Laszlo's Diary and support acts - concert in support of Walsall & District Samaritans

Acoustic group Laszlo's Diary plus supporting acts put on a stunning show in aid of Walsall & District Branch of Samaritans at Bloxwich Library Theatre on Friday 19th October, 2007.

Other acts who appeared were Willie Morgan, Tony Barrett,  and Tony Wall - the "Midlands Own Jim Reeves".

Tony Barrett compered the show, as well as doing his own set of songs and monologues ranging from touching to rib-tickling. He's a fine guitarist and a great all-round entertainer.

First on the bill was Willie Morgan, who entertained the crowd with a selection of songs by Jake Thackeray. Jake's songs are hilariously irreverent, and Willie's reminiscences of the man, whom he knew personally, were illuminating and entertaining. Some of the audience may have been hearing the songs for the first time, whilst for others, it brought back memories of Jake's regular Saturday night TV appearances a good number of years ago.

The second act was quite different in character. Country and Western singer Tony Wall performed a tribute to Jim Reeves, possibly Country's first global megastar who died in a plane crash in the early 1960s, as well as songs made famous by other stars of country music. Tony has a website about Jim Reeves, www.jimreevestribute.co.uk.

The second half of the show started with Tony Barrett's own entertaining set, before he introduced Laszlo's Diary. The band opened with Providence, one of their own compositions, which has one of those melodies that very soon gets into your head. It's quite short song, but a perfect start to a set, that makes you want to tag along on Laszlo's musical journey - a journey, lead by Ali's powerfully soaring vocals and powered by Nicks solid guitar, that includes, as well as more of their own compositions, songs associated with artists as diverse as Gershwin, Christina Aguilera, Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. These are not just copycat covers -  Laszlo's Diary obviously love their music and their interpretations respect the essence of the songs and give them a thoughtful re-working.  With a line up including two guitars, harmonica, percussion and vocals, Laszlo's sound is rich and varied. Stu Henry plays blisteringly good slide guitar, and his solo version of Voodoo Chile demonstrated a gutsy, bluesy voice too. For their closing number (Pink Floyd's Another Brick in The Wall) they were joined on stage by an extra percussionist - a fan called Sam who happened to be in the audience that night. This says something about the band's motivation - its about music: loving it and sharing it.

Good news!

The show raised over £500 for Walsall & District Samaritans - more than a week's total running costs!

More good news!

Laszlo's Diary say they are willing to put on another show for Samaritans next year - something to really look forward to!

We are putting on a performance of "It's a Grand Night for Singing" the new show by the ever popular Gateway Singers at the Library Theatre on Friday 7th March at 8 pm. The show has something old, something new - from Bohemian Rhapsody to Carmen and from Unchained Melody to American Trilogy. Tickets are £6 (£5 concessions). Phone 07803 816013.

• Venue Location
• Use this link if you want to email  us about the show, or any possible future concerts. 

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How did the show come about?

Laszlo's lead vocalist, Ali, is a former volunteer with Walsall Samaritans who heard  that the branch was very short of money and she decided she wanted to do something to help. Founder member of Laszlo’s Diary,  guitarist Nick Kovacs (aka ReggieRareBreed) says: “Samaritans volunteers care enough to give their time to support other people. At the end of the day, a voluntary service still costs money. We can’t give that money, but we can use our skills to help people be there for others.”

Although Samaritans is a household name, the fact is that the organization relies on donations for 96% of its funding. All Samaritans branches have to raise their own funds - Walsall branch simply wouldn't exist without support from people like you to fund the costs of running the centre and the telephone bills, the cost of publicity to make local people aware of the service and how to contact Samaritans, and the cost of recruiting and training volunteers. Only with your help can Samaritans be there every day for the people who live around you. So please help Samaritans be there when they're needed.

What is Samaritans?

Samaritans offers confidential emotional support to anyone experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those that may lead to thoughts of suicide. Follow the links at the left of this page to find out more.

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