Redland crooner Craig Martin has found a taste of Liverpool in The Spring Hill Reservoir where he will perform, The Beatles Swing, with four shows from March 4 to 6.
Martin said he was delighted to perform his worldwide exclusive show in the unique 140-year-old Wickham Terrace venue, reminiscent of a famous Lliverpool music hotspot and home of the Beatles.
“I was astonished with how much it resembled the birthplace of The Beatles, Liverpool’s Cavern Club, with its stunning brick arches and underground location,” he said.
The Beatles Swing, sponsored by Oxmar Properties, features the song writing talents of all four members of The Beatles, spanning the years 1962 to 1970, with Martin and a team of Brisbane composers rearranging the songs, to make them new again.
“We haven’t turned the songs on their heads, they have just been reworked and we’ve given them a twist using a rhythm section of piano, bass and drums and adding a brass section of trumpet, trombone and saxophone,” he said.
Martin said all changes had been sanctioned by the custodians of the precious works, with each music chart submitted to Sony/ATV, Universal Music and Paul McCartney’s publishing company MPL for their stamp of approval, without which Martin’s vision for the show would not have been realised.
Martin believes it was his ‘Merseybeat’ background, which helped him secure the permission with his own musical journey following that of the ‘Fab Four’ in their early years.
Having performed regular gigs at The Jacaranda and The Cavern Club in the 1990s, Martin toured the UK and South Africa with Liverpool legend Gerry Marsden, as a guitar vocalist in Marsden’s autobiographical show “Ferry ‘cross the Mersey”.
“Like most budding young musicians growing up in Liverpool, The Beatles was a big part of my musical education, so to spend three months with someone who shared their journey was very special. Gerry told me lots of stories about their early years, some of which I may even share with The Beatles Swing audience,” he said.
Since arriving in Australia in 2009, Martin has performed alongside Jessica Mauboy, Mahalia Barnes, and Andre Rieu’s Mirusia. The Voice’s jazz sensation Emma Pask opened his Gold Coast show.
Tickets are available via www.ticketmaster.com.au and for more information visit thereservoir.events or follow Craig Martin Music or Underground Opera Company on Facebook.
The Beatles Swing is proudly sponsored by Brisbane real estate development company, Oxmar Properties, with Craig Martin dressed by Milton tailor John Harris Gentleman's Outfitter.
