Neal Francis & Pearl Charles

Francis is his middle name, it turns out. Neal Francis was unknown to me back in June when I booked my ticket. I heard through Pearl Charles that she was coming back to London to support Neal, and I booked immediately. So much else has happened since that day, 9 June 2025, just days after her 5 June Moth Club show to celebrate the release of Desert Queen.

The first word that came to mind when I first started playing Neal’s music was funk. There is an unmistakable funky groove to his music. I realised last night that he is first and foremost a live performer, and he really did come alive on that stage. He is effortlessly cool at all times.

I tried to think of another artist who is both a pianist and frontman. It is a rare formula indeed. The most obvious is Elton John, but this is a different postcode. Neal’s drummer was at least as far forward on the stage as everyone else and all four guys sang at various times. Robert Palmer just a little?

Although it was Neal’s name on the ticket it felt like a very tight four-piece rock band playing music that does at times step into something like heavy rock, but there’s nearly always that funky background. Most times it’s in the foreground. Could we add the word jazz perhaps? I played as much of his new album as I could beforehand, but I am only just now digging into his back story.

Neal has been through challenging times musically and personally and he quickly won over the Islington audience with his opening chat, although the room was absolutely packed and they were very much ready for their guy when he walked on. He started talking about Great Britain, but then seemed to be emphasizing the Great. Then he came out with a line that I have never heard before: Let’s Make America Great Britain Again!

It’s interesting that all of the American artists I have seen this year have sought to make a light political statement either on stage or in interviews. I sense an awkwardness. They want us to know they don’t support what is going on but they can relax. We don’t bother much with American news: it is so far away and we think a country that can be led by Hollywood actors probably isn't to be taken seriously.

We find it easy to distinguish between a people, any people, and its temporary leaders. Without delving into politics here, we have had to perform that mind trick rather often in the last three years. Speaking as an avid lifelong fan of all things Americana, we forgive you, almost anything. You see, you did win independence, but you never bothered to learn anything other than our language.

Neal barely stopped moving all night. First sitting, now standing, then grabbing the microphone, walking around with it. He is an absolute ball of energy and you must see him live to understand his music. He wore a sharp suit and pulled off the rare trick of making a bow tie look cool. He is the real deal and everyone in the crowd danced or wiggled through the whole show. The sprung wooden floor bounced in time with the drums. It was loud.

Learning this morning about Neal’s early years in instrumental funk really helps to understand his live shows. He started in the blues, and I have spent the last month writing daily about a cult London blues band from 1967 called Fleetwood Mac. No, not that Californian surf band, I mean the Peter Green one. I reminded myself last night that music is primarily a live act. It existed before recording technology. And we call it music for a reason, no matter how much my brain fixes on the words and the storytelling and the artist’s journey.

Changes is Neal’s most-streamed song and it boosted the energy in the room even higher. Even I knew, as a very recent convert, that this was his most famous tune, from his debut solo album. Everyone on that stage worked seriously hard for the whole show. Energy is an overused word but they left nothing in the tank.

You can get to know Neal Francis over on his own website. But he really does come alive on stage and no mistake. You could stream him but you would be doing yourself an injustice. He is permanently on tour.