We promised we'd be in touch soon and we hate to disappoint! The big news is that we're very pleased to announce that we'll be releasing "Off Beaten Tracks" on 3rd March with a very special party at The Yardbird Jazz Club in Birmingham.

The night will start with a complimentary glass of bubbly for the first 50 guests and as well as a brand new live set from the band, there will be a whole host of audio visual treats, a grand prize giveaway and a DJ set from The UFQ's very own Frank Moon! Buy your tickets from the online store to ensure you don't miss out! Entry is just £6, or for just £10 you can buy the VIP ticket, which also includes one of the very first copies of the album and entry into the prize draw.

If you can't make it, we're making a limited run of 100 signed CD's available for preorder at an exclusive prerelease price of £10 - see the albums page for more info.

"Recorded in the middle of 2011's whirlwind world tour, “Off Beaten Tracks” is a unique record; Both a travelogue of musical snapshots from the road - compositions dedicated to Spanish bus rides or The Vancouver Island coastline, for example - and a collection of highlights from the set that had people dancing the night away at festivals from The Bay of Biscay to edge of The North Pacific."

And of course, we've an extensive list of UK tour dates throughout March - details of all gigs are available from theufq.com.

When the Oxford Folk Festival was cancelled in 2011, the local community - determined not to sit at home on a sunny weekend in April - pulled together to create a 'Folk Weekend' in its place. There were street displays of Morris dancing, concerts and performances, a host of free song and music events, and a huge ceilidh. A fabulous time was had by all!

Building on this success, Folk Weekend will be returning on 20th-22nd April 2012. The festival will be based at the newly refurbished Old Fire Station, with additional events in other venues throughout the city centre. Tickets cost £46 for a weekend season (£40 concessions, £30 youth). Day seasons and individual event tickets are also available – see website for full details.

There will be plenty of activities for all – including a family ceilidh on Saturday lunchtime, a concert on Saturday evening, and Morris Dancing and a Craft Fair at Oxford Castle all weekend. There will be free performances, workshops and informal music sessions, and you can even learn how to dance a schottische at the Euro-dance on Sunday afternoon!

One of the most exciting things about Folk Weekend 2012 is the way in which the local community have pulled together to contribute to the event; Oxford Historical Dance Society are organizing an evening dance, The Ashmolean Museum are hosting free performances on the Saturday and Sunday, Oxfolk and the Folk Camps Society have sponsored events, hundreds of school children will be performing in the Wesley Memorial church, Oxford Fiddle group are playing a concert, and Oxford Folk Club and Foolish Folk are running fringe events on the Friday night.

Performing during the weekend we have the cream of the local folk music scene, including artists such as Ian Giles, Telling the Bees, shanty crew Short Drag Roger, Emily Spiers and the Tunesmiths, a capella trio 'The Skeptics', Steph West and Giles Lewin, Jamie Huddlestone (with his ceilidh band Triptych, and also in a rare solo set), and Oxford's glam-folk legend James Bell.

As if that wasn't enough, Folk Weekend is proud to host some of the top artists from the national folk scene. Folk rebels Mawkin visit mid-way through their album launch tour; the sublime Crucible Trio have joined us from Sheffield to headline the Saturday night concert, and Oxfordshire-based Boldwood are playing a home gig for Folk Weekend.

Visit www.folkweekendoxford.co.uk for full details and ticket info. Follow us on Twitter (@FolkWeekend) or Like us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/FolkWeekendOxford).

Acclaimed international Celtic band, The Outside Track, are celebrating picking up the ‘Group of the Year’ award at both the Live Ireland Music Awards 2012 and the TIR Irish Music Awards. The band were crowned on January 1st, and celebrated double success as their lead singer, Norah Rendell was also awarded the accolade of ‘Vocalist of the Year’.
The band have a new album in the pipeline, due for release later in the year, and will embark on an 11-gig national tour in February. Two albums now from this multi-national contingent have stamped them not only as yet another new force in the music, but indeed, as Live Ireland described them, “Among the top groups in the world….traditional, creative, and brilliant on every cut”.
Hugely popular young ambassadors for roots music, The Outside Track's marriage of Canadian, Scottish and Irish music and song has been rapturously received around the world. Hailing from Scotland, Ireland, Cape Breton and Vancouver, its five members are united by a love of traditional music and a commitment to creating new music on its foundation. Their blend boundless energy and unmistakable joie de vivre has won them a large following which has seen them headline festivals all over the globe. Ailie Robertson, the band’s harpist said, "It's a true honour for us to win these awards, and we feel very humbled to be names alongside so many other fabulous musicians — it's a massive boost for us before we head into the studio to record our third album.
Back on the road in February, ports of call will include the Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow, The Green Note in London, and Galeri Caernarfon in Wales as well as Hepworth, Bridgwater, Pontypridd, Edinburgh, Birnam, Langholm, Mellorbrook, Gartly, Baston and Oldham.

