singer, songwriter, community musician
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Stereo Graffiti Creative
Quotes and Reviews
"Make no mistake, this is a man who is passionate about peace and social justice; he just also happens to have an excellent sense of humour and an engaging stage presence." "an excellent musician who performs with kindness, honesty and a smile in his eyes ... his music and song writing is beautiful ... one of my Fringe highlights" "The biggest surprise from the day came in the shape of Darren Poyzer, a Mancunian singer/songwriter with charm and talent on his side ... full of the wit of a comedian and the musical skills of one of the greats" "Darren's
songs are heartfelt with poignant lyrics, and a beautiful sensitive
touch. We really enjoy it when he appears on the same stage as us." "Great gig Darren, well done, you did a mighty job and they loved ya, fair play!" " ... a very, very brilliant writer"
"A masterclass in live performance" "Great, fantastic, brilliant, mind blowing and inspiring"
"a genuine highlight of the festival as a whole ... fabulous stuff!!"
"You did a smashing job fella ... ta muchly once again!" "An
amazing folk singer from England" "The
very fine Darren Poyzer ... inimitable!" "This man is one of the greats. His wonderfully lyrical version of Love Will Tell Us Apart with the great John Ellis on Piano redefined that song and will stay in my memory as one of the great live moments I will ever see. It was simply transformative. Julie Rainbow was sublime and Looking for the Positive was a tour de force. Go and seek him out and have a great night out." "Where
Darren Poyzer appears, unusual things happen and people enjoy
themselves ... natural acoustic sound with trademark warmth, firmness
and tenderness from his guitar and seemingly effortless projection
of the distinctive voice that shares those same qualities ...
Darren Poyzer had once again produced an evening that mattered" "Darren Poyzer has a truly unique energy and gift for orchestrating live performance, armed as he is with a seemingly endless delivery of uplifting stories and images of passion, conflict, and the human condition" “Having seen you supporting the likes of the Saw Doctors and the Zombies to name but a few, receiving standing ovations as a support artist is quite an achievement … having an acclaimed singer songwriter of your pedigree hosting an event in our store is always a honour "Darren
performs beautifully crafted songs of life"
- The Halton Show "A
perceptive and moving singer-songwriter" "... get the people on your side, do it with spirit and you're onto a winner. That ethos is embraced by Darren Poyzer, who delivered his messages of hope for emotional trauma in an enviably upbeat style. His memorable 'Jigsaw Song' and 'Julie Rainbow' were set high points, with their respective messages of asylum sanctuary and life in a tough neighbourhood. His finale -'From the Beaches Of Ibiza To The Shores Of Vietnam' - proved that the rabble rousing protest song still has a voice and a welcome place in an excellent set." "Then welcome back for the second time to Darren Poyzer and Fluff. An acclaimed songwriter and an inspired performer, Poyzer and Fluff produced a fantastic set. Fluff, only yesterday playing with Bernie Marsden of Whitesnake fame, played some virtuoso fiddle to Poyzers energetic and at times moving guitar work, don't forget the Instigator! Superb" "One
of my favourites: Darren Poyzer. I wish he would release the single
From The Beaches Of Ibiza To The Shores Of Vietnam. An acoustic
matching anything David Gray could produce" "On this, a rare visit to Leeds, it is easy to see why
he is acknowledged as one of the best in the business by fellow
musicians and fans alike. With a stage presence that puts you at
ease, to the point where you feel Darren has been your best mate
for years, this was a gig you didn’t want to finish ... With
songs that explore and analyse all aspects of human life and behaviour,
Darren is in a class of his own and Leeds can only hope for a very
quick return." "Darren
Poyzer delivered a fantastic collection of humorous, poetic, touching
songs. I still stand by my reckoning about his 'Sunday Morning Footballer'
being the best football song written. It avoids the laddish culture
of football and has no burly chant but is touching in the beauty
and dedication that a nation of people who get up on a piss wet
Sunday for a game have. Plus he has the amazing 'Beaches Of Ibiza'
that grows with meaning the more the cycle of violence continues
with Iraq. A true talent of the acoustic performance" "Darren
started the day off and in the true singer songwriter style and
played a blinder, very talented" "The
best football song ever written" "Darren
Poyzer was on form once again and proved that he is a pro. This
man really knows how to work an audience. He has a great set of
songs... but then you already knew that. 'From The Beaches Of Ibiza
To The Shores Of Vietnam' sounded timeless tonight. Top class" "Suddenly
the cavalry came over the hill in the shape of Darren Poyzer of
Acoustica who amazed us with his speedy conversion of an empty alcove
into a full blown gig ... a charming little fella and his songs
are every bit as charming as the man himself" "
... adds his own brand of musical humour with his amazing 'Have
A Nice Day' song ... very professional, on the surface very funny
but very human ... a bundle of emotion" "Darren
Poyzer returns to Wigan to re-affirm his place as one of the best
singer / songwriters in the local area. Poyzer offers a very personal
feel to each of his cheery tunes and takes the listener on a lyrical
journey that everybody will be able to relate to. Whether it’s
the aches and pains of waking up on a Sunday morning to play five-a-side
or the simple ups and downs of life itself, Poyzer guarantees
to take you there again … and in style." "What a night! With the room full to overflowing it was another brilliant performance from Darren Poyzer. Darren’s songs just get better and better the more you listen to them. Joined during his first set by a special surprise appearance from Roydan Styles it was clear it was going to be a night to remember. Darren produced an awesome performance of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” to wrap up the first half .. All in all another brilliant night thanks to Darren’s top rate performance." "...
