Dear all,
A bit of a plug-filled blog this time round. I have tours, oh such tours, I have such tours and tours and…er…gigs.
I’m at the tail end of a mini solo tour which ends with:
25/09 – Uxbridge Folk Club, London
28/09 – Walthamstow Folk Club, London
30/09 – Bicycle Shop, Norwich (featuring Nic Zuppardi)
Then it’s UFQ autumn tour time:
September 27th TRITON INN, Brantingham, East Yorkshire
October 5th Hitchin Folk Club
October 9th Arlington Arts Centre, Newbury
Oct 11th Oxenhall Parish Hall, Gloucestershire
October 12th Farnham Maltings, Surrey
October 15th Kirk Langley Village Hall, Derbyshire
October 16th Taddington Village Institute, Derbyshire
October 17th Denstone Village Hall, Staffordshire
October 18th Fillongley Village Hall, Coventry
October 24th Huntingdon Hall, Worcester
October 27th Colchester Folk Club
October 31st Edge Hill Arts Centre, Ormskirk
November 1st MAC, Birmingham
November 7th Brockweir Mackenzie Hall, Chepstow
November 8th May Hill Village Hall, Gloucestershire
Then a very special tour with Canadian singer Meaghan Blanchard:
| 12 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Gatehouse Theatre, Stafford |
| 13 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Cecil Sharp House, London |
| 14 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Spring Bank Arts Centre, New Mills, Derbyshire |
| 15 Nov 2014 | with Meaghan Blanchard | AFO Conference (not public), Nottingham |
| 16 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Old Launderette, Durham |
| 17 Nov 2014 08:00 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | House Concert, Edinburgh (email for details) |
| 18 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham |
| 21 Nov 2014 07:30 pm |
with Meaghan Blanchard | Maverick Events at the White Horse, Easton |
Wow the fonts in the blog have gone crazy! But anyway that’s the giggage coming up and very excited I am too. So a little report on things that have been happening…After a great time in the studio recording my new solo album it was back to giggery with two food-themed gigs – Sturminster Cheese Festival with UFQ and then a solo slot at the Great British Food Festival. Both were rather good and I ate well. Then a couple of solo shows at St Neot’s Folk Club and at Shakespeare’s in Sheffield. A lovely audience for both gigs and I thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Then from the Sheffield gig I drove to Liverpool to catch a 3am ferry to Ireland. Silly boy. Anyway after an eight hour ferry ride of not sleeping I headed to Navan to play the Spirit of Folk festival which by all accounts was an absolute belter. The reception great and I enjoyed some cracking music from a variety of bands but special mention must go to In Their Thousands with whom I had some great craic and one of my all time favourite bands Kila who as ever were just stunning. Then it was off to Galway, a magical city with music on every corner quite literally. I have never come across anywhere so enveloped by music and my gig at Monroe’s was ever a blast. Finally, the wonder that is Ballymore Acoustic Gigs with its incredibly attentive audience and first rate pints of Guinness! Great to meet Buddy Mondlock and Mike Lindauer who shared the bill and were great company and of course outstanding musicians.
Then back I came on the ferry which was mind numblingly tedious until the last few hours when my beloved Liverpool team appeared on the telly and played well into extra time and a record length of penalty shootout which kept me much entertained and rather tense! I spend a lot of time ranting on this blog but I feel the need to redress the balance here. I overheard a couple of young German girls chatting to a typically gregarious scouse couple and after a bit of chat the Germans asked if the scousers knew anywhere to park for free in Liverpool so they wouldn’t pay exorbitant charges whilst staying wherever they were staying. The reaction of the scouse couple – use our drive! You can even come in and have a cuppa if you like. Use our drive while you’re here as much as you need.
That, people, is why I bloody love Liverpool.