I must admit the freezing conditions gave rise to second thoughts about venturing out for this gig, but the chance to catch a rare live performance by one of the UK’s most underrated musicians – despite playing with the likes of Paul Weller and Oasis he doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page – provided enough impetus for me to leave the house. As well as the opportunity to save a few bob on the heating bills, obvs.

The effort was worth it in both respects, with EDF’s lost income easily the lesser of the two positives. A fabulous evening of acoustic music more than trumped that side benefit, as the friendly atmosphere of the Kitchen Garden Café and a sublime performance by Matt Deighton combined to warm the cockles on a freezing night in King’s Heath.

The kind of musician for which the word enigmatic was invented, Deighton is a troubadour in the trou (ahem) sense of the word, a virtuoso guitarist with a poetic, almost innocent charisma – his (mostly self-deprecating) on stage chat at odds with the mesmerising music he performs – it’s pretty much impossible not to fall under his spell.

And this was certainly a spellbinding performance. The last show of a brief tour that’s seen him return him to the stage after a lengthy absence was always likely to be something of a celebration, and while that was never gonna mean party poppers, Deighton had the look and twinkling eye of a contented man throughout.

Which is a big deal for someone who admits to rarely being relaxed in the spotlight – “I don’t get anxiety on stage but I do get it before and after” he said recently, and he has to be reminded to get merchandise out of the car to sell at gigs – but the intimate confines of the venue and an audience clearly willing him on ensured he was as comfortable as he ever could be.

All of which made for a simply stunning performance, with the accent on both words. Simple in that all he did was sit on a high stool with an acoustic guitar, stunning in what he did while sat on a high stool with an acoustic guitar. Song after song featured beguilingly vocals and stunning playing, often preceded by a good-humoured moan at his tuning or difficulty reading his home-made lyric sheets but followed by an endearing smile at how well it had turned out.

The setlist is largely irrelevant, but for the record provided a wonderful showcase of his mercurial talents, serving up choice selections from across his recorded output, either as a member of Mother Earth and The Family Silver or the solo career that now seems so re-energised in the wake of the brilliant (and well titled) Overshadowed documentary about his career. As well as tunes from Villager, Doubtless Dauntless (May You Give It All Away especially wondrous) and Kids Steal Feelings he aired a selection of new material from still to be mixed (“but I thought it had been”) new album Today Become Forever, suggesting the next chapter might be the one more people get to read.

Along with the prospect of more live shows to promote it, here’s hoping 2023 is the year this wonderful talent finally comes out of the shadows and into the light.

4 stars

Reviewed by Steve Adams at the Kitchen Garden Café, Birmingham, on Thursday 15 December