Review: Kate Rusby at The Hawth, Crawley, Thursday Sept 8

In those two decades she has released nine albums (a new one coming out in a few months’ time) and has entertained countless thousands with her wit and easy nature, plus, of course, an immaculate voice.

The songs, self-penned and traditional, sit firmly in the folk category - but even the most ardent opponent of the genre would have to admit to their quality.

Kate’s Yorkshire accent comes through into her singing voice which adds to the folky feel and the clarity and precision mean she has a wide appeal.

In a packed Hawth there were fans of all ages, from young children to those in retirement.

Kate, just singing on her own would be a great night.

However, she always chooses top quality musicians to surround her, creating a remarkable sound, arguably better than that on her albums.

Among these were her partner Damien O’Kane on guitar and banjo and Julian Sutton on melodeon, adding a depth to the sound.

Quite rightly the backing band had their own ‘spot’ with a series of great tunes and three of them even provided the warm-up.

But it was Kate’s voice that provided the icing on the cake with songs from across her remarkable range of albums.

And we were sent away with a happy feeling as she returned alone for the encore and sang the beautiful Underneath the Stars.

Steve Payne