• More details of the Awards can be seen at
http://my.liveireland.com/profiles/blogs/liveireland-music-awards-2012

More about the band is available at www.theoutsidetrack.com

The Met presents the fifth annual Big Whistle Festival on Friday 17 and 18 February 2012 featuring an amazing line up of musicians including Kan, Breabach, Ross Ainslie, Treacherous Orchestra.

This celebration of traditional music brings together talented folk artists and enthusiastic beginners of any age to learn, listen and dance the night away with a mixture of workshops and live music. Whether you’re a folkie, whistler or just a lover of fine music, this is a fantastic opportunity to get involved and create your own folk music through one of the most accessible instruments.

Kan kick off the festival in style. Front men with Flook and Lau, Brian Finnegan and Aidan O’Rourke, join forces with Ian Stephenson on guitar and Jim Goodwin on Drums to create an enthralling and beautiful new sound. Saturday starts with a number of workshops followed by a gig from Scottish firebrands and Met regulars, Breabach at 1.30pm. The band’s innovative Celtic style shows a flare, excitement and diversity rarely seen from such a young group.

Saturday evening starts with Salsa Celtica’s renowned piper, Ross Ainslie at 7pm. The Festival will close with Treacherous Orchestra, a turbo charged super group comprising some of Scotland’s finest young instrumentalists at 9pm.

The Big Whistle Festival isn’t just about watching great musicians, get involved with workshops from all the featured musicians and for any level from beginner to advanced to professional! There will also be interview sessions and music sessions with everyone invited to join in. Throughout the weekend there will be whistle makers and sellers on hand to inform and arm you with all the instruments you might need, as well as giving some expert advice.

Individual ticket prices vary. Festival tickets are £45. More information is available from themet.biz/bigwhistle Guarantee your place now by calling the ticket office on 0161 761 2216, or by visiting The Met’s website www.themet.biz

A recording project, involving nine professional performers, that has been eighteen months in the making, will culminate in the launch of the first of three CDs at Watchet and Chippenham at the end of May. The Short Sharp Shanties records the entire repertoire of John Short, of Watchet in Somerset, which was collected by the great folk song authority Cecil Sharp – thus the name of the project.

John Short, also known locally as ‘Yankee Jack’, was a deep water sailor who sang nearly sixty shanties to Sharp in 1914, forty-seven of which he then published in his book English Folk Chanteys. Some of the sixty therefore are familiar versions, others rarer, and the rest have remained unsung – until now. Some of the versions are from a very early period in the life of shanty-singing, and all have been taken directly from Sharp’s manuscripts, rather than from the printed page, thereby keeping the idiosyncrasies that are characteristic of Short’s singing.

It was over thirty years ago, while they were researching Exmoor and North Devon traditional songs and music, that Tom and Barbara Brown found the shanty Rosabella tucked away in Sharp’s manuscripts in the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library at Cecil Sharp House in London. They passed it on to shanty singers Johnny Collins and Jim Mageean, and it became more popular in the 1980s than it ever had been at sea back in the 1880s.

Ever since then, they have wanted to use the talents of a variety of modern performers to record all of John Short’s shanties, and Tom and Barbara, along with Jim Mageean, Keith Kendrick, Sam Lee, Jackie Oates, Roger Watson, Brian Willoughby, and American Jeff Warner, have now achieved that ambition through Doug Bailey of WildGoose Records, and funding from a number of sources. Dr. Tom Brown said, “It gives us great pleasure that Jim Mageean, who has done so much to popularise shanties, and who first passed on Rosabella, is part of the crew for this project. At the same time, we are very sad that Johnny Collins, who died two years ago, was unable to contribute – he had been looking forward to it, and the CDs are dedicated to his memory. Being able to draw together such a talented bunch of performers, who so strongly supported our idea, has been a delight for us.”

