15 September
2016
GRAND NEW SEASON OPENING
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
Lymm Rugby Club!
£9.00
PETE COE
OR
£7.00
advance booking
Pete is celebrating his 70th birthday this year, and has been awarded the EFDSS Gold Badge for 'Outstanding Service to Folk Dance and Song'!
Residents' Support was from Grassroots, Stewart, Nick & Lin, and Nelson Peach, with Bernard providing our pre-raffle-ite spot. We were delighted to see Janice back at the club and singing after rather too long in hospital - long may it continue!
A very well-attended concert, with Pete on top form. Included in his impressive set lists were interestingly different versions of 'Spanish Lady' and 'Shenandoah' as well as his own 'Joseph Baker', and 'The Wizard of Alderley Edge' - the latter being the first song he ever wrote, but this was the recently revised version of the song. Instruments, as ever, were circa 1930 Hohner Club II melodeons in D / G, C / F and Bb / Eb, DADGAD guitar, bouzouki, long neck 5-string banjo and lap dulcimer.
Pete always provides fascinating background information for the songs he sings, and some of tonight's offerings will soon be available on Pete's soon to be released new album.
22 September
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
29 September
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
Andrew "Wally" Walpole
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of Andrew Walpole...!!
With twenty performers in the room we knew it would be a push to fit everyone's turn in... a couple of performers decided to 'rest' for the night (!), so we barely made it - with just enough time to give early new arrivals Polly and Pete an extra song before the break. As we have come to expect, everyone raises their game on Big Spot nights, throwing down the gauntlet to our guest...
"Wally" (as he prefers to be known!) rose to the challenge, and produced the best performance we have seen from him yet. His dazzling guitar work, excellent choice of songs (some of which were self-penned) and engagement with his audience all combined to leave everyone wanting more! As luck would have it, Stewart's Charity Night on Saturday 2nd October would provide just that opportunity, as Wally was one of Stewart's guests!
We asked Wally if he would consider a full guest night, but he quite humbly declined, explaining that he prefers to hear our Singers Night performers in the Big Spot format... so we respect that decision and will be inviting him back in 2017 for another Big Spot.
6 October
£7.00
Wilson-McGladdery
£5.00
advance booking
Seen here in the Sounds of Folk studio in September (did we mention we won an award?!), Gaynor and Paul have been a duo for a little over a year, and are well worth a listen!! October 13th should have seen Whitetop Mountaineers (USA) in Lymm, but the agent made a mess of things and even forgot to tell us... it suits Gaynor and Paul better to play for us on October 6th, so book yer tickets!!
Nelson Peach, Stewart and Bernard provided Residents' Support, with Ian White stepping in (with guitar borrowed from Bernard) as our pre-raffle-ite...
Gaynor and Paul entertained a small, but perfectly formed audience from the very first song, many of which were self-penned either by Paul, Gaynor, or both. For the most part, accompaniment was from Paul's guitar, with occasional fiddle from classically trained Gaynor. In her youth (only a few weeks ago?!) she was leader of the Ashton Youth Orchestra, doncha know!
You can see from the photos that Paul doesn't play guitar the way most of us do - his right arm is missing from the elbow down (a birth defect), and he uses a prosthetic limb specifically designed to hold a plectrum. His playing is inspirational, and clearly demonstrates 'mind over matter'!
Gaynor opened the second set with a couple of solo songs, accompanying herself on piano. More chorus songs followed, allowing our audience to open their tubes and join in!
13 October
Singers Night
(Whitetop Mountaineers CANCELLED)
£1.00
(performers 80p)
Tonight should have seen Whitetop Mountaineers (USA) in Lymm, but the agent made a mess of things and even forgot to tell us... it suited Gaynor and Paul better to play for us on October 6th, and also means we don't have two guests back to back... Singers Night it is!!
20 October
Singers Night
Sara Grey & Kieron Means CANCELLED due to illness
£1.00
(performers 80p)
Tonight should have seen Sara Grey and Kieron Means in Lymm, but Sara hasn't been well recently and has decided to cancel the entire tour as she's unfit to travel... so Singers Night instead!! We have rescheduled their visit for 2018 - March 22nd (Sara's 77th birthday!).
