To A Sea Cliffis the third album from Anglo-Scottish folk ensemble Far Flung Collective. The collective was originally formed back in 2015 as part of a collaborative project between English SoundStorm Music Education Agency and the Scottish University of the Highlands and Islands, linking musicians from southern England with peers based in the Gaelic Outer Hebrides. A debut album, Far Flung Corners, emerged out of the project in 2017 with a follow-up, Black Bay, in 2020.
For this third album the long-standing nucleus of Alex Roberts (vocals / guitar), Wendy Stevenson (fiddle/whistle), Dan Somogyi (piano/guitar/bass) and Mabel Duncan (vocals/guitar/fiddle) are joined by seventeen new collaborators, as musicians and narrators, across the fourteen tracks.
Unlike its two predecessors, the recording of this album hit up against the constraints of covid lockdowns and so, created almost entirely online, recording took place at a much more leisurely pace over a period of two years (which makes me feel slightly less guilty about only now getting around to reviewing it, some six months after it was released).
Dan Somogyi: “We bounced ideas and recordings around, brought in musicians wherever we could get them locally, and refined ideas more than we would ever have time to do in normal circumstances. Out of adversity, new tunes emerged and the resultant album is something we’re very proud of.”
While the album as a whole is inspired by and celebrates some of the incredible coastline of the British Isles, it’s arranged thematically. The first section, comprising seven tunes, was inspired by the landscapes of southern England and includes the wonderfully-atmospheric ‘Durdle Door’, written as a tribute to that famous natural wonder of the Dorset coast.
The next section, made up of two tracks, is about taking a look at things that unite communities in England and Scotland, whether it be coastline or culture, and includes a spoken-work part in both English and Gaelic. The third section then places the emphasis firmly on Scotland, with six newly-composed tunes, including a lovely tune-set made up of two new traditional-sounding Scottish jigs, written by fiddle-player, Anna-Wendy Stevenson.
For the final track, the album takes a completely left-field turn with an epic, nine-minute piece, ‘Avian Migrations (Dub of the Little Tern)’. Reminding us of our place in the wider world, we’re taken on a musical journey that incorporates free jazz, reggae, Afrobeat and the reworking of a Scottish reel from the Collective’s debut album.
While the album is fantastically varied, both musically and stylistically, it remains surprisingly cohesive and is absolutely brimming with vibrant and uplifting tunes, making for a fitting celebration of our incredible shared coastline.
I’ve been responsible for herding a fluid and evolving group of friends, family members and friends of friends to attend Fairport’s Cropredy Convention for some fourteen years now. Looking for somewhere to rendezvous that very first time back in 2010 (in order that we could all drive in together and camp next to one another) we happened across a layby in Banbury. Now, every year without fail in the days leading up to Cropredy I start getting text messages from various people in various parts of the country asking me where the layby is. I can never remember so every year without fail I end up visiting a dogging website to get the name, postcode and exact location so people can programme it into their satnavs.
So it was that this year (after numerous texts and checking out the dogging website once again) three cars, a caravan and a campervan all assembled punctually in said layby ready to enjoy another Cropredy weekend of fun, friendship and fantastic music.
Our Cropredy camping group this year – Photo credit: a friendly Cropredy punter
Day one: Thursday
As is now traditional, Fairport Convention opened proceedings with a short acoustic set. It still seems slightly unreal not seeing Gerry Conway’s beaming face alongside the rest of the band. Even though he’s been succeeded by long-time Fairport legend, Dave Mattacks, my years of following the band live had all been in the Gerry era so his retirement in 2022 and tragic death in March this year came as a real shock. He will be greatly missed.
Feast of Fiddles followed, always a great festival folk band and always a delight. Much as I wanted to see Kathryn Tickell and the Darkening, however, a combination of rain, cider and lack of sleep sent me back to the campsite for a snooze so I could be match-fit ready for Rick Wakeman’s set. What turned out to be an extended snooze meant I missed all of Tony Christe’s set, too, but I’m told he went down really well.
Rick Wakeman, on the other hand, I certainly did not want to miss. Performing the whole of his 1974 concept album, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, based on Jules Verne’s 1864 science fiction novel, it’s a masterclass in showing that while prog can be bombastic, over the top and full of itself, with Rick Wakeman at the helm it need ever, ever, ever be boring. It was brilliantly entertaining and something of a family affair for retro rock, with Wakeman’s own son, Adam, on keyboards, the son of Fairport’s Dave Pegg, Matt Pegg, on bass, and the daughter of Humble Pie’s Steve Marriott, Mollie Marriott, as one of the two female lead vocalists. Wonderful stuff and one of the real highlights of the weekend for me.
