Vox Populi - Everything Must Change

Dan Copeland. Photo by Tristan Paine.

Vox Populi - Everything Must Change, performed at Holy Trinity Church, Leamington Spa, Saturday 12 July 2025.

Review by Charles Essex

A full house enjoys a concert of two halves at Leamington’s Holy Trinity Church.

The Vox Populi community choir performed their second concert under the leadership of Harvey Brough.  Harvey, of the eponymous Harvey and the Wallbangers, the 1980s jazz vocal group, put together a comprehensive programme which delighted this full house at Holy Trinity Church in Leamington on Saturday.

Superbly accompanied by eight members of the Orchestra of the Swan, the first half were protest songs with a strong emphasis on civil rights and anti-slavery themes.  The songs, although sometimes familiar, were all arranged by Harvey.  Soloist Emily Dankworth, who had wonderful voice and stage presence, gave a beautiful a cappella rendition of Keep your eyes on the prize.  Nina Simone’s Mississippi Goddam had some lively double bass and drum accompaniment from Claire Whitson and Tim Farmer, respectively.

One grain of sand rose to a crescendo with the use of bass and percussion again, and the introduction of violins, and a heartfelt solo from Emily. Weariness and scepticism with the hollow words of leaders were the theme of Redemption Day, with the music evoking the rhythm of a train.  Kate Brook joined Emily for a duet for Everything must change, with Kate’s lighter, gentler voice complementing Emily’s. The lively message of salvation and freedom through Jesus in the gospel song Redemption contrasted with the harsh realities of mournful lyrics of Strange Fruit, which described lynchings and burnings.

The mood was lightened by the joyous Latin rhythm of Angelitos Negros, and, familiar to those in the audience of a certain age, Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood, a 1960s hit for The Animals, brought a wonderful first half to a close.  The Vox Populi choir gave a wonderful rendition of these pieces, some of which were 8-part harmonies, and they were clearly having as much enjoyment as the audience.

The rest of the evening after the interval were songs of Randy Newman.  Newman is a prolific song writer, including film scores, probably the best known of which is You Got A Friend In Me, the theme to the Toy Story films. 

Harvey Brough. Photo by Tristan Paine.

 Many of the songs were led by Dan Copeland, whose superb tenor voice brilliantly conveyed a range of emotions and accents.  The gentle harmonies of I Miss You, to Newman’s ex-wife, contrasted with the guitar and bass riffs in Baltimore as Newman highlighted the urban decay of that city. Dan gave a wonderful lively upbeat tone to I’m different.  There was real humour in the country music and lyrics of Big Hat. Kate Brook’s gentle solo of In Germany before the war had a mournful piano accompaniment. 

The second half was rather long at 18 pieces and could have been a concert in itself for fans of Randy Newman’s work. However, Harvey is clearly mining a rich seam of talent with this choir and future concerts will no doubt be sell-outs, as this one was.  The next Vox Populi Concert will be in the early autumn (dated TBC), and a Christmas concert on 20 December in Holy Trinity Church.