A great turn-out - twenty performers in the room, plus a a few audience, too! It was good to see Janice was able to make it for a change - she's not been in the best of health recently.
In order of appearance we had Bernard, Doreen Lehmann, Grassroots (Janice and Mick), Dave Cowe, Nelson Peach, Kath & Stan, Patch (Pat & Chris),Margaret Hornby, Peter Bridge, Brian Roberts, Anne & Tony, Nick & Lin and Rob White... we got around everyone twice, with Janice, Peter, Ann & Tony and Rob finishing the night for us.
Our Singers Nights run in the order people are spotted arriving, with soloists getting one song, duos two, and trios (and above!) three on the first round, then one each on any subsequent rounds...
27 October
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
3 November
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
10 November
£8.00
MARK DOWDING
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Residents' Support was from Grassroots, Stewart, Nick & Lin, and Nelson Peach, with Bernard providing our pre-raffle-ite spot.
Mark gave his audience what they expected - plenty of good songs to join in with, with accompaniment from guitar, Harry Boardman's banjo and Anglo concertina. There were songs from Mark's own repertoire, plus songs taken from Harry Boardman and Jake Thackray - an eclectic mix!
17 November
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
The Saracen's Head, Warburton!
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
24 November
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
The Dodgers
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of The Dodgers!!
(pictured at the Irwell Works Brewery, Ramsbottom)
There were seventeen performers and ten listeners, not counting our guests, so we managed a full round plus four into a second round...! As we've come to expect, our regulars gave their all, providing a challenge to our guests!
Our guests were really on form, with plenty of songs to join in with, many of which were written by Keith or Steve. Most of the singing was done by Keith and Steve, but a couple of items from Poppy proved that she should be allowed to do more! Her fiddling charmed everyone, especially a sensitive rendition of the Ashokan Farewell. Accompaniment was from Keith's guitar, with Steve playing either 12-string guitar or mandolin.
They gave us an extra long encore, much to the delight of our audience, so we'll ask them back to do a full Guest Night as soon as we can.
1 December
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
8 December
£8.00
DICK MILES
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Hi, I am Dick Miles. I have been singing and playing music since I was 13. My special love and interest is traditional music and the concertina. I lived for many years in Suffolk, East Anglia and some of my favorite songs are based on the superb traditional tales of this region. Now, I am living in the South-West of Ireland and am incorporating, more and more, the local traditional music style into my own.
For over thirty years I have been singing at maritime festivals, including Merseyside and Lancaster, folk festivals and clubs all over the British and Irish Islands.
Dick Miles' support was from Nick & Lin, Janice, Bernard and Nelson Peach, and it was a very enjoyable evening with songs familiar and not so familiar, but all eminently singable, plus a few tunes! For part of the evening Dick was joined on guitar by Tinker Dave (Dave Howard of the Oldham Tinkers), who was also our pre-raffle-ite.
After the break we were all groaning under the weight of all the butties and chips provided by Janice to celebrate her birthday (53 this time, yet she doesn't look a day over 90!), but soldiered on regardless!
15 December
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
The Saracen's Head, Warburton!
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
22 December
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
The Saracen's Head, Warburton!
Singers Christmas Party
A goodly-sized crowd, with John Condy in full swing...!
29 December
Singers Night
Hangover Workshop
£1.00
(performers 80p)
Thanks to everyone who has supported the club during 2016 - let's try to make 2017 even better!
1 January
2017
NEW YEARS DAY (from noon-ish!)
The annual New Year's Day lunchtime session
at the Sarries...
5 January
2017
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
12 January
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
19 January
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
Lymm Rugby Club!
£7.00
TIPPIN' IT UP
OR
£5.00
advance booking
Residents' Support was from Nelson Peach, Nick & Lin, and Grassroots, with Bernard providing our pre-raffle-ite spot.
