Performance Salon #6

In his artworks and performances over the years, John Carson has often played with the slippage between romance and reality. ‘As the night porter in the Coast Road Hotel in Carrickfergus, one of my duties was to clear up after the night’s revelries. The lounge floor would be littered with little pink request cards. Underneath the promise ” Our band will be happy to play or sing your musical request” would be scribbled drunken entreaties such as, Could we please have Tommy Chambers to sing I left my Heart in San Francisco for Etta and Dorrie from Courtaulds” or “Missishippe (sic) for all the men from all the women”. This was as near as Carrickfergus got to Las Vegas.’ For An evening with John Carson he performed ‘Just for You’. To book a place for the evening guests were required to send in a request card, asking for a favourite song. Accompanied by Sue Harris on piano, John sung up to 15 of the requests sent in.