Rick Wakeman and son Adam. Photo Credit: Simon Putman
Day two: Friday
As the sun shone down for the start of a very hot afternoon, things kicked off on the Friday with folk punk outfit Black Water County. Not a band I had seen before but I’m pretty familiar with the genre, having seen the likes of Ferocious Dog and legendary local band here in Hastings, Matilda’s Scoundrels, who they very much reminded me of. Highly entertaining, I’ll definitely be up for seeing them again if they ever play down my way.
Cropredy village – Photo Credit: Simon Putman
The rest of the afternoon’s line-up looked very tempting indeed for a fan of folk rock and classic rock like myself. But I’d already agreed to have a wander around the village with one of our party and then check out Cream of the Crop, the boutique festival in the field next door which these days runs parallel to the main Cropredy event every August. We arrived just in time to catch the last part of the set from my old friends, Parkbridge, including a storming cover of Neil Young’s ‘Rockin’ In The Free World’.
Parkbridge at Cream of the Crop. Photo Credit: Simon Putman
It was then back to the main stage in time for Swedish banjo trio, Baskery and bluesy Americana singer-songwriter, Elles Bailey, both of whom went down well. Then it was back to the campsite for pot noodles, some chill time and putting on some warmer clothes ready for a late night with Richard Thompson. We arrived back at the main stage just in time to see Spooky Men’s Chorale, a sprawling choral ensemble I’d heard lots of people speak very favourably of but who I knew next to nothing about. I’m not sure I’d sit at home listening to one of their albums (they are now on to their sixth apparently) but they make for a superb festival act with a mix of deadpan humour, melancholy ballads and anthemic covers.
Elles Bailey up on the big screen. Photo Credit: Simon Putman
Richard Thompson, on the other hand, I knew exactly what to expect and he didn’t disappoint. Launching straight into a plethora of RT classics, just him and his acoustic guitar and some mind-blowingly stupendous finger-work, it was precisely what I’d been looking forward to all day. Around two-thirds of the way through his slot, sundry Fairporters joined him on stage for an electric set and he dazzled us all over again.
I did, however, start to see a lot of people leaving during Richard Thompson’s set. I don’t think this was any reflection on the performance whatsoever. Indeed, I suspect many of those leaving were actually long-term Richard Thompson fans. I believe it’s got far more to do with the timing. Given an aging demographic among long-term Fairport devotees, and given even second and third generation attendees may have young kids or grandkids to put to bed, it may be time for the organisers to think about putting the headliners in the penultimate slot, when they can be guaranteed maximum attendance, and having an inexpensive late-night party band in the final slot for the remaining revellers to party the night away. I’ve seen other festivals do this and it works a treat.
Richard Thompson. Photo Credit: Darren Johnson
Day three: Saturday
Following a fascinating talk by legendary 60s producer and the man who discovered Fairport, Joe Boyd, folk-singer-cum-funnyman and inciter of mass outbreaks of Morris dancing, Richard Digance once again formally opened proceedings on the Saturday. Sometimes I find his songs a little bit twee and sentimental and the nostalgia is certainly laid on with a trowel – but I wouldn’t miss the now-infamous communal hanky-waving routine for the world.
Richard Digance and a mass Morris Dance. Photo credit: Simon Putman
Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage, Zac Schulz Gang and Ranagri all put in sterling performances. Focus was one of the bands I’d been really looking forward to seeing on the Cropredy stage, however. I’d seen them before at classic rock festivals and will admit to approaching them slightly tongue-in-cheek, gleefully dancing around like an idiot to ‘Hocus Pocus’, channeling my inner Neil from the Young Ones persona and not taking them entirely seriously. Here, the atmosphere was markedly different and the audience really seemed to get Focus and really absorb the band’s extended prog masterpieces. As keyboardist, vocalist, flautist and founder member, Thijs van Leer, said at the end, the band felt “truly at home here in this beautiful field.” Perfect.