Tippin’ It Up (Chris Kelly and John Marshall) really did us proud... a truly feelgood choice of material, just a pity we didn't have the audience they really deserved. They gave us a few tunes on mandolin, bouzouki and guitar, with plenty of chorus songs for our enthusiastic audience to belt out!
26 January
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
John Muskett
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of... JOHN MUSKETT!!
Imagine our surprise when we arrived to discover that all the chairs had turned white...! Apparently there was a wedding reception the following day, and the staff had prepared the chairs to save time in the morning...
With twenty three performers in the room we didn't expect to fit everyone's turn in... but somehow we did. Okay, the break was a few minutes late, but we didn't have to disappoint anyone - not even John, as we finished a little later, too! We had contributions from Bernard, Keith, PatCh (Pat & Chris), Nelson Peach, Mark & Jan, Kath & Stan, Doreen, Grassroots, Bil & Dave (neither of them called Phil!), Nick & Lin, John Condy, Bob, Garry, Dave Cowe, and Ann.
As we've come to expect from John, his Big Spot was a master class in communicating with his audience and providing top class entertainment. A wide variety of styles, mostly accompanied on his guitar, with his trusty double bass making a welcome appearance. Musicians in the room were invited to play along, too, adding greatly to the atmosphere!
Over the past few months we've had an unusual number of 'quiet' nights... hopefully things are about to turn round, as we've quite a few 'big names' visiting the club in the coming year - it would be a shame to have to cancel any because we're unable to guarantee an audience. Other clubs are experiencing this, too... it would be a shame if this were a general trend.
2 February
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
9 February
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
16 February
£8.00
NICK DOW
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Not content with folk singing, Nick is immersed in the traditions behind it: he is an expert on West Country Folk Songs and, with his wife Mally, has put together a collection of over 300 songs from Dorset and elsewhere.
He has travelled around the world & lived on the road with Travelling Folk, learning their songs, and has worked variously as a broadcaster, film extra, narrowboat painter, writer and guitar teacher. Most notably, however he builds & restores gypsy caravans - including one for Ronnie Wood!
Stewart, Nelson Peach (minus Lesley), and Nick & Lin provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
This was Nick's first visit to the Spread Eagle, and some of our number didn't know him - though a few turned up knowing exactly what to expect, and Nick did not disappoint! His wonderfully smooth and rich singing, brilliant, yet understated guitar playing and his abilities as a raconteur made for a very enjoyable evening. He'll be back!
No! Surely not! Martin fell asleep - again?!
He offered me a bet that he wouldn't, and I didn't take it...!!
23 February
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
2 March
£8.00
RICHARD GRAINGER
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Richard hails originally from Middlesbrough and has toured since the late 1970s, appearing at venues across the land. Along with Vin Garbutt, Richard is a past member of the Teesside Fettlers... His songs have been absorbed into singaround and performers' repertoires (Chemical Worker's Song, Old Pubs and Ring of Iron, for example), as well as having been recorded by many.
To give just a flavour, his 2016 appearances included the Folk Festivals of Fleetwood Folk & Blues, Tall Ships, Great North Folk Festival, Alcantara (Sicily), Whitby and Filey FF, as well as gigs in the Netherlands, plus a German tour.
Bernard, Stewart, and Nelson Peach provided Residents' Support, with John Muskett as our pre-raffle-ite...
This was Richard's first visit to Lymm Folk Club, and it won't be his last. We were impressed by the variety and depth of his material, and he was impressed by our ability to join in with unfamiliar choruses!
Special mention must go to Mark and Jan Taylor, who kindly offered Richard last-minute overnight accommodation at their house!
SATURDAY
4 March
£8.00
STEWART LEVER'S
'BACK FROM FUERTEVENTURA'
SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL CHARITY NIGHT
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Some of you will already be aware that Stewart was laid low by a nasty chest infection whilst in Fuerteventura, so we have postponed his annual Charity Night, and turned it into a Saturday Night Special...
Bernard and John & Bernice provided support, with Doreen as our pre-raffle-ite...
