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Jonathan Richman (featuring Tommy Larkins on drums) will play four very special concerts in London. Each venue has been carefully chosen so that fans from the North, West, East and Central London will have an opportunity to see him.
Jonathan Richman has been writing songs, making records and performing live for most of his life, winning fans and making friends around the world with his guileless honesty and playfully catchy compositions. He’s revered by countless fellow artists, and has built a remarkably loyal international audience through his tireless touring. His deceptively straightforward songs embody timeless qualities of humanity, optimism, emotional insight and a boundless sense of humor, untainted by cynicism or transient notions of hipness.
The records that Jonathan Richman has made over the past 30 years have long held a special place in the hearts of his fans. He began playing guitar at the age of 15, and in the early 1970s formed the Modern Lovers, whose raw, minimalist sound and emotionally forthright songs helped to lay the groundwork for punk rock. But by the time the group’s landmark debut album (including the much-covered “Road Runner,” a Top Five single in Europe) was released in 1976, Jonathan had already moved on to a quieter sound and a gentler lyrical focus. Since then, he’s continued to record and tour prolifically, first with a series of Modern Lovers lineups, later on his own, and eventually as a duo with drummer Tommy Larkins. Over the years, Jonathan’s music has absorbed a multitude of influences, from doo-wop to country to a variety of international styles, without sacrificing the artist’s effervescent personality.
For much of his career, Jonathan has toured almost nonstop around the world.
“Traveling and playing for new people in new places is one of my favorite things,” he notes. “It’s great playing places that are off the beaten track. You can learn a lot when you play in a little town in Holland or Western Australia, and you learn different things than you would learn playing a big city.”
Jonathan adds, “Playing shows and making records keeps been getting easier and more fun.”
To see Jonathan live:
March
Saturday 28th: Bush Hall
Sunday 29th: Hoxton Bar and Kitchen
Monday 30th: Dingwalls
Tuesday 31st: Borderline