The shanties encompass an extraordinary range and variety in themselves, as well as in the different instruments and styles that the nine performers bring to the project. “We have not tried to be ‘authentic’ – some of the shanties are close to the way they would have been rendered as work songs, but in others we have let the musical and instrumental talents of the performers have free rein.” Within the three CDs can be found everything from wild chants from the cotton ports of the Southern United States to texts of classic English folk songs; from wistful contemplative laments to outright bawdry; a capella items, frailing banjos, lyrical fiddles, strident concertinas and a host of other settings making for an extremely varied set of CDs.

Following the launches on the evening of Tuesday, 24th May at the Esplanade Club at Watchet, and on the Saturday afternoon of Chippenham Folk Festival, the remaining CDs will be released as a double album later in the year. They will be available direct from WildGoose Records at www.wildgoose.co.uk or from S&A Projects at www.umbermusic.co.uk, or from the individual performers at their live appearances. More information on the project and the shanties themselves can be found at www.umbermusic.co.uk, and click on ‘Short Sharp Shanties’ in the menu.

In its 20th Anniversary Year, The Leigh Folk Festival is delighted to announce one of its best line-ups yet. As ever, the festival has been able to attract an incredibly diverse range of artists to perform over its four days from 16 – 19 June. Established acts make a welcome return and newer players on the folk circuit will make this year’s 20th festival a truly celebratory one.

In previous years, the festival has clashed with another event, Glastonbury, often meaning bands could not make it to Leigh as they were stuck in the mud in Somerset. But as 2011 marks a significant anniversary for the Leigh Folk Festival, the decision was made to move it back one week and capitalise on the availability of sought-after acts.

As such the line–up includes the former BBC Radio 2 Folk Singer of the Year Martin Carthy MBE, the veteran American singer and instrumentalist Tom Paley, the London Bulgarian Choir, and the maverick ‘two-hit wonder’ John Otway. Also performing will be the Emily Portman Trio, Klezmer Klub, Lucy & Jacob Farrell, The Kittiwakes and Steve Turner. At the festival too will be O’Hooley & Tidow, Nancy Wallace & Jason Steel, guitar maestro from Madagascar Modeste, The Owl Service, Lucy Ward, Cass Meurig & Nial Cain, Zoox, Pamela Wyn Shannon. Local musicians Philious Williams and West Weston and the Bluesonics will take to the stage as will Phil Burdett and many more.

The Festival weekend remains as always two days of free entertainment. Folk lovers can enjoy the pastoral charms of the Library Gardens on Saturday, with plenty of children’s entertainment and refreshments and this year a second stage in the lower field. On Sunday, the festival moves to the Old Town and attracts over 10,000 music lovers to enjoy an incredible range of music, the delights of the seafood stalls, and sights and sounds of working cockle sheds and boats.

www.leighfolkfestival.com

Uttoxeter annual Mayfest approaches its 7th year in the town with a bigger and livelier show than previous years. Building on its 2010 successes, the festival is expanding to three days to accomadate live folk music at the town hall.

“We had a tremendous amount of good feedback from last years festival and dozens of folk acts wanting to play this year, so we’ve given them the opportunity.”

The festival warms up on Friday 29th April with live folk acts at the Olde Talbot in the Market Place. Traditional folk band Stargazy bring their highly melodic set to town plus support.

Saturday 30th sees the festival picking up pace with folk buskers in town and at the Town Hall where an Arts and Craft Fair sees dozens of vendors setting up their pitches to the back drop of laid back folk, good food and drink. Saturday also sees live music in town centre and from 7-12pm the first of the weekend Folk Festivals comes to the town hall featuring local ‘Good Rockin’ Dave and the Zydeco Hotrods topping the bill supported by brummies Red Shoes. Swindon boys Mr Love & Justice, Supine Orchestra and international Irish folk stat Kieran Halpin hot from his European tour. Food and Real Ales available, even locally brewed lager.

The central event takes in the market place on Mayday with the now rare but traditional maypole dancing, traditional dancing including Hearts of Oak Morris from Uttoxeter aided and abetted by Stafford Morris, the Anstey Chalfont North West Morris, Beltane Drummers and a traditional may dressing by the Druids of the Sapling Bard including the appearance of the Greenman and Goddess, Uttoxeter Brass Band and their junior group provide the musical interludes.

Sunday also sees live music at the Indulgence Bar and the Olde Talbot in the day and early evening. Craft Fairs with music and food continue at the town Hall followed again by a evening of folk this time headed up by local favourites Radio Mary hot from their appearance at the Aintree Grand National and appearance on the BBC. Not to be missed are support acts including “folk music’s next big thing” Harp and Monkey another NW BBC favourite plus London acts Dan Raza and Neil Erua and the irrepressible Dogwood Rose.