An appreciative Cropredy crowd for Focus. Photo Credit: Darren Johnson
I can’t do a full twelve-hour shift in the main field without some chill-time back at the tent before returning for the evening headliners. Normally, it’s fairly easy. I find someone I’m not too bothered about (or ideally someone I really can’t stand at all) who’s on the bill around teatime and time my break for then. This year it was an impossible choice. I wanted to see everyone. Unfortunately, Eddie Reader got the short straw. I love her music and have seen her live several times but I really didn’t want to miss Focus and I didn’t want to miss the special guest slot just in case I missed someone really… special.
There had been quite a bit of speculation within our camping group about the identity of the ‘Special Surprise Guest’. It would have to be someone who was mates with the band and was willing to perform for free, it would have to be someone who was reasonably well-known and it would have to be someone who was still alive. That narrowed it down quite a bit and we were left with a potential shortlist of Robert Plant, Jasper Carrott or Ralph McTell.
After our little break back at the campsite we headed back to the main arena. I was hoping for Robert Plant but expecting Jasper Carrot. I wasn’t wrong. I have huge admiration for him performing gratis as a way of helping ensure Cropredy’s financial viability at an increasingly fraught time for the festival sector. But his humour seemed very dated and his routine was not exactly up to the minute: jokes about Covid and the US presidential election which would have hit the spot when Biden was still in the race but made little sense now Kamala Harris is running. I should have trusted my instincts and stayed for Eddie Reader and given Carrott a miss.
Fairport’s Chris Leslie. Photo Credit: Simon Putman
It was wonderful to see Fairport Convention take the stage to round off another successful Cropredy though. My one niggle is that there did seem rather a lot of Chris Leslie-penned songs in the set-list and not nearly enough by Richard Thompson, Dave Swarbrick or Sandy Denny songs. We did get some wonderful Ralph McTell material though, including stunning renditions of ‘The Hiring Fair’ and ‘Red and Gold’, the latter performed by the man himself with some wonderful accompaniment from Anna Ryder, Hannah Sanders, Michelle Plum and Ed Whitcombe. As things drew to a close with the familiar rendition of ‘Matty Groves’ prior to ‘Meet On The Ledge’ Simon Nicol confirmed that he’d been given permission by the ‘powers that be’ to throw in his usual ‘same time next year?’ invite, in spite of the festival’s future looking extremely precarious earlier this year.
Phew! It will be going ahead in 2025 then. I’ll be there…
Fairport Convention at Cropredy. Photo Credit: Simon Putman
Anita Abram is a singer-songwriter, radio presenter and producer who also has a passion for the visual arts. A member of the DIY female musicians’ ‘Rise and Release’ community, she composes, records and produces music from her home in Suffolk, and is the founder of Every Bird Records, a community interest company supporting independent female musicians with unique voices.
Abram herself performs as part of folk trio, The Copper Foxes, as well as a solo artist. The First Escapade is her debut EP.
Opening track, the poignant and beautifully-atmospheric ‘Gravity Running’, is a personal commentary on the “futility, inevitability and insanity of human conflict driven by fear and greed”. The song’s final line “we will never back down” pays tribute to the strength and determination of the Ukrainian people.
Comprising five original songs, other themes explored on this charming and thought-provoking EP include love (‘Go Again’), ongoing threats to our natural environment (‘Shift Away’) and loss (‘Stars Above’), which is dedicated to NHS staff. Bearing striking hand-painted cover art, the CD artwork also incorporates an additional images created by Abram.
Luke Concannon, best known from the folk duo Nizlopi while influencing a young Ed Sheeran, says: “There is something classic in Anita’s song writing. Simple, mythic, deep…”
In addition to Anita Abram (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, field recordings), the release also features Pete Moody (vocals, piano, arrangements), Chris Lockington lead guitar) and Mark Sewell (percussion)
I’ve been really impressed with Jack Badcock’s work in Dallahan, the Scottish/Irish/World folk band that he helped found a decade ago. This month, however, sees him release Cosmography, his first ever solo album.
As with Dallahan’s 2023 album, Speak Of The Devil, it’s a showcase for his gifted acoustic guitar-playing and distinctive tenor voice. But whereas that last album took us on an exhilarating, frenetic journey across a number of folk traditions, this one takes us into lush, atmospheric, singer-songwriter territory. And a very fine debut he’s turned out in this new guise, too.
Badcock’s vocals are soulful and emotive and he’s proving himself to be an ever more impressive songwriter, here tackling themes from the future of humanity (‘Life In Three Dimensions’); the sixteenth century explorer who was the first Englishman to reach Japan, (‘The English Samurai’); and the much more personal ‘Too Many Things’, described as “almost a therapy session that tackles the excessive indulgences of myself and peers in the music industry.”
