An evening with Frank Yamma

With his exhilarating voice and imaginative guitar playing, Frank Yamma delights his audience, despite the odd mumbled word.

Yamma starts his show by walking onto stage without fanfare, nodding matter-of-factly to the audience and perching on a stool. It is not very "showbiz".

Then he starts singing and nobody cares how slick his stagecraft is. He has something better than "showbiz"; he has genuine talent.

His rich, powerful voice resonates in every corner of the room. This otherwise mild-mannered man expresses raw potent emotion when he sings. With each new song he opens a door directly onto sadness, or joy, or love. He plays guitar with the skill and freedom of someone who never believed what he was told about what the instrument couldn't do.

Between songs, Yamma mutters and mumbles to the point of being, occasionally, inaudible. He sometimes takes a long minute to remember what song comes next. While he is still charming and personable, these things do distract from his performance. But whenever the mind starts to wander, or to wonder what time it is, Yamma starts to sing and that is extraordinary.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Wantok Musik present
An evening with Frank Yamma

The Idolize Speigeltent, Rundle Park Adelaide
Saturday 18 February 2012