The event promises to be even more spectacular and colourful visually and musically than last year attracting a good crowd from the town and from the national folk audience. All town centre performances are free on Sunday.

www.uttoxetermayfest.co.uk

With the release of their newest album, Thursday Night in the Caley, Blazin’ Fiddles begin an England tour with their opening date at the Platform in Morcambe on the 17th June. This will be the first album featuring their newest members Jenna Reid, from Shetland, on fiddle and Anna Massie from Fortrose.

“It’s been great with Jenna and Anna coming on board” says founder member Bruce MacGregor. “The band has taken on a whole new energy which shines through in the new album. This will be the first run of Scottish dates with Jenna on fiddle and we’re really looking forward to it”.

During a performance, the audience has a rare opportunity to hear pieces featuring the regional styles of each fiddler followed by all hands jumping in for a wonderful explosion of music. Fiddles and bows blaze away with guitar and piano for one of the most exciting and memorable fiddle ensembles ever to take the stage.

England Tour dates June 2011
Fri 17th June – The Platform, Morecambe
Sat 18th June – The Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe
Mon 20th June – Harrogate Theatre
Weds 22nd June – Settle Victoria Hall
Thurs 23rd June – The Met, Bury
Fri 24th June – Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury
Sat 25th June – The Junction, Cambridge
Sun 26th June – Cornerstone, Didcot
Mon 27th June – Gulbenkian Theatre, Canterbury
Tues 28th June – The Maddermarket Theatre, Norwich
Weds 29th June – Derby Assembly Rooms
Thurs 30th June – Gala Theatre, Durham

Gifted singer/songwriter Lisa Redford (“one of our finest singer/songwriters” Bob Harris, BBC Radio 2) releases her first live album Lisa Redford Live. Captivating a packed audience with just her stunning voice and skilled acoustic guitar playing, the 14 original songs are from a special homecoming show at Norwich Arts Centre. The concert was part of her solo Clouds with Silver 2010 UK headline tour which also included a second live session and interview on the prestigious BBC Radio 2 Bob Harris show.

Lisa takes the listener on a warm and intimate musical journey, combining material from her three albums and brand new songs, the melodic and instantly hooky 'Music and the Mountains' and 'Love Won't Let Me Go'. Highlights include the yearning ‘The Boy Who…’ and the breezy Americana pop of second album title track ‘Lost Again’. From debut album Slipstream there are the beautiful ballads ‘Don’t Tell Me’ and ‘Red Eyes’ and from latest album ‘Clouds with Silver’ the dreamy ‘Call Me’, the nostalgic country pop of ‘Never Was a Yesterday’ and the US favourite ‘Live Your Life’. The album closes with a stunning acapella version of the touching ballad 'Be Around'.

Influenced by singer-songwriters such as Neil Young, Ryan Adams, Teddy Thompson, David Gray, Mindy Smith, Tift Merritt and Kathleen Edwards, Lisa is a versatile singer-songwriter whose music has been described as delicate acoustic roots pop with heartfelt lyrics, gorgeous melodies and stunning vocals. She has released three acclaimed albums SLIPSTREAM (2003), LOST AGAIN (2005) and CLOUDS WITH SILVER (2008) that have gained widespread glowing print reviews and received airplay across the world including Bob Harris's BBC Radio 2 shows. Her song 'Dragonfly' was played on his 'Best of British' special which featured the best songwriters in the UK. She has also been the special guest at a 'Bob Harris presents Americana' showcase at London's Borderline. Lisa has also built a reputation as a compelling live performer and, along with many festival appearances, has played shows with lots of respected artists including Kathryn Williams, Brian Kennedy, Chuck Prophet, Devon Sproule, Kate Campbell, Laura Veirs, Jesse Sykes, The Handsome Family, The Deadstring Brothers, Rod Picott, Gina Villalobos, Jess Klein, Eve Selis, Boo Hewerdine, Eileen Rose, Corb Lund and The Hot Club of Cowtown.

