Elles Bailey and Breezy Rodio at the Tuesday Night Music Club

The review was written by Nigel Foster and shared with his permission.

Images By Ken Jackson

Elles Bailey and Breezy Rodio at the Tuesday Night Music Club

Elles Bailey – A Secret Gig at The Tuesday Night Music Club – 10 March 2026 The return of Elles to the scene of her early success is like the return of the prodigal daughter. Years ago Elles took the spirit of The Tuesday Night Music Club to her heart, and the patrons similarly took Elles to their hearts, where she has stayed ever since.

Tonight really was a triumphal return, and the secret was out amongst those lucky enough to have a ticket that the star of the show would be Elles, and if you were there, I am sure you will agree she and the band were sensational and then some. More of this shortly because mention must be made of the Electric Soul Company, who opened the show in fine style, treating us to a set of pure soul and blues. The band are a duo of vocalists and guitarists; they are Breezy Rodio and Will Jacobs.

The duo opened with a Bobby Womack cover and an original composition entitled ‘Our Love’, and within just 2 songs we were treated to sweet vocal harmonies and, for me, perfection: a twin guitar harmony and a rich vocal harmony that featured Will drenched in serious soul.

As the duo moved through their set list, the gift kept on giving as they joined together seamlessly to share serious Chicago blues carved on a surging rhythm and a mid-song melodic solo. Both guys have exceptional voices, and they melded them together, making rich vocal harmonies, and their skill with a guitar was impressive as rhythmic strums and delicate fingerpicking merged to add colour to the vocals that had serious soul.

Breezy and Will closed their set with Treat Me So Mean, a fat slice of Chicago blues where the two voices swooped low and soared high and Will laid out an extended, string-bending solo. Hugely entertaining music from 2 very cool and talented dudes. The atmosphere was crackling with anticipation as 8 fabulous musicians filled the tight stage and officially started the Elles Bailey Can’t Take My Story Away 2026 tour. As I sit here now trying to form the words to do justice to what unfurled before us, my first words are, ‘The show was simply sensational and then some and a joyous celebration of what and who Elles Bailey has become. ‘What Elles has become is a superstar that owns the stage and captivates her audience with her presence, and on this tour she is surrounded by a band of stellar musicians that wrap the leading lady’s lyrics and voice in a blanket of aural sounds.

If you are lucky enough to already have a ticket to one of the forthcoming gigs, you are in for the time of your life. If you don’t yet have a ticket, just get one; if there are any left, I promise you will thank me. The new album is a contemporary masterpiece, and in this live environment and with the addition of a brass section of Will Gibson on saxophone and Paul Jordanous on trumpet, the sound was so full and broad it literally filled the room.

The title track opened the gig, and it was simply thrilling as the band slipped immediately into a tight sound of rhythms that built the platform for the smoky Elles vocal and harmony vocals from Lady in Waiting, Demi Marriner. The pace and power lifted higher as the 8-piece dropped into the funky, confident strut of Growing Roots; punchy drums and bass from Matthew Jones and Matthew Waer pulsed out, widened out by the crisp keys of Jonny Henderson and taut electric and acoustic guitar lines from Joe Wilkins and Demi. Elles jumped aboard the vibe and delivered the bouncy lyric with clarity.

Better Days was a little juxtaposition, a bright, lively and happy song you just want to sing along to, tinged forever with sadness, as it is a Matt Long song and now a tribute to Matt. Performed live, the sadness of the loss of Matt to the music community was lightened by the bounce and positivity of the lyrics. The bounce was maintained as the band leaned into How Do You Do It?, and a rhythm section pathway mapped out a pathway for some searing Joe Wilkins slide cutting through the atmosphere. Elles danced over the music with her multi-layered voice.

I wasn’t ever sure I would see and hear Elles perform live a contemporary song with a real dance ability, but I did, courtesy of the live wire Help Somebody. Matthew Jones kicked it off with a marching drums fill plus a throbbing bass pattern from Matthew and sweeping heavy keys from Jonny. Demi overlaid the groove with tight rhythm guitar, Joe chopped out a slashing riff, and Elles added a climbing vocal. One of my favourite songs on the album is the immediate Americana anthem Constant Need To Keep Going, and heard live as a full band, it was glorious.

A soft bass intro led in a textured keyboard pattern, finger-picked rhythm guitar from Demi, and some atmospheric, echo-ridden lead breaks from Joe. Pure and clean vocal harmonies from the leading ladies sealed the deal. Elles has been very open that this album is her most personal yet, and here she read an emotional and honest passage from the zine that accompanies the album, and in her true brave style, she revealed some of her own vulnerabilities.

This is a part of what makes Elles Bailey so very special. To all of us, she is totally authentic and humble. Angel was a mood-laden opus climbing by stealth on the collective instrumentation, with the brass section adding textures, and it became a funky strut with the vocals powering through the groove. The segue that followed was something of an emotional rollercoaster, and Let It Burn and then Tightrope held us in their tight grip. On the former, Elles reached deep for the lyrics and framed them with a delicate voice, and on the latter, the raw emotion was even more exposed as the band fell to almost silent accompaniment to wrap around the voice.

I knew I would get emotional when Tightrope was performed, and I did. Once again, this is a very deep and personal song, and the lyrics of it can and do resonate with all of us at some stage of our lives. Joe built the mood and emotion with a mood- and slide-driven solo. Love Yourself was a bump ‘n’ grind kiss-off with a massive groove from the rhythm section.

If This Is Love brought the set to a real climax as Elles and Demi joined voices together like the soul sisters they are before the stage was left to Demi and the band, and Demi shone with a passionate passage of the song before Elles joined back in. Of course every last person got to their feet to honour the band, and it was loud and sustained, and that led to an encore, a sharp double salvo of What’s The Matter With You, where Elles sang beautifully whilst walking through the audience, really connecting with each of us.

The band were in total harmony, providing Elles with a safety blanket. Take a Step Back had a funk vibe and was a fitting way to close a sensational gig, and of course, we were on our feet again. Richard, Rosalind, Elles and your wonderful band thank you for giving us this treasure. This will become known as an ‘I was there gig’.