What really makes this album, however, beyond the poignant songwriting and superbly mellow vocals, are the rich layers of instrumentation. Euan Burton, who also plays bass on the album, does a sterling job as producer and leaves us with a solo album that’s polished and fully-formed. With a stellar line-up of supporting musicians, including some especially beautiful piano from Tom Gibbs and simply gorgeous pedal steel from Connor Smith, there’s much to fall in love with here. Folk luminaries like Siobhan Miller, Josie Duncan and Joy Dunlop line up to provide lush backing vocals.
Don’t expect Cosmograpy to be much like Dallahan but do expect it to be exceptional. It really is outstanding.
I first came across the Julie July Band in the band’s early days when they were performing their lovingly-collated and extremely well-received tribute to Sandy Denny. Time has flown by and the band have been together a decade now and are about to release their fourth studio album.
While the first one stuck to material that had been written or performed by Sandy Denny herself, subsequent albums have been composed of original material. The last album, the post-lockdown Wonderland, saw the band draw on a more eclectic range of influences. With Flight Of Fancy they continue on that journey still further.
The band themselves characterise it as “music inspired by the folk, rock and blues movements of the ‘60s and ’70;s with a 21st Century twist.”
The title track picks up that laid-back, sun-kissed, US country rock -meets- English folk rock vibe which Sandy Denny’s post-Fairport outfit Fotheringay delved into so wonderfully but there’s many, many more influences here beyond Denny, Fairport and Fotheringay. From the psychedelia-tinged ‘All In Our Minds’, to the funky reggae party of ‘Boho Woman’, to the wistful minor-key singer-songwriter vibe of ‘Lost In A Crowd’ to the sparse, delicate beauty of piano-and-vocal closing track, ‘Simply Yours’, it’s like a magical mystery tour through a fifty-year-old, recently-rediscovered record collection for the discerning buyer.
Holding it all together is Julie July’s crisp, clear vocals; great five-part harmonies, thoughtful but accessible songwriting, and a superbly versatile band – now with an established line up of Steve Rezillo (Lead guitar), Caley Groves (acoustic guitar) Dik Cadbury (bass), Mick Candler (drums) and Carol Lee Sampson (keyboards).
Flight Of Fancy is a really enjoyable album and it’s not at all fanciful to conclude that the Julie July Band continue to soar and continue to deliver great music.
I first came across David and Clare Rozzell as two-thirds of the bluegrass/folk trio, Wood Wire & Words. The trio saw David (guitar/vocals) and Clare (double bass/vocals) joined by Clare’s father, Pat Francis (dobro/mandolin), with the trio chalking up a plethora of gigs and festival appearances across the UK and Europe and releasing several albums – one of which I reviewed here.
The constraints of lockdown restrictions, however, meant that the established trio reformulated themselves into a duo and for two years , every Friday evening, the pair would stage their online Folkgrass Lockdown Sessions direct from their home on England’s South Coast.
Recently, the pair released their very first single as a duo, ‘Museum of the Missing’, which came out towards the end of February.
Conceived as the theme song for a sci-fi/horror podcast of the same name, ‘Museum Of The Missing’ is said to be a powerful, dark tale, of a world where all memories and evidence of a global incident in which 3.5 million people vanished, have seemingly been erased from existence.
For David Rozzell, however, the song was also inspired by events much closer to home. On a personal level, the song is about memory loss, something he has experienced himself as a result of a brain injury.
The duo explain: “The museum being that part of the brain where a condition, like Alzheimer’s or a brain injury, such as David has, hides the memories they had before it stole them away.”
With the duo’s trademark blend of David’s deep, rich vocal delivery, poignant lyrics and gentle melodies, ‘Museum of the Missing’ heralds an important new step in David and Clare Rozzell’s continuing musical journey.
How I choose which gigs to go to has definitely evolved over time. When I lived in London I would be constantly checking out my favourite artists’ tour schedules, working out which venue on the tour would be easiest to get to and booking accordingly. Having lived down in Hastings some eight years now my approach has changed considerably and generally involves checking out the gig listings for the venues within a five-mile radius of my flat, working out who I want to see most and booking accordingly. In some parts of the country, that approach would be really restrictive but we are pretty spoilt for choice in terms of great venues, both large and small, on this part of the East Sussex coast.