Recorded mostly in Brooklyn, Lisa’s latest album CLOUDS WITH SILVER is co-produced with respected producer and multi-instrumentalist Brad Albetta (Martha Wainwright, Rufus Wainwright, Teddy Thompson) and also features some of New York’s most outstanding musicians who have worked with Ryan Adams, Norah Jones and Jeff Buckley. The acoustic songs are also enriched by some truly beautiful string arrangements. A couple of tracks also feature strings by one of Nashville’s most acclaimed producers David Henry (Josh Rouse, REM, Steve Earle). The album, like her previous ones, is distributed through Proper Distribution, the UK’s biggest independent distributors. It has earned glowing press reviews, international airplay and been the most successful release to date. Recently Lisa was made Artist to Watch at Acoustic Café, radio’s best international showcase for acoustic music and the acclaimed ‘Dragonfly’ featured in an independent US movie.

In 2009, following a publishing deal with a much respected publishers in New York City, Lisa has been based in the US and has been performing showcases, recording brand new material and continuing to earn new fans on either side of the pond. Showcasing the strength of her beautiful vocals and great song writing, Lisa Redford Live is a wonderful addition to her already impressive musical catalogue.

See www.lisaredford.com

A new Manchester-based record label, Folk Police Recordings, releases its first offerings in January 2011.

The 'purveyors of folk brut and other rough music' will be putting out an homage to Peter Bellamy, with Oak, Ash And Thorn, a collection of his songs contributed by some of the most innovative voices associated with the current folk scene, and Lincolnshire-born, Sussex-based folk singer Elle Osborne's new EP, Good Grief. Elle's full-length album, Slowly, Slowly Got She Up will follow in spring 2011.

Though hugely inspired by the traditional music of the British Isles, it is music that blends the traditional with the new that captivates Folk Police Recordings' founder, Nigel Spencer:

"We chose the name Folk Police because it’s a longstanding term of abuse bandied around the UK folk scene. We though it was about time someone reclaimed it and turned it into a badge of honour. It’s a badge we’re proud to wear.

And we like the image it brings to mind: of small, extremely cross men with pointy beards beating offenders over the head with battered copies of the Penguin Book of English Folk Songs. “More seriously, the artists we represent tend to know their traditional stuff, but are very much of the 21st century. Folk lovers will recognise some of the names of the artists we put out, but there will also be some new, unfamiliar musicians, too."

Folk Police Recordings has a busy year ahead, seeing releases from storyteller and musician, Bob Pegg, probably best known for his work with Mr. Fox in the 1970s, as well as introductory records from Fleetwood's foremost dark trad duo, Rapunzel and Sedayne, a collection of traditional songs reinterpreted by some of the best players on the Manchester alt-folk scene with guest vocals from Nancy Wallace, Jackie Oates and a host of other wonderful singer in The Woodbine and Ivy Band, and Kitchen Cynics, Aberdeen psych-folk troubadour Alan Davidson, who will be the subject of an extensive series of download-only reissues.

The label will also be looking closer to home with its Northwestern series, a series of short run CDs featuring folk and alt-folk artists and performers primarily from the Northwest of England. Christine Johnson, a folk-inspired songwriter who has more than a touch of Lal Waterson about her lyrical themes, will be the first Northwestern act to make her debut.

Folk Police Recordings will be distributed by SRD and has drafted in Manchester-based For Folk's Sake PR to handle media relations. Look out for album launch parties in Spring 2011.

For more information, and to keep up to date with Folk Police news, please visit www.folkpolicerecordings.com

The feisty new album from the Battlefield Band sees them in absolutely peak form....the howling pipes, ululating fiddle and crashing keyboards are as darkly magnificent as anything the Battlefield Band have ever recorded." – Froots

The album has already received airplay on Radio 3's World on 3, Folkcast and Celtic Music Radio, as well as various shows on a host of regional BBC stations, including BBC Scotland, BBC London, BBC Shropshire, BBC Gloucestershire and BBC Leeds. ‘Robber Barons’, written by Alan Reid, is the first single release from the new album, and looks at greed through the ages, from the ‘Robber Barons' of the Middle Ages in Germany to the modern day politicians & bankers. The subject matter is as relevant today as it ever was…

“This album started as a collection of songs and tunes about gold. But as we searched, like the alchemists of old, it turned into a wider idea. In the process we saw the greed, disasters and victories inherent in the search and exploitation of various sources of wealth in this world. Then, as if by demonic serendipity, along comes the worldwide economic crisis. We watched the major banks, insurance companies and Hedge Funds etc. implode, discrediting the entire financial system and many of its managers and advisers - But there was still more to come. We, in Britain, could only stand and watch aghast as many (too many) Members of Parliament, and the House of Lords at Westminster, ‘the Mother of Parliaments’ were exposed for their cynical misuse of the expenses system, often amounting to fraud.

