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| Heather Enid Wells writes: For the past seven years, every Friday evening in term-time, Simon Black has been loading up a van-full of amplification, guitars, microphones and boxes of leads, taking them to the Music House in Norwich, then setting them up and engineering the sound for all the acoustic-style performers he's booked to play, usually ten per session. The place is usually packed with a knowledgeable and attentive audience, and the artistes, who are usually booked two months ahead, come from many miles around to play there without payment (even quite well known ones), because these sessions run by Simon are just magic! Simon also puts on a monthly showcase at Norwich Arts Centre and quite a few other promotions under the Black Cat Music banner. It must be a big commitment for him, completely unpaid and often unthanked, after a hard week at work (he's a full-time teacher), but without Simon's encouragement a lot of us would never have had the inspiration to write our songs and the confidence to present them, the chance to play to an audience, or, in my own case, once again to make a living from doing so. I owe you big-time, Simon, so here's a very inadequate public thanks for all you do for music! Simon is much too modest to say so, but he is also a most accomplished performer in his own right. Anyone who saw him play Cambridge Folk Festival a couple of years back and have a big Club Stage audience stomping and clapping, singing along and shouting for more at the end will be in no doubt as to his ability to rouse a crowd, and he's equally able to wring their hearts with his delivery of the more thoughtful songs. Even when he can be persuaded to play at the Music House, he usually puts himself in the 'graveyard' spot at the beginning of the evening, so is not often accorded the recognition he deserves. Well, Simon, you needn't think we haven't noticed!
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