And so this is exactly how I came to be at the De La Warr Pavilion for a performance by Moya Brennan. Publicised as ‘The Voice of Clannad’ in the tour promotion, I instantly decided this would be a must-see for me. I hugely enjoyed Clannad’s stunning set at Cropredy festival two years ago and while I was completely unfamiliar with Moya Brennan’s solo career beyond Clannad, I knew that any performance with her vocals at the heart of it was going to be well worth seeing.
Her voice is as pure and enchanting as ever, with Brennan taking lead vocals and harp just as in Clannad. Her band is something of a family affair with her daughter, Aisling Jarvis, on guitar and her son, Paul Jarvis, on keyboards and percussion, alongside leading Irish harpist and long-time collaborator, Cormac De Barra, and fiddle-player, Cathal Curran. Unfortunately, Brennan explained, the latter was not able to make Bexhill, the final night of the UK tour. However, she had persuaded a last-minute replacement (I didn’t catch his name unfortunately) to fly in to Gatwick that afternoon to do the gig. Only 17, he did a remarkable job stepping in and was very warmly-received by the De La Warr audience.
Material-wise, there was a heavy emphasis on songs Brennan had recorded with Cormac De Barra, with whom she has made a number of albums, including their latest project – an album celebrating the career of renowned Irish singer and harpist, Mary O’Hara. In contrast to the ethereal, other-worldly nature of much of Clannad’s back catalogue, there were also some sing-along moments, too. I certainly hadn’t expected a rousing communal rendition of ‘Lord Of The Dance’ but we all joined in with gusto. “I’ve been told you all learnt this at primary school over here,” she said, encouraging us to sing along. Indeed, we had and so that’s exactly what we did.
There would also be a few Clannad songs “for those who need that,” Brennan added dryly and we were treated to stunning renditions of ‘In A Lifetime’, ‘I Will Find You’ and ‘Two Sisters’.
Like many regional theatres in the UK, the events programme for the White Rock In Hastings has been the typical mix of touring tribute shows, musicals and panto with the odd stand-out musical gem thrown. Recently, the theatre saw a change in operator with Trafalgar Theatres (who run many similar venues across the UK), giving way to the Guildhall Trust. The latter are a charity that operate the Portsmouth Guildhall and they came in promising “exciting times ahead” and a “broader programme of entertainment” for the White Rock. Certainly, having Robert Plant on stage sets high bar and is hopefully a foretaste of what’s to come once the new team get their feet well and truly under the table.
In the decades since Led Zeppelin’s demise, Plant has had a consistently fascinating career and some fascinating and highly inventive musical collaborations. I remember braving the mud to witness him with Strange Sensation at Green Man festival in 2007 and, more recently, his superb set with Alison Krauss at Hyde Park when they supported the Eagles two years ago.
His latest band is Saving Grace, composed of Plant, alongside Suzi Dian (vocals), Oli Jefferson (percussion), Tony Kelsey (mandolin, baritone, acoustic guitar), and Matt Worley (banjo, acoustic, baritone guitars, cuatro) have been around for five years now with several UK tours behind them. Somewhat rockier than previous projects they are a perfect amalgam of Plant’s long-standing interests in the realms of hard-rock, traditional folk, bluegrass and blues, offering up a compelling mix of rocked-up interpretations of traditional songs and folkified versions of Led Zep classics.
Again, we see him returning to the male/female duet set-up, that worked so spectacularly when Sandy Denny was recruited to provide co-lead vocals for ‘Battle Of Evermore’ on Led Zeppelin IV back in the day and more recently through the work with Alison Krauss. It’s a format that Plant is clearly comfortable with and this latest pairing is equally well-chosen. Whether she’s harmonising or taking the lead, Suzi Dian’s rich but delicate voice is just the perfect fit alongside Plant’s still instantly-recognisable vocal (albeit with a more restrained delivery these days…) The band behind them deliver powerful and at times almost almost hypnotic rhythms, with Tony Kelsey and Matt Worley working their way through a plethora of stringed instruments, both electric and acoustic, alongside Oli Jefferson’s pounding percussion. The effect is simply mesmerising with every song drawing you in completely.
Of all the ‘70s rock gods, Robert Plant is perhaps the one who has most has steadfastly refused to be pigeon-holed in the superannuated, stadium heritage rock act persona. It’s meant he’s continued to surprise and delight with new musical ventures. And it’s meant I could stroll along up the road to see him and his band perform an intimate gig in my local theatre.
