The Pink Singers will be taking to the stage once more in less than three weeks time, for our summer concert at Cadogan Hall: From Queer to Eternity. Tenor Liang talks about one of the songs we’ll be performing and what it means to him.
I was first introduced to the music of Joan Armatrading in the late 1980’s by a university friend. Unlike the usual pop music of the time, I was instantly entranced by her unconventional tunes with meaningful lyrics. The opening lines “I’m not in love, but I’m open to persuasion” made Love and Affection an instant favourite. Her soulful, contralto voice gave the words a depth of meaning which I witnessed at two of her concerts.
I was delighted to find that my suggestion for a Joan Armatrading song was included in the repertoire for this season and one of our sopranos – Emelda Nicholroy – has put together an arrangement for the Pink Singers which is true to the style and feel of the original song.
As a tenor, I don’t sing the opening lines; but I get to sing “You took me dancing, cross the floor, cheek to cheek”. After more than 40 years in the business, Joan Armatrading is still going strong, and long may she continue. I hope she will like our arrangement and rendition of her torch song.To see us perform this and more, please click here to buy your tickets for our summer show. We look forward to seeing you there!