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First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 30 August 2010, this is a tribute to that national treasure, talented musician and man of a thousand put-downs on I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, Humphrey Lyttelton. To celebrate the life of his father, Humph's son Stephen organised and introduces an exceptional evening of music and comedy which features an all-star cast of friends and admirers from the world of music, including Elkie Brooks, Stacey Kent, Jools Holland and, of course, the Humphrey Lyttelton Band. Joining forces with them are a host of comedians from the Clue team, including Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden, Barry Cryer and Sandi Toksvig. This extended version contains lots of material not included in the original broadcast... This night of comedy and jazz neatly pays tribute to the life of Humphrey Lyttelton who will best be remembered for chairing the popular BBC Radio 4 comedy panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue - a position he held from the first episode (broadcast in 1972) until his sad passing in April 2008. His deadpan delivery allowed him to delivery crude and cutting lines with an innocent charm that made you instantly warm to him. Humph was also a a jazz trumpeter and bandleader for many years and so this concert attempts to mix his two areas of professional expertise. So we have various bands, including the Humphrey Lyttelton Band, Elkie Brooks, Stacey Kent and Jools Holland as well as some of the regular panelists from I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, including Tim Brooke-Taylor, Barry Cryer, Jack Dee, Graeme Garden, Jeremy Hardy, Sandi Toksvig. This concert was recorded on 25 April 2010, on the two year anniversary of Humph's death. I'm not a huge fan of jazz, although I don't mind it in small doses on CD, but I prefer to see it performed live. For me it got in the way of the comedy here. But, as this was a tribute for Humph, I was prepared to go with it and in truth this is quite an interesting release - but not one I'd necessarily listen to again. The comedy isn't as funny as the broadcast episodes of the show but, again, it does its job here in this celebration of a great man's life. For me the standout moment was the 'One Song to the Tune of Another' segment that sees the lyrics for The Smiths's 'Girlfriend in a Coma' being sung to the tune of 'Tiptoe Through the Tulips'. There was one slight oversight... For some odd reason Tony Hawks and Rob Brydon are missing from the CDs credits. A warm and fitting tribute to the legend that is Humph. 7 Darren Rea |
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