On the face of it, the V Festival seemed like the wrong place to catch Gregory Porter. He was the second act on the second day of the Festival; on the main stage, rather than one of the more intimate tents, and sandwiched between Scotland’s second biggest export, The Proclaimers, and X Factor sixth-place finisher, Ella Henderson. To make matters worse, the sunshine from the previous day had all but disappeared, and as the big man opened his set, so did the heavens, rain cascading off the roof of the stage on to the security guards below.

But as we wrote when we reviewed Liquid Spirit in late 2013, Porter is helping to expand the market for jazz. Since that album was released, he has consolidated his success by releasing Issues Of Life – Features and Remixes, which included some of his recordings with David Murray and Zbonics, as well as a club-friendly remix of 1960 What? More recently, he has collaborated with the British electronic dance band, Disclosure, on the single Holding On, which further broadened his appeal. So he had earned his place on the main stage, and it was gratifying to see that there were many in the crowd that were familiar with his songs - even if the seventeen-year girl next to me, patiently waiting seven hours for her heroes, The Script, had no idea who he was.

The band opened with Donny Hathaway’s Someday We’ll All Be Free, which set the tone for the set, spreading a message of love and optimism. The lyrics suggest that “brighter days will soon be here”, but somebody wasn’t listening, as the rain seemed to intensify as the song progressed. Next up was On My Way To Harlem from his second album, Be Good. The song namechecks Marvin Gaye, and Porter smartly included excerpts of What’s Going On, which brought a roar of recognition from the crowd.

Saxophonist Yosuke Sato switched to flute for the gorgeous Hey Laura, and delivered a fine solo to generous applause. Porter thanked the crowd for standing in the rain to watch him perform, praising the festival spirit, before urging the crowd to clap along to the gospel-influenced Liquid Spirit. As the song ended, he wondered if there wasn’t a little too much liquid pouring from the grey skies overhead. No Love Dying, also from the Liquid Spirit album, was also given a gospel-style ending, with the crowd joining Porter at the end for a sing-along. 

Porter judged the pace of his short set to perfection. A short burst of Papa Was A Rolling Stone gave way to Musical Genocide, in which the singer laid out his musical manifesto. Pianist Albert ‘Chip’ Crawford clearly understood the message being delivered, and quoted Harold Melvin’s Wake Up Everybody in his superb solo. Sadly, time was running out, and there was only time for a short burst of the crowd-pleasing 1960 What? Before Gregory Porter raised his hand to wave farewell to the 2015 V Festival. Next stop is back home in California, where he will headline two nights at the Hollywood Bowl. Hopefully the weather will be a little brighter, because the crowd is in for a night of fabulous music.