Jellyfish comedy night April 16

So many quotes including a lot of "we'll be back for the next one" made this a night to remember.

Appearing at The Gallery Club in Palmanova, Mallorca were two top comedians from the UK, Anthony King and Alan Francis. They both had very contrasting styles but were both incredibly talented. Anthony was much more the one liner and a perfect opener for this new comedy venue in Mallorca and Alan with his witty and black raconteur style of humour rounding of the evening. Both of them held the audience in the palm of their hands for most of the night with bucket loads of laughs. Much of the audience were in tears of laughter for large parts of the show and one lady on the way out thanked Anthony King for the fact that she had not been so close to wetting herself since she had been in nappies. The whole evening was presented by local novice Richie Clark who has now lost his compering virginity and should prove to be the star that holds the series together.

An incredibly varied audience which ranged from teenagers to grandmas, beach bums to multi millionaires enjoyed the complete evenings entertainment, with a fair percentage hanging around until chucking out time, dancing and drinking to the sounds of the by then dj Richie Clark.

The show was preceded by a large number of the audience taking up the special price meal in the above restaurant, which by all accounts was good value and good quality.

The next one of these is planned for June 18 and if this one is anything to go by it should not only be a sell out but a top class evening to go along with it. Keep an eye on the website http://www.jellyfishevents.com/ for info

Cafe restaurant Romero 21 March

Every now and again you come across a reasonable menu del dia location and yesterday was one of those. Don't expect gourmet, don't expect cloth napkins, cut glass, waiters in uniform or chefs with pretentions and you will probably be satisfied. We are lucky in Mallorca that across the island you can usually find somewhere for a cheap but wholesome lunch for between 7 and 10€. Cafeteria Romero in Port de Pollensa is one of those.
When searching these places out you have to be willing to take a bit of a chance and dive straight in and probably 6 out of 10 times you will be happy with your choice. Out of the other 4 it generally works out to 2 that are passable when you are there and passable the next time you are looking for lunch and the final 2 you just wish you could get out of. But that's the fun of menu del dia.
Yesterdays was in the top 6 categoray, nothing to write home about but good honest fare at 8.50€ and one that you would try again. The fish soup was very tasty, the chuleta was a good size and the chips home made and OK along with a little side salad, and the home made natillas tasted as it should even if it was a bit lumpy. Served with fresh bread, nice olives, wine and gaseosa it was a satisfying lunch after a morning of running around, all in all good value at 9.50€ including a coffee. I am not sure if this was a good day here or a normal one, but based on my lunch it is a recommended stop and you can find it just down the second left as you come in to the Port from Palma.
You can find more menu del dias at http://www.digamemallorca.com/food.html or let me know about your good and bad ones.

Jonathan Richman 11 March

Yet again as we predicted a sell out theatre Lloseta saw the return of the iconic Jonathan Richman. This is the guy who brought us Roadrunner, Egyptian Reggae and Pablo Picasso. One of the original characters of the US punk rock scene. (incidentally much more toned down than the UK scene at the time, much less spitting). His current tour with his best mate drummer Tommy Larkin is a much more relaxed affair. At times I think Tommy is somewhere else.

For my personal view I felt that JR tries too much to please the audience by performing in Spanish, Italian and French and should maybe think about pleasing himself and performing the music we all want to hear. At times I was not quite sure if the audience were laughing with him or at him.

Aside from this it was great to see this guy perform, yes another music legend appearing in Mallorca (like him or not). I just wish he had given us a bit more of Egyptian reggae which finished far too quickly and what actually happened to one of musics most iconic tracks Roadrunner! Oh well maybe next time, keep touring JR but just give us more of what we want, or is it just me?