A very worthwhile effort in aid of the British Heart Foundation! We raised £225.00 on the night, there had been pre-concert donations of some £80.00 bringing the total to £305.00, and some donations are still in the post!
We were delighted to see Little Rach and Rachel (hereinafter known as "Rachel Squared"!, who had slaved all afternoon baking some truly scrumptious banana cake, which was sold during the interval to add to the donations pot! Well done, girls!!
I suppose we'd better mention Stewart, as it was his gig after all! The evening was buzzing from start to finish, as Stewart sang a lot of old favourites including some of his self-penned material. It was good to see that so many had turned out in support, but the change of date meant that most of our residents weren't able to be there...
Thanks, too, must go to those who brought extra raffle prizes - it's good to know that we can count on our lot to make these charity concerts so worthwhile!
9 March
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
16 March
PLEASE NOTE:
This event
will be at
Lymm Rugby Club!
£10.00
QUICKSILVER
OR
£8.00
advance booking
Nick & Lin, Grassroots and Stewart provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
Hilary's singing switches effortlessly between the impressive, beautiful and lyrical to totally ludicrous!! With the brilliance of Grant's guitar and complimentary singing, these two never fail to give a memorable evening's entertainment.
23 March
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
30 March
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
Break a Leg
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of... BREAK A LEG!!
Karen (clarinet) and Chris (guitar/vocals) visited us last November when we were at the Saracen's Head, so we invited them back to perform more of the stuff they do so well!
6 April
£8.00
NELSON PEACH
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Grassroots, Nick & Lin and Stewart provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
Nelson Peach were on top form with old and new material for us to enjoy!
13 April
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
20 April
£8.00
FOLKLAW
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Nelson Peach, Janice, Stewart and Nick & Lin provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
Nick, Gaz, Martin and Bryn gave us a good evening's entertainment, although their sound system set-up could do with a bit of a re-think as Nick's voice seemed to disappear during some songs!
27 April
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
4 May
£9.00
BRIAN PETERS
OR
£7.00
advance booking
Stewart, Janice, Nick & Lin and Nelson Peach provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
A goodly-sized crowd, and a great evening's entertainment! Brian gave us his usual carefully planned mix of old and new material, with plenty for our audience to sing along with.
11 May
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
18 May
£9.00
MARY HUMPHREYS & ANAHATA
OR
£7.00
advance booking
Residents' support was from Nelson Peach, Nick & Lin, Grassroots (next week's guests), and Stewart... Bernard was the pre-raffle-ite.
A great turn-out to see a brilliant performance from Mary Humphreys & Anahata! It's been a while since they visited Lymm, but Mary had a nasty throat infection that forced them to cancel most of last year's gigs - including Lymm. It's safe to say that Mary's voice is back with a vengeance, and their choice of material suited our audience perfectly! Chorus singing, according to Mary, was like a chapel choir - we'll accept that praise gratefully!
25 May
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
The Trials of Cato
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of... The Trials of Cato!! They came to a Singers Night on 9th February (see photo), and were extremely well received - as they have been at other clubs, too. Based in Wrexham, they do traditional and their own material in a traditional style.
We had a good turn-out for The Trials of Cato at the Spread Eagle, and the lads gave us a Great Spot!! Robin Jones (mandolin, tenor banjo vocals), Will Addison (Irish bouzouki, tenor banjo, vocals), and Tomos Williams (guitar, vocals) were joined by Roland Martin, the Phantom Bass Player...! They performed traditional songs and tunes, plus their own material, and were very impressive!
1 June
£5.00
GRASSROOTS
OR
£4.00
advance booking
Janice Bell and Mick Hare formed a duo which is now known as Grassroots! Tonight promises to be a great evening, and tickets are likely to be in great demand - so get yours early to avoid disappointment!
Grassroots (club residents Janice Bell and Mick Hare) at the Spread Eagle - support from Nelson Peach and Bernard, with Doreen as our pre-raffle-ite. Unfortunately, an audience turned up, so we didn't have the spectacle of Janice stark naked in an empty room, as her nightmares had been predicting...!! Then again, had we not been there, we wouldn't have seen it anyway...!
