NEWS
Jill Sunderland is looking for stewards to help out with Bridgenorth Festival which runs 28-29-30 August . They need some people to help out on Thursday 27 August in setting up the area ready for the weekend and also, to help tidy up/close down areas on Tuesday 1st September after the festival. They are looking for reliable, honest folk who would be prepared to give up 3-4 hours per day, may be less, in return for a free weekend ticket. Guests at the festival, which was one of last years most successful new launches, include the Poozies, Bushberry Mountain Daredevils, Rory McCloud and Vicki Clayton, .Contact : jillg@pipemedia.co.uk or on 01203 680949 (Answer Service).
Stewarding is a great way of getting involved with a festival and meeting other festival goers as well as providing you with cheap or free tickets. Jill is also proposing putting together a national stewards register so any any interested festivals or potential stewards please contact her.
Bromyard (18th - 20th September) are also offering free tickets for stewards. Contact Annie Jones on 01531 670593.
ARTISTES
American band SOLAS, winner of Irish Music Magazine Best Overseas Traditional Band Award are at Warwick(24th-26th July) and Sidmouth (31st July-7th August). Their lead vocalist Karen Casey also came runner up in the Best Female Traditional Performer category At Warwick they will be joining Australian Celtic rockers The Fling (reviewed last issue), Scots artistes Brian McNeil and The Peatbog Faeries together with Cork's Jimmy Crowley to make a fine selection of Celtic music from around the world.
Other Irish Music award winners Dervish (best Traditional/Folk Band of the year and Best Traditional CD for Live in Palma) are at Middlewich Folk and Boat Festival(see below) and also at Sidmouth.
Dave Burland is appearing at THE TREE AID FESTIVAL OF POETRY, STORYTELLING AND SONG on the 22nd & 23rd August 1998 at Hebden House, Hebden Bridge, North Yorkshire mentioned last month ( Treeaid@kingsengland.demon.co.uk ). He had originally been scheduled to appear at the last festival but was unable to do so due to a booking mix up. Also appearing at Tree Aid are Alchemy - the ideal group for a festival which combine music and poetry as they encompass both in their act. Below is an extract of a review from Stirrings Folk Magazine (see above) of one of their performances at Anston Folk club.
The chemistry of this foursome is immediately apparent at the beginning of the set with the passionate delivery of the C.S. Lewis poem Unicorn,which then becomes the song Unicorn. Sandra Roberts has a clear well modulated voice and performs with pleasant humour and shows deep feeling in her singing. She is complemented by Bob Taylor on guitar and mandolin, and Allen Roberts on bodhran and a tubular shaped object whose sound could be likened to the foghorn at Flamborough. The surprise, and I mean surprise, element is from Andrew Leggott, who at one point almost did for the cardiacly challenged amongst us, leaping from his chair in best theatrical style in pursuit of the Ancient Mariner and demonstrating an astonishing ability to find yet another poem to link in with songs performed by the floor artists.This mixture of traditional song , classic poetry, contemporary folk and Meatloaf combine to make a performance that is original, passionate, extremely professional and has that tingle factor that leaves you looking forward to their next performance. - Judy Dalton
VIEWS
I received a good review of Upton Folk Festival by a member one of the dance teams attending. Unfortunately I inadvertently deleted it before I could paste it into the newsletter (if anyone can tell me how to retrieve document mistakenly deleted in Eudora Light on a Mac I would be most grateful). Thankyou whoever you are, please everyone keep sending me reviews and I promise to do my best not to lose anymore.
Fortunately I was also at Upton and can report that it was indeed an excellent weekend. There was just enough sunshine to highlight the breathtaking beauty of the area and allow the dancers to strut their stuff. Roy Bailey gave excellent sets despite being jet lagged, Th' Antiques Roadshow led rousing harmony sessions and Marie Little was sensational - I'm not sure why she is not working her further way up towards the top of bills but she is always well received. Nest year is the tenth Upton festival and they are booking old favourite acts of theirs including Les Barker, Jez Lowe, Quartz & Artisan (T.B.C.) so make a date to spend early May Bank Holiday 1999 at Upton-upon-Severn.
It would be nice if the Upton Festival Committee commemorated this anniversary by doing something about the one thing that is completely lacking at their festival, that is childrens activities. In fact this is an area that is woefully inadequate at most festivals even though children are often charged for and parents cannot fully participate in the festival when there are neither appropriate childrens events or family friendly concerts . Large sums of money are being collected from families who often get a poor deal back. Worse still many families are put off attending festivals altogether and children who have memories of festivals being boring are unlikely to continue wanting to attend them when they are older. Even where childrens events are provided they usually stop in the afternoon and are only suitable for younger children. It would be a good start if all festivals committed themselves to at least spending all the money they collected on childrens and family ticketstickets on childrens & family events and provided events for all ages throughout the day and evenings.
FESTIVALS Diary;
June 19-21 MIDDLEWICH FOLK & BOAT FESTIVAL, A festival with the added attraction of canal boats. Music from Dervish, The Albion Band, The Sensitive New Age Cowpersons, Artisan and Huw & Tony Williams which can be nicely mixed with walks around this attractive Cheshire Town and along the Canal admiring the boats. Middlewich, Cheshire. Details from Dave Thompson, 33 Manor Crescent, Middlewich, Cheshire CW10 0EW. Tel: (01606) 836896.
June 26-28 EAST KIRKBY FOLK FESTIVAL (Nr Horncastle Lincolnshire). A delightful weekend concentrating on Lincolnshire artistes the most notable of which is John Conolly(writer of Fiddlers green and many other great songs) Enquiries Telephone 01205 750753
July 3-5 CLECKHEATON FOLK FESTIVAL, West Yorks. Last years festival had a real buzz after a quiet year or two. This years looks even better. Go and enjoy Les Barker, Dave Burland, Robb Johnson, Excellent Shanty group The Keelers, Tanglefoot from Canada etc. , Details from Geoff Pickles, 7 Listerdale, Littletow, Liversedge, W. Yorks. WF15 6EN. Tel: (01924) 404346. Fax: (01924) 404346. e-mail: cff@argonet.co.uk
10th- 12th July The 7th Bromsgrove folk festival plus Dodworth Beer Festival. With popular songwriter Harvey Andrew excellent harmony act Cuckoo Oak and others. Contact Ralph Barton on 01527 831 577
10th-12th July ELY Folk Weekend - sorry we missed the contact details out last month they are; Ely Folk Weekend 78 West End, Haddenham, Ely, Cambs, CB6 3TE tel 01353 741032 / 740999
18th-19th July First Saddleworth(near Oldham) Folk and Roots Festival with Jez Lowe, Marie Little, Stanley Accrington and many more contact 01457 872035
7th-14th August Broadstairs Folk Week Tel 01843 866048
This newsletter is put out by by Little Pot Stove Records. We have a CD stall at many of the festivals mentioned. We also supply most independent label British folk CDs mail order at reasonable prices and put out a monthly list of collectors vinyl folk records.
Contact us at Little Pot Stove
The snail mail address for both Little Pot Stove Records and the English Folk Festivals Newsletter is 213 Nursery Rd, Dinnington, Sheffield, S25 2QU. Telephone/Fax 01909 569481
to the TOP