Deep Purple September 15

Go to their websites and read their own words and they try and tell you they have moved on from the sound that made them great in the 70's. Well they lie. This is a band that don't know how not to rock! Yes there was material from the latest album but come on guys this crowd got jumpin' when some of the greats started to get bashed out. Black Night, Smoke on the Water and Highway Star all had the 3000 or so leaping about.
An incredibly polished performance from what they say is one of the hardest working bands on tour and when you look at their schedule you have to believe it. Good fun, good rock, good quality musicians, the only downside is remembering all those great songs the first time round, hey ho.
I've never seen so many black t-shirts in one place before and I've been up the front at a few rock concerts including a Hawkwind concert. (OK a long time ago.) And as for the aroma wafting through the Palmarena, I think most of us managed to get high even though it was impossible to get near a bar for the complete concert. But the upside to that was introducing the country folk to the 24/7 Cafe after, with a couple of beers and a burger.
Come on guys more rock less jazz, please!

Craig Adams 31 August 2008

This promised to be an entertaining evening and hallelujah!, was it ever. Craig Adams and The Voice of New Orleans had already sold out the previous evening here at The Pollensa Festival and was subsequently booked for a second night. Is this a first for The Festival?

Whilst you were wondering why oh, why go to a night of Gospel singing, even if you're not a regular churchgoer you just had to be there to understand. Having been to previous Gospel concerts and been very disappointed, this concert just got better as the night went on. Craig is a master of the happy clappy style along with enough of the blues to get your feet tapping all night. He has a voice that commands to be listened to and can play a piano up there with the best of the early rock and rollers - even the great Jerry Lee Lewis would probably go to church to see this guy.

It was very surprising to see the usually reserved Pollensa Festival regulars letting their hair down, with Craig getting everybody on their feet early on and making sure they kept getting on their feet throughout. At one stage (when the saints come marching in) there was even a dozen or so of the audience on the stage dancing and following in line behind the ample Craig, singing and clapping their hearts out.

The backing band The Voice of New Orleans consisting of 4 vocalists, a drummer and a bass guitarist spent the whole evening with big smiles on their faces, no not like a synchronised swimmer smile, real smiles that were so infectious you just couldn't help doing the same. Everyone on the stage just seemed to want to keep going as they were obviously thoroughly enjoying themsleves.

A fantastic and extremely energetic entertainer who made you fast realise why this type of music enticed you from the boredom of the cotton fields six days a week to the raucous and thoroughly uplifting scene at the local church on a Sunday. Almost enough to make you a believer all on his own!

This was a fantastic concert with sore hands at the end from all the happy clappying!

Diana Krall - Aug 5

She has been well written about over the last few months and it has to be admitted, it was well founded. There was not the clapping and shouting you find at a rock concert but this was a truly professional show. Her piano playing along with what must be a smokers voice, were superb.

She played some great standards, covering the likes of Frank Sinatra and many more to perfection. Sadly her husband was not around to join in, perhaps he was baby sitting the twins?

Before going you felt that this concert really needed a smaller venue, but this would have left the 4000 or so in a long line outside the Jazz Voyeur Club in La Llonja, Palma. But with what was obviously a lot of hard work and a very expensive (off island) production team Jazz Voyeur has yet again come up trumps. To be able to watch her piano playing close up was a real treat with the fantastic big screen set up that had been aranged. (Surely a first for Mallorca, especially at this quality level)

Well done guys, keep bringing them in.

Simply Red - Aug 3

A highly anticipated concert by many and avoided by the same amount. What is it about Mick Hucknall that make people either love him or loath him? There seemed to be a few people enjoying themselves despite this at Palma's Bullring this Sunday. On he bounced with his 70's suit and bashed out one of his big hits that wafted straight over you while you waited for another one.
A bit like Chinese food, once eaten, quickly forgotten and still hungry for more, but it never really seems to satisfy. Oh that's not the Ken Hom type of Chinese food, now that is good. He used to have a top notch restaurant in Victoria somewhere, one of my favorites. Oh and why can't we get proper crispy duck in Mallorca. Shredded properly with great plum sauce, pancakes, spring onions and cucumber. If anyone knows where I can get this can they let me know at info@digamemallorca.com.

Oh yeah Simply Red, well what can I say ........................? Not a lot.