you can really empathise, sympathise, with the people in the songs
... it was often like being a kid again, sitting at the knees of
a storyteller as another tale was deftly told" "...
a truly uplifting set that managed to reduce the wall-to-wall, packed
out Green Room to an almost religious silence ... his brutally honest,
yet delicately delivered narrative transfixed even the most macho
of grown men in the room ... equally though, Poyzer possesses a
fighting spirit rarely found and his punky edge, combined with a
sharp sense of humour, had the audience clapping along to the more
upbeat songs. With backing from the very talented Kirk McElhinney,
Darren Poyzer captivated the diverse audience that had piled into
the venue and left everyone shouting out for more. Many of the crowd
had probably never heard of Darren Poyzer before tonights gig. Now
they would never forget him." "Darren
Poyzer - we think he's great" "a
superb performer ... Manchester-based
musician and songwriter with an inimitable take on the human condition:
Sunday morning football, global wars, popular culture, working-class
life, friendship and love. Traditional folk singers tell it like
it was. Darren writes and sings it like it is now. While not a traditional
"folkie”, Darren’s music is vibrant and original
... an eminently watchable performer" "Manchester's
hardest working and most respected singer-songwriter" "A
man who needs no introduction to Spotlight regulars, Darren Poyzer
pays another visit to the club. His songwriting abilities are amongst
the best I've seen in recent years. Very personal lyrics combined
with a wit and enthusiasm to match. If you've never seen him, make
sure you come and see him this time. If you have seen him before,
I don't need to tell you how good he is" "Darren
Poyzer is a powerful artist and one who certainly showed Haigh Hall
how to rock an acoustic guitar ... I stood next to a lad that lives
down my road and I’d not known he knew who DP was. He corrected
me by stating 'Yeh! Who doesn’t know DP? From The Beaches
Of Ibiza! I got barred from the Collective once when he played!'
As the drunken fella on my right continued to tell me tales of fights
in The Tavern, Poyzer played his set better than I’d ever
seen him on the stage ..." "As
a live performer Darren Poyzer is the brand new rock and roll. Who
says that rock and roll is all about sex and drugs, leather jackets
and haircuts? It’s about liberation, freedom, magic and honesty,
all of which you get on this CD" "...
Darren Poyzer is a f***ing brilliant solo artist! I don't really
see anyone say much about him on here and im not sure why. Last
night at the Lux Darren just totally showed everyone how it should
be done. Top class performer! Great songs! loved it." Review
of GLOBAL CD: "An amazing songwriter fighting for
the cause against the karaoke, the tribute acts, the DJs, the bile
of Saturday night 'fun' acts. He is the anti-pop, the working class
hero, an amazing talent. Nothing more can be said. Buy this album
and see the light." Review
of BRILLIANT WORDS CD: "An excellent 9 track cd
of Poyzer's songs, well worth getting hold of ... There's more to
this than the usual Poyzer voice and acoustic guitar: track 3 'Men
& Machines' starts off with a laid back lounge music feel, and
throughout the cd we get beautiful violin sounds weaving through
the songs ... Darren's songs are catchy, memorable and never feel
contrived. It's like the songs have written themselves, there's
no sense of them being laboured over, they just flow out, as natural
as can be ... a touching hairs-on-the-back-of-your-neck job ...
if you see Mr Poyzer press money into his hands and demand a copy
of this album" "
... the forceful demand for an encore brought Jamie and his fiddle
back to join him in 'From The Beaches Of Ibiza To The Shores Of
Vietnam' - a song written in the wake of September 11th. I have
heard many songs dedicated to that event, but his was by far the
best" "...
Northern, warm, human, fragile. A few questions are asked, "Have
you ever wanted to front a band?" Darren says "Yes, in my dreams.
We played Wembley!" Someone shouts "I played Wembley! Same dream!"
