From Kerouac to Hagrid – Jinder at the Queens Head, Box April 28th 2024

by Ian Diddams
images from Jinder facebook

It has somehow been a few years since I last saw Jinder – or Phil Jinder Dewhurst – play so Sunday evening was a serendipitous outing to the Queen’s Head, Box to catch him play the second half of a gig alongside Mark Harrison.

I’ve talked about the venue in Mark Harrison’s review but its only fair to repeat that the Queens Head, Box as a free house actually espouses that position serving St. Austell ales alongside Bath Gem (top marks!) and is a more than decent music venue with a dedicated space, working with promotor “Schtumm” to put on last evening’s entertainment.

Jinder is an imposing figure – he admits to being six foot six inches or in new money a full two metres give or take the width of a gnat’s doo-dahs. He is resplendent in a C&W shirt, but he quickly pointed out he wouldn’t be playing either musical style last night, even though it appears his daughter has views on what such apparel may mean as to his persona potentially as a cowboy cosplayer!

Jinder is another easy watching (no faint praise here intended either!) performer, totally at ease with his music, his instrument, himself and being on stage. He is accompanied by a tantalising array of pedals all of which get used to great effect during the gig – but more of that later. He also has an easy chatting style with amusing anecdotes and stories, moving seamlessly between songs. He isn’t afraid to share the harder parts of his life, along with the many highs, and with a British self-deprecatory manner describes his conversion from Jack Kerouac to Twat in three days as he was forced to live in his car. And includes a brief etymological discourse over the differences between mash-up and medley and their fruit based versions (I kid you not!).

It’s his music that of course speaks loudest for him. And we were not disappointed. He has released two albums since I last heard him, as part of a loose trilogy, produced by chum Pete Millson. The songs Jinder treated us to appear on his albums Codetta, The Silver Age and Crumbs of Comfort amongst other sources of his work, and each and every one of them delivered with passion and heart and not a little bit of skill. Another plucking style player utilising those pedals to promote a bass line, overlay an electric guitar sound, and loops to create a mesmerising array of rhythms and melodies to underpin sublime “lead” lines.

And the stories continue – the difficulties of using names in a song title so as not to be suspected of being a closet pervert, or harbouring secret desires towards those off-limits, or confusing ex and current wives! And that even when a safe name is found… it transpires that inevitably that is also doomed to failure…

It’s a curtailed set sadly as the march of time moved relentlessly to last orders, but we are regaled for his last song with his greatest triumph of all. How as a Hagrid lookalike he bestrode the red carpet for the world premiere of the film “Fisherman’s Friends” where his hastily recorded song in a shed ousted Ronan Keating in the final production.

Fair goes Jinder. We’ll keep you in our hearts buddy.

Jinder
Web: https://www.jinder.co.uk/
Facebook: mmjinder
Youtube: JinderSongs
Bandcamp: https://jindersongs.bandcamp.com/music