Instead, we had a good variety of material, some self-penned. Mick played guitar, bouzouki and harmonica, and Janice blew her brains out with a whistle or two! They both sang!
8 June
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
15 June
£10.00
MRS. ACKROYD BAND
OR
£8.00
advance booking
It was great to see so many people turning out to see our guests
Nick & Lin, Grassroots and Stewart provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
The very welcome return of the Mrs. Ackroyd Band! A near-capacity audience were reduced to gibbering wrecks by the antics of Alison Younger, Hilary Spencer and Chris Harvey! People with 4x4s were put in their places, there was 'Morris dancing' (sort of!), Bernard was told, in no uncertain terms, "Don't play me your concertina!" (to the tune of Don't Cry For Me, Argentina), and the band had 'No Courgettes'!!
Plenty of other songs were given the 'Les Barker Twist'! Alison confided in us regarding 'Breaking Wind Suddenly', Alison and Hilary told the sad tale of 'Ilkley d'Amour', and complained that their snails had not yet arrived... it came as a blessed relief when the end of the evening allowed us to regain control of our bladders...!!
22 June
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
29 June
£8.00
NICK & LIN TYSOE
OR
£6.00
advance booking
Our ever-popular residents Nick & Lin Tysoe invite you to their charity concert in aid of Cancer Research UK...
Grassroots, Nelson Peach and Stewart provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
As usual, Nick and Lin gave us a 'cosy' selection of their own favourites, which meant we had plenty to join in with! An interesting variety of instruments included an acoustic bass guitar, mandolin, autoharp, ukulele and kazoo in addition to a variety of 6-string and 12-string guitars... sorry if anything has been missed off the list!
The concert raised £200.00 for Cancer Research UK, so well done everyone!
SATURDAY 1 July 2017
Lunchtime Session
(from noon)
Kerry Smith Memorial
Songwriting Competition 2017
2.00pm to 5.00pm (approx - depending on entries)
AND THE WINNER WAS...
JOHN CONDY
Acoustic Concert 2017
8.00pm
There will be eight pre-booked spots of strictly twenty minutes each, after which an audience vote will decide who is to return on Thursday 3rd August (not negotiable) to play a full guest night.
We will not be using a sound system - performers using 'electric' instruments will need to treat them as they would an acoustic instrument - no vocal microphones 'for balance'...
AND THE WINNERS WERE...
RUN FOR COVER
Wouldn't you know it?!! Frank Hives is on holiday on 3rd August, so they will return on Thursday 10th August to play their full guest night!
6 July
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
13 July
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
20 July
£9.00
ROBIN LAING
OR
£7.00
advance booking
Stewart, Nick & Lin and Nelson Peach provided Residents' Support, with Bernard as our pre-raffle-ite...
It was good to see a few new faces in the audience - and Robin gave us a great evening's entertainment! Some serious stuff, some lighthearted (including a tale of a blow-up doll!). Robin is well-known for his songs about whisky, and we had a couple (songs, that is!).
27 July
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
with
JOHN CONDY
Kerry Smith Memorial Songwriting Competition WINNER
Tonight sees another of our 'Big Spot' offerings - performers being asked to do an extended spot after the beer break on a Singers' Night.
This time it's the turn of... JOHN CONDY, the winner of the 2017 Kerry Smith Memorial Songwriting Competition...
An excellent turn-out to support John, including quite a few new faces! John gave a great account of himself, his winning song (with a new title, "Refugee") had another airing, Bernice and Stewart both joined him for songs, and the Singers Night performers also contributed greatly!
3 August
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
10 August
£7.00
ACOUSTIC CONCERT 2017 WINNERS
RUN FOR COVER
OR
£5.00
advance booking
17 August
£1.00
Singers Night BIG Spot
BERNARD'S "FRENCH" BIRTHDAY
24 August
£10.00
OTHER ROADS
OR
£8.00
advance booking
30 August
Singers Night
£1.00
(performers 80p)
