I knew Gonzales was special as soon as he ambles onto the stage in what looks like a rather fine pair of carpet slippers. He cuts an intriguing dash, like something out of a quirky French animation (think Belleville Rendezvous) Gonzales, a classically inspired pianist, is an unexpected breath of fresh air, playing witty versions of jazz standards, tinged with echoes of Yann Tiersen (Amelie), Gershwin and a bygone age, and going by the reaction of the rapt audience, we need more of this stuff quickly and by the truckload - clever, childlike, warm and beautiful. Damn funny too.
At times, his playing falls into the jazz camp, at others, it's like the tremulous accompaniment to a silent movie or a Tom and Jerry cartoon. As ever, a bit of audience participation never goes amiss (well, we are edging into panto season, after all) and he persuads the crowd to accompany him in humming a bassline ('Wutang stylee') to some exuberant boogie-woogie that would make Jools Holland smile (or make him a bit jealous, one of the two).
We are then regailed with a slightly mad jazz version of 'Another One Bites the Dust', and a genuinely sensitive take on Lionel Ritchie's 'Hello?'. It's the sort of music that makes you so joyous you just want to fall over like a big happy moron. Or is that just me? Possibly. It cheered me up anyway. Gonzales has a new album out called 'Solo Piano' and frankly, if you know what's good for you, you'll buy it. It doesn't matter what type of music you are into, it'll lift your heart, important in these troubled times. Now, don't say I never consider your emotional wellbeing...
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