With this new album, Battlefield Band offers us songs both old and newly composed. Alongside new songs like ‘Robber Barons’ are tracks such as Nina Simone’s ‘Plain Gold Ring’.

As always with Battlefield Band, they produce Contemporary Scottish music - 2000 years in the making.

The release of the album celebrates the 30th Anniversary for Battlefield Band and their label Temple Records. For 30 years they have created and performed traditional Scottish music with a rare passion and joy, delighting audiences around the globe and evolving into what the press have called:

"...a wondrous, perfectly paced display by musicians firmly in command of their art...a Highland jam that rang the rafters." - The Washington Post

Under their banner Forward With Scotland’s Past, Battlefield Band have been distilling their own unique form of the Scottish spirit and exporting it worldwide, with concerts in China, Malaysia, Germany, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Holland, Syria, Jordan, India, Sri Lanka, Egypt, U.S.A., Canada, Uzbekistan and the U.K. "What the Chieftains have done for Irish traditional music, Battlefield Band are doing for the music of Scotland" - Billboard

Inspired by their rich heritage of Celtic music and fired by the strength and vibrancy of today's Scottish cultural scene, which indeed they have done much to create and fuel, they have led, and been at the forefront, of a great revival in Scottish music. Refusing to be limited musically by suffocating antiquarianism, or the music business' fashions, they have mixed the old songs and music with a new self-penned repertoire, all played on a fusion of ancient and modern instruments - bagpipes, fiddle, synthesiser, guitar, flutes, bodhran and accordion.

See www.battlefieldband.co.uk

It is six years since "the hillbilly hurricane” from Kansas City, Missouri, aka The Wilders, first arrived in the UK to start blowing us all away. Since then, they have won a reputation as one of the most highly-charged and entertaining acts to tour here.
Following their first sensational sell-out run at The Famous Spiegeltent during Edinburgh Festival Fringe, they carried off a coveted Herald Angel (the equivalent of an Oscar) for their outstanding contribution to the event, and collected a clutch of five-star reviews.
That led to television and radio sessions and many main stage appearances at major European festivals. After a headline slot at the prestigious Bath International Music Festival, they were declared "an absolute triumph" and invited back in 2011.
Their last album, 'Someone's Got To Pay', carried them to the finals of the annual Independent Music Awards in America, and went on to win the Alt-Country Album of The Year title.
The Sold Out signs went up when the band last toured here. The Scotsman told readers: "They generate the kind of tunes that should by rights leave vapour trails".
Long ago established on the US festivals circuit as a "white-hot" act, the Stateside quotes tell the same tale.
"If this were old Salem, they'd be burned at the stake. They play like they're possessed," said one reviewer.
After a sell-out tour of Northern Ireland in 2010, leading promoters, Moving On Music said the shows had been "phenomenal" and Culture Northern Ireland's top reviewer, Andrew Johnston summed the Belfast show up with one word: "Incredible".
The band returns to the UK in January to the Old Fruitmarket in Glasgow for their own headline show - the scene of their sensational 2009 appearance at the event, where they were filmed as part of the BBC 2 “Festival Highlights” programme and described by presenter Mary Ann Kennedy as “one of the outstanding highlights”.

Tour Dates:

Wed Jan 26: Glasgow Celtic Connections Festival (Old Fruitmarket) with Furnace Mountain

Fri 28: Kendal, Cumbria Brewery Arts Centre www.breweryarts.co.uk

Sat 29: Newcastle, Newcastle, Jumpin Hot Club, Cluny 2 (5 - 7.30pm show) www.jumpinhot.com/club

Sun 30:Sheffield, Green Room www.myspace.com/whippoorwillsheffield

Tues Feb 1: London, The Slaughtered Lamb www.pulluptheroots.co.uk

Wed 2: Chichester, Sussex The Chichester Inn www.rootsaroundtheworld.info

Thurs 3: Bristol, St Bonaventure's www.crhmusic.com

Fri 4: Great Torrington, Devon Plough Arts Centre www.theploughartscentre.org.uk

Sat 5: Worthing, Sussex Grand Victorian Hotel www.jookmedia.co.uk

Sun 6: Brighton, Prince Albert www.myspace.com/theprincealbert

Tues 8: Norwich Arts Centre www.norwichartscentre.co.uk

Wed 9: Spalding, South Holland Centre www.southhollandcentre.co.uk

Thurs 10: Shaw (Oldham), Lancashire, Barrie Cottam Playhouse 2 www.playhouse2.com