“You should start writing a blog,” my brother Sam mentioned to me while we were sitting at a festival one afternoon in the Summer of 2013 discussing the various bands we’d each seen recently.
Darren and Sam (right) at Fairport’s Cropredy Convention
I told him the thought had vaguely crossed my mind but it was something I could give more thought to the following Spring once my lengthy stint as a local councillor was coming to an end. My evenings would then be freed up, giving me time to start seeing more gigs and, crucially, sharing my thoughts online about what I’d just seen.
I’d always written a lot about politics and current affairs and I’d never exactly shied away from blatant self-publicity, ever since I got the local paper to run a front-page feature about me doing a stand-up gig in the local pub when I was 16. But I’d never really written about my lifelong love of music before.
Although I’d seen tons of bands during my teen years and early 20s, by the time I got into my mid-20s I seemed to have constant overdrafts and less money available to spend on concert tickets. In my 30s and 40s, with my chosen career by now pretty well-established, I found that although I had the money for gigs I no longer really had the time. Once I approached my late 40s, however, I was finally in the lucky position of having both the time and the money. It’s fair to say I went for it…
Darren meets members of Uriah Heep
Looking back atmy first month of combining gig-going with blogging, it was quite a busy one. I reviewed concerts by Uriah Heep on 4th March, the Young ‘uns on 5th March, Fairport Convention on 9th March, Judy Dyble on 16th March, Graham Bonnett on 19th March, The Elizabethan Session on 22nd March, Status Quo on 28th March and Peter Knight’s Gigspanner on 29th March. Phew!
That first month pretty much summed up my approach. I didn’t want to get too hung up on genre. I didn’t want to do a classic rock blog or a folk blog or any other sort of genre-specific blog (although there are some great ones out there). Rather I wanted to write about all of the artists that happened to interest me, whether heavy metal, glam rock or folk. If others enjoyed reading that, then great, but the starting point was about any music that happen to please me.
Over time, I started added album reviews as well as gig reviews, along with interviews, book reviews, music history and discussion of iconic songs.
Fairport Convention’s Simon Nicol is interviewed for Darren’s Music Blog
New album: A Drop Of The Morning Dew: Live At Bacca Pipes Folk Club released 1 March 2024
Distilling both folk and country influences and performing a heartfelt mixture of self-penned and traditional songs on 12-string guitar and banjo, Serious Sam Barrett was raised in the Dales village of Addingham and began performing in and around Leeds in 2004. With the release of his debut album Close To Home in 2009, word began spreading further afield and Sam was soon grabbing the attention of audiences both around the UK and in the US.
Having performed at SXSW in Austin, Texas in 2010, he has toured the US widely, usually in the company of friends and fellow skaters The Pine Hill Haints. Along the way, Sam has shared stages with the likes of Martin Carthy, Dave Burland, Katherine Tickell, Lucero, The Young Un’s, Frank Fairfield, Deer Tick and Karine Polwart, and received airplay and praise plaudits from the BBC’s Bob Harris, Marc Riley, Mark Radcliffe and Mike Harding.
Recorded live at a gig at a celebrated Keighley folk club in January 2023, Sam’s forthcoming album A Drop Of The Morning Dew: Live At Bacca Pipes Folk Club includes eleven self-penned highlights from his career, along with his own arrangements of a further seven traditional songs. A folk club has existed in Keighley in one form or other since the early 60s, adopting the name Bacca Pipes during the early 70s and playing host to a long line of notables such as Mike Harding, Swan Arcade, Julie Felix, Peter Bellamy, Norma Waterson, Martin Carthy and many more. It was a tradition into which Sam Barrett was born.
Serious Sam Barrett:“Folk clubs have always been part of my life. My parents met in one and I was taken to the clubs and festivals from a young age. The clubs have always been a massive source of inspiration for my music. The magic that happens week in and week out is impossible to put into words. Sometimes the experience is almost transcendental. The old pubs, the reverence for the singers, the jokes, the raffle, the stories and the music. There’s nothing like it.”
When I asked for a quote for this piece, Sam came straight back:
“What an honour to be part of Darren’s Music Blog!! Thanks so much I can’t wait! I’m in some very esteemed company there!!! Can’t believe I’m getting to play the world famous Liverpool philharmonic!! What an honour. And it’s all thanks to Mellowtone!!”
Darren's music blog 