FEATURE:
Live and Kicking
The Continuing Excellence and Importance of Later... with Jools Holland
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I have said before how it is a shame…
IN THIS PHOTO: Jools Holland with Arlo Parks
there are not many music television shows around! Once was the time when there was quite a selection for the music fan. I guess, with streaming and the fact we can see music videos online, there is less necessity. I think that it is a relief that we have one long-standing music show in the form of Later... with Jools Holland. The fact that it has been running since 1992 shows that there is an appetite for a good and broad music show! During lockdown, it has been a portal for those who want to experience live music. Even though the format of the show has had to adapt for the pandemic, as Music Week write, the series has been a real lifeline:
“Fifty-seven series in, and Later… With Jools Holland has become more important than ever.
The show returns on BBC Two at 10pm on Friday (February 19) with Arlo Parks as the main guest picking favourite moments from the archive, along with performances by Kings Of Leon and Sleaford Mods.
“It's always been a very popular show with our audience, and actually even more popular this past year,” Jan Younghusband, BBC Music TV head of commissioning, told Music Week. “It's one of those situations where, by not being able to do it as normal, it has been really entertaining and interesting having guests using the archive, alongside live performance and introducing new talent.
“It still has the same DNA, but the ability to add these archive choices has been very profound. We've been able to seek out some great performances that haven't been seen for a long time – quite extraordinary things. It's added a whole new layer to the programme. One day, we'll all be back in the studio, but I'm sure we will keep that element going, bringing deep archive to the audience.”
These six episodes are a bonus run for Later…, which will then return for another series in May.
The main guests for this latest series include Arlo Parks and Moses Boyd (who appeared together on Music Week’s cover last year), along with Tom Jones, Laura Mvula, Years & Years’ Olly Alexander and, for an edition tied in with Comic Relief, Lenny Henry. Other artists set to perform include Music Week cover star Rag’N’Bone Man, Peggy Seeger, Pa Salieu, Wolf Alice and Dry Cleaning.
“There are some very exciting young stars coming through,” said Younghusband. “In the tradition of Later…, there's always been the pop star at one end of the room and the brand new person you've never heard of at the other end of the room.
“Rag’N’Bone Man started off with us, now he’s a big star. The BBC likes to feel that, by nurturing talent, they come up through radio and television. Later… With Jools Holland has had an enormous role in the debuts of so many of the great talents that we have.”
Last year’s guests on the show included Christine And The Queens, Dizzee Rascal, Ellie Goulding, Gregory Porter, Guy Garvey, Michael Kiwanuka, Robert Plant, Sam Smith and Celeste, alongside performances from Laura Marling, Fontaines DC, Declan McKenna, Koffee, The Lathums and Joesef.
While it obviously helps that people are stuck at home, ratings have been strong for Later… in the past year, including a record result of 4.56 million viewers for Jools’ Annual Hootenanny on New Year’s Eve. The programme featured new and archive performances from artists including Celeste, Roisin Murphy and Ella Eyre.
This current bonus series shows the BBC’s commitment to live music, according to Younghusband.
“It has never been a more challenging and catastrophic time for our industry,” she told Music Week. “We felt that what we should try and do is make more live music happen. So we added this February run of six episodes, and then there will be a further run of six in May.
“Right now, we're in a very serious time and our audience is locked down at home. We want to make sure that we're doing our job by bringing them great music, young talent and the stars of the moment, which is what the show does”.
As Jools Holland’s music series turns thirty next year, I hope there will be other shows commissioned. I think there is a great demand for live performance and spotlighting of great new artists. Watching Later... with Jools Holland and you get an experience and buzz that you cannot get from YouTube or streamed gigs. I look forward to a new series in May and I know that so many people have been lifted by Later... with Jools Holland. It is great that the success and popularity of Later... with Jools Holland continues, but it makes me wonder why there are not calls for alternative music shows – given the fact that there is clear demand for the format. Maybe this is something that will be rectified post-pandemic. Ever since the ‘90s, I have been watching the series and discovering so many great artists. I think I found The White Stripes through Later... with Jools Holland – or was alerted to the fact they were seriously good live performers at least! Now that we do not have Top of the Pops or Saturday morning music shows on television, Later... with Jools Holland remains a survivor and treasured show. Let’s hope that there is many more years left in Later... with Jools Holland. It is now, as it always was, a wonderful…
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