Fri 11: Barton on Humber, Lincolnshire The Ropeworks, http://www.the-ropewalk.co.uk/roperyhall/music.htm

Sat 12: Selby Town Hall

Sun 13: Saltburn-by-Sea, Cleveland, Community Theatre www.saltburnarts.co.uk

Website: www.wilderscountry.com

On Six Days In Down, two cutting edge talents on the Irish music scene – the masterful uilleann piper John McSherry and fiddle virtuoso Dónal O’Connor, join forces with the globe-trotting slide-guitarist Bob Brozman, to explore fresh perspectives on the living tradition.
Featuring the haunting vocals of Stephanie Makem, the trio deliver an album of startling beauty with splashes of gentle humour.
Bob Brozman is king of the Hawaiian slide guitar and the world’s leading player of National steel guitars. He has spent a lifetime dedicated to playing, researching and recording music from numerous islands around the world, and on Six Days In Down he collaborates with two highly acclaimed traditional musicians from Ireland to bring his uniquely international sound to traditional melodies. A composer, arranger and musician of world class renown, John McSherry was a founding member of top trad band Lúnasa and during his career he has taken the art of uilleann piping to new heights. His critically-acclaimed solo debut, Soma, was released earlier this year. Dónal O’Connor is from a musical legacy of five generations of fiddle players and has toured extensively with bands such as At First Light, which also includes McSherry in its accomplished line-up. He is widely regarded as one of the best fiddle players of his generation.
This album featuring some wonderful traditional tunes that have been arranged by the three musicians such as ‘Cailleach A Shúsa’ (‘The Hag In The Blanket’), which dates to 1850 and is about the Cailleach, a powerful hag in Irish mythology who rules the winter months between Samhain and Beltane. A well-known standard, ‘Bean An Fhir Ruaidh’ (‘The Red Haired Man’s Wife’) is a story of unrequited love for a married woman and this version features two Kona Hawaiian guitars. ‘A Mháire Bruineall’ is a song from County Donegal that was originally composed by Tadhg O Tiománaidhe in the mid-1700s, in an effort to woo back his true love, and here features the wonderfully haunting vocals of Stephanie Makem.
As well as beautifully arranged traditional pieces, this album also features several original compositions. ‘Beer Belly Dancing’ features Irish phrasing played in an Arabic mode to create a funky musical mix and ‘Brelydian’ uses the Lydian mode, typical of Malian music. ‘Róise Na bhFonn’ (‘Tuneful Rose’) is a slow air that was composed by Dónal in homage to his grandmother Rose who was his first fiddle teacher.
Recorded in six days in Downpatrick in the North of Ireland, this album is bursting with fresh and passionate music that draws beautiful soundscapes of unusual timbres and rhythms that support the traditional melodies.

See http://www.atfirstlight.net/newalbum.html

This started his song writing and solo work and at the same time he took an interest in jazz, notably through a chance meeting with guitarist Diz Disley, and went on to be involved in bands covering a wide range of styles including gypsy jazz, mainstream and Dixieland jazz, as well as playing pop covers in a number of dance bands and groups. Moving to St Albans in 2000 he discovered the local folk scene through meeting singer/guitarist John Breeze and became resident at John's Windward Folk Club alongside songwriter George Papavgeris and this rekindled his urge for song writing.

Currently he plays local gigs with his jazz trio or as a solo act, occasionally including folk clubs, and raises money by busking for British Heart Foundation in memory of his wife Shirley who died from heart disease in 2002.

The Album

This is Chris Flegg’s eighth album in all, and the fourth album of original songs written with the folk scene in mind. As with previous folk albums, the sound is entirely acoustic, no electric guitar or electronic keyboards, but having a more adventurous range in instrumentation and backing musicians. For good measure, one track, T-Rex Would Still Be Here, is given a jazz band treatment and the closing track, Mean Old Daddy, is a stomping blues.

Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer who are rising stars of the UK folk scene make a major contribution to the overall sound, Vicki providing double bass on most tracks and using the bow to great effect on the slower numbers, while Jonny adds accordion backing. Steve Lockwood adds his virtuoso harmonica playing on Across The Wasteland and Mean Old Daddy. Rod Brown on percussion and Terry Ede, clarinet and saxes, have recorded with Chris on previous albums and are here joined by fellow jazz musicians John Bridge on trombone and Harvey Weston on double bass.

