Mario Biondi Shines On In The North

Appearing in a rare concert in the north, Italian jazz and soul singer Mario Biondi brought some warm summer vibes to an unseasonably cool spring evening in Gateshead.

The audience at the Sage 2 theatre were treated to two forty five minute sets from the soulful Biondi. Backed by a six piece band he opened up with his cover of the Marvin Gaye classic What’s Going On, a track off the new album Romantic.

Although the new album has a selection of cover versions as well as originals, it is the latter where Biondi really excelled .With vocals that recall Barry White set against a pop and jazz groove it is a mystery why he is not as well known in this country as some of his peers such as Eros Ramazzotti or Zucherro.

As he introduced Never Die he teased the audience about the pronunciation of Gateshead before the song was performed with a faithful version that sounded even better than the recorded version with Biondi giving the song a passionate and meaningful vocal.

Having worked with Bluey from Incognito and Burt Bacharach on Lov-Lov Love and Come Ogni Ora respectively Bondi was eager to share the two songs with his fans although there was still more treats to come.

This Is What You Are was the song that introduced me to Biondi -often referred to as the Prince of Italian jazz. Underpinned by an unforgettable bass line the song ebbed and flowed reaching a vocal hook that the fans instantly recognised in a moment where artist and audience were totally as one.

His other collaboration with Incognito, Shine On closed an unforgettable night though why he chose to cut the song short and mix it in with The Temptations My Girl seemed a diversion too far with Shine On being one of his most popular songs.

“Thank you for coming, we will be back again” he promised the fans as he left the stage after a dazzling performance that seemed over far too soon.