Quick as a flash, Mr Poyzer says "Yeah, but in my dream you were
the support act!" "What a fantastic treat it is to witness Darren Poyzer in performance. Alongside fellow musician Kevin Farrell, Mr Poyzer was in great form at De Bees Music Bar on the 18th of April 2007. His set is jam packed with songs of the highest quality and Darren Poyzer performs them quite majestically. Darren Poyzer reminds me of another great songwriter/storyteller that is Martin Stephenson with his onstage manner which is funny, charming and witty. He readily engages the audience with anecdotes which portray each of his songs in the appropriate context. The audience at De Bees were ecstatic in their appreciation of this fine performance. It is to be hoped that Darren Poyzer and Kevin Farrell play here again very soon." - Ian Scanlan, Film-Maker, Absolute Media "Poyzer, Fluff and Farrell provide a real taste of clotted cream folk – complete with fiddle, rainbows and hats. The style has a slight Irish twang, seasoned with humour, and a real political aftertaste that could leave tears in the eyes of sensitivity. It was a great moment" - Middlewich Folk and Boat Festival 2007
Protest Songs - Buxton Festival Fringe 2015 It was with a slight trepidation that I approached this gig; would it be overly earnest and dark? Any worries I may have had were immediately dispelled within seconds by Darren’s easy going charm and humour. Make no mistake, this is a man who is passionate about peace and social justice; he just also happens to have an excellent sense of humour and an engaging stage presence. Darren is also clearly a natural musician. Accompanying him for the first time was Purcy (sic) on the harmonica. They claimed that they had only played together once before the gig, a claim reiterated in a quick post-gig interview. You wouldn’t have guessed it – Purcy’s playing seamlessly intertwined with Darren’s soulful singing and guitar-playing. On one song he got out a saw which he played to great violinic effect. The impromptu aspect of the performance was further enhanced when Darren dragged a musical associate by the name of Royden onto the platform to sing the lead on ‘Worried Man Blues’. Darren largely steered clear of well-worn material, plucking out lesser known songs by the likes of Damien Dempsey, Ed Pickford and Stan Rogers. Composers unfamiliar to me they may be, but their work stood up well in comparison the better known material by Dylan, Springsteen and Florence Reece. Darren is a fine curator. He also included two of his own songs, the heart-rending ‘Julie Rainbow’ and the ‘Peace to End All Wars’. The latter was a true show-stopping finale, making clear exactly where Darren’s sympathies lie on the great questions of today. One unusual aspect was the use of graphics and film inserts to accompany many of the songs. This was very well-done – the images were engaging, appropriate to the songs and synchronized perfectly to the lyrics. Done badly, this could have been a distracting gimmick; instead it was a brilliant enhancement. Darren has the ability to get right inside a song – his diction is perfect, which is so essential for this type of music where every word counts and he has the ability to exude raw emotion whilst staying tuneful. Altogether, an excellent hour and a quarter in the Pauper’s Pit. It is no surprise that many of the audience were repeat visitors from last year’s gig. Fred Rolland
Poyzer and Farrell (Incredible Planet) @ Bolton Albert Halls - Manchester Is Music "I was lucky enough a couple of weeks ago to be at a gig where I was blown away by the support act. The main band Wishbone Ash, was excellent too, I have reviewed one of their gigs in an earlier column, and this gig was just as good, but how many times do you go to a gig and think that you’ve got your monies worth just by seeing the support? Your Southern Sister
'The War To End Wars' - Buxton Festival Fringe 2014 "It is not very often that you are given the chance to sit and really listen to music. For myself, I usually hear music driving to work, working, out and about etc. The War to End All Wars gives you the opportunity to truly listen to music whilst also taking through some stories from various wars. Darren John Poyzer invites us to experience his music and his relationship with war. He shares his unique perspective after being on various ships in the Falkland War that the majority of people will never know. This is combined with his passion to discover personal tales from war and his transformation of those discoveries and emotions in to music. Yet Poyzer does not just perform a set of songs, he provides context to the anecdotes and how he wrote each song with the aid of pictures and film footage in addition to his conversation. This is music with a conscience. His songs give us a glimpse of his moral, emotional, social and -although he tried to hide it- political conscience in reference to war as an entity. It made me question why war occurs, how different what the news shows to what the people involved actually live through and have we learnt from past conflict? In terms of the performance Poyzer is an excellent musician who performs with kindness, honesty and a smile in his eyes, which engages you in his story from the very beginning. Not only that his music and song writing is beautiful. No matter how much you know about War I urge you to go and appreciate what Poyzer has decided to share with us. The only negative I have is that there is only one other performance on Saturday 26th July! So grab your tickets now so you don’t miss out. One of my fringe highlights. Toni Saxton |
"Inspirational
... a cross between Slade The Leveller & Frank Sidebottom"
"I
am very impressed by his approach to music ... all his words are
brilliant as far as I'm concerned ... what an unusual delivery and
how effective. Excellent!"
"One
of the Manchester scene's best loved music personalities"