Diana Johnstone Gig Review

Diana Johnstone’s new album THE TROUBLED HEART was reviewed in the March issue of Maverick. The album was praised and as a result I was keen to see her perform live. Upon hearing that Diana was playing a gig at The Beehive in Swindon I was eager to see her in the flesh and hear her perform songs from her new album and her previously released album LEARNING TO WALK. I was not to be disappointed. Diana Johnstone is a talented singer/songwriter with a gentle warming voice. She performed on her own for the majority of the show; however on two songs she was joined by David Wells on guitar. Diana started the evening off with If I Were A Bird from her LEARNING TO WALK CD. This is a very atmospheric folk song, which gave Diana the chance to really show off her wonderful vocals. She went on to sing a lovely song called Phone Box In The Rain from her latest album. Diana played the guitar throughout the evening. Although the audience was small in numbers those who had gathered to see Diana play live really appreciated her style of music and her delightful songs. In-between the songs Diana talked about the stories behind the songs. She also spent time talking about her love of the little fishing villages around Plymouth in Devon where she was born. The first half of the evening came to an end with Little Light a country/folk song from LEARNING TO WALK. Diana spent the break chatting to the people who had come to see her play. The second half of the evening began with This Wave, which is another lovely song. Diana writes all of her own songs. Diana performed an excellent version of Tired Of The Blues and The Turning Of The Tide. Turning Of The Tide is a great folk song with some typically traditional lyrics. As with all good things, they must come to an end. After lots of applause Diana finished the evening off with another great song from her latest CD called All My Love’s In Vain. I think Diana certainly saved the best till last as this was a really special song to end the evening on. I for one went home having had an excellent evening filled with some really lovely music.