellas I knew was guaranteed. The performance was mesmerising. I can’t actually remember how long I was there. I don’t even remember arriving or leaving for that matter. I only remember the moments between - the songs. I only saw Alec’s face properly once or twice during the set. The rest of the time was via only temporary reflection in the ebony frontage of the Yamaha upright, of which he used (yes i mean used not played, think how you use a tissue when crying) as if he were born with its keys as his own fingertips. Despite us watching his back the entire set, with the occasional glimpse of hands on the higher octave when he made the move, it nonetheless felt like we were all staring directly into his heart and head as if he were translucent. He was a window that night, into another world. His songs were double doors swung wide open for us all to run through, and boy did I (from the stationary position I’d assumed when I first arrived).

His voice is pained. You feel every word like it’s been torn out of the page of his insides. At points, it did feel like him singing might actually be hurting him. Maybe it was.

I was astonished to learn these songs and him were part of a much wider history of band and hits. To be truthful, I’ve never listened to the original versions of the songs. I probably never will. Mainly because I love how perfectly they exist in my memory, and selfishly I wish to preserve that.

The album captures the essence of the night perfectly. When I listen, I am transported back to that basement. I can see his heart through the back of him thanks to the well-placed spotlight and songs that made the heart impossible to miss.

A perfect record for a rainy, top-deck-of-the- bus ride home at 2am. Especially after 4 or 5 gin and tonics, and the person you fancy hasn’t text you back and it feels like the world is ending.