by Annie Vischer
We were lucky enough to be invited along to the Somerset House Summer Series 2014, where the best and most vibrant music acts of the moment kick off the summer is serious musical style. Our concert of choice was Sam Smith, for whom 2014 has been somewhat of a wonder year.
It was the perfect way to spend a Friday night. The evening was warm and heady, and we sloped lazily onto the Somerset House terrace (VIP area of course darling!) to enjoy a Pimms or two (yes, not the usual concert beverage we know, but humour us), before the support acts got underway on the stage set up in the central courtyard.
Now this is just the sort of musical shindig we can get on board with. The stage was encapsulated by the beautiful and architecturally splendid presence of Somerset House, the ground was solid with not a hint of mud, audience were all of one appreciative and happy mind.
And Sam Smith’s performance did not disappoint. In any way. His tones were melodic, his sentiment moving, and his band were utterly on point. It’s common to become distracted during a gig, to spend a few songs clicking away and concentrating on getting the perfect picture, have a gossip, disappear for drinks and check out the crowds around you, but from the minute Sam Smith took to the stage we were hooked.
It might have had something to do with the fact that my housemate had recently purchased his album and it had become the soundtrack to our pre-work morning routine, getting ready for bed routine, and pretty much any spare minute in the house. So I accidentally knew all the words. To every song. Convenient that!
It seemed that everyone else was singing along pretty easily too. Everyone fell into the comfortable lilt of each song, relaxed into their predictability. Until, that is, Sam shook things up. The build up had been coming to his number one single ‘Stay With Me’, so the anticipation was already pumping, but it hit an almighty high when Sam announced the entrance of none other than Mary J Blige. The crowd went wild as she strode onto stage, lip gloss glistening, orange leather jacket beaming, to turn Sam’s heart felt song into a duet.
It was the perfect end to the perfect evening, and we wouldn’t have been anywhere else.
It’s fair to say that the Somerset House Summer Series are always a success, and with acts on the roster this year including the likes of Kelise, Bastille, Kyla La Grange and Kodaline to name but a few, this year seriously ups the ante.
Somerset House Summer Series.
Somerset House Summer Series.
Sam Smith is part of the stellar line-up for this year’s Summer Series at Somerset House with American Express®, just one example of the enriched entertainment experiences available to Cardmembers. For more insider information from some of the UK’s most sought after events visit youtube.com/AmericanExpressUK.