If you are into Martin acoustic guitars, you will appreciate the rich sound of Chris’s Martin D41 used behind the vocals and smooth sound of his Martin OMC-41 Richie Sambora signature guitar used for lead guitar work. The album also features for the first time Chris’s Anglo concertina playing on one of the tracks, There’s No Escape The Daily Grind.

Internationally acclaimed songwriter, performer and recording artist Gary Miller steps out of the shadows and returns from the wilderness with the release in 2010 of ‘Reflections on War’, his ground-breaking debut solo album and first CD of all new material in 10 years.

“As a song poet there are few in the world today to match him” (Green Man Review, USA)

Following a self-imposed sabbatical due to long-term illness and intense personal reasons, during which time he continued working professionally in the music industry as a commissioned songwriter, worldwide artist booking agent (at Adastra), music industry college tutor and lecturer (throughout Europe), musical director for theatre, freelance community musician, and more, he is looking forward to relaunching his professional recording and performing career at an international level with the release of his new CD ‘Reflections on War’ and a return to international touring (both solo and with his new band ‘Gary Miller & The Volunteers’).

Produced by award-winning producer, songwriter and musician Iain Petrie, the 10-track CD (catalogue number WPTCD22) is the 22nd release on Miller’s own international label Whippet Records and features songs commissioned as part of a major exhibition at York Art Gallery on the theme of war entitled ‘Reflections on War’.

Gary Miller first rose to international prominence during the mid eighties and throughout the nineties as principle songwriter, lead singer, guitarist & mandolin player with The Whisky Priests (1985-2002), the internationally renowned folk-rock band with a worldwide cult following that he founded and fronted with his twin brother Glenn (“the Jimi Hendrix of the accordion”) - “the Joe Strummer and Mick Jones of the Folk World”. The Whisky Priests released a string of internationally acclaimed albums but were particularly renowned worldwide for their incredible live shows: “A Whisky Priests show is the sort of stuff to make your hair curl; honest, earthy, loud, raucous and tremendously uplifting” (FRoots, UK)

Due to be officially released and promoted with an exciting and unique live touring show by ‘Gary Miller & The Volunteers’ in autumn/winter 2010 and throughout 2011, as a first step towards setting him back on the road to a fulltime recording and performing career, Gary Miller’s highly anticipated ‘Reflections on War’ is a landmark release for this persevering and innovative artist.

“This CD grew out of my involvement in the community arts project Reflections on War at York Art Gallery as part of the Territories Project for York Museums Trust where I facilitated a series of poetry workshops in April-June 2009. I worked with a wonderful group of people in developing an exhibition and two books of poetry and stories based on war-themed art and memorabilia from the Museum’s collection, aswell as personal tales and recollections on the subject of war. In addition, I was inspired to create a series of songs of my own, often inspired through direct involvement with the participants themselves. I was particularly interested in focusing on the personal impact of war through its effect on individuals. The opportunity to record these songs arose, developed, grew and took on a life of its own – here are the results for all to hear!”

Gary Miller

www.garymillersongs.com

Set for release on September 6th Butcher Holler covers both familiar and lesser-known songs of Lynn’s from the 60’s to early 70’s. During this time, Lynn introduced a new female character in country music, writing a string of hits unprecedented for their take-no-attitude women narrators. Jewell includes three of these hits on Butcher Holler : "You Ain’t Woman Enough (to Take My Man)" [#2, 1966], "Don’t Come Home A’Drinkin’ (with Lovin’ on Your Mind)" [#1, 1967], and "Fist City" [#1, 1968]. The distinctive grit and strength of these songs are tempered by the tenderness found on more wistful tracks like "Whispering Sea" and "This Haunted House." Jewell’s supple expressive voice has never sounded better- her admiration and respect for Lynn’s music is conveyed in every line that she sings and every note played by her longtime band of Jason Beek (drums, harmony vocals), Jerry Miller (electric, acoustic, and steel guitars), and Johnny Sciascia (upright bass).

Eilen Jewell burst onto the Boston music scene with her 2005 debut, Boundary Country. Reaction to her music was swift, with many comparing her talents to those of Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch and June Carter Cash. Jewell’s heart-achingly hushed style and intimate grasp of roots music have earned her rave reviews, both nationally and abroad. No Depression wrote "Jewell is showing she can wander with the best of them, and write riveting song-stories about her adventures along the way." Indicative of Jewell’s strong following in Europe, The Word in the UK described her as "A voice of real distinction [that] manages to transcend some powerful influences and pierce the fog long enough for her own point of view to emerge." Eilen and her band tour relentlessly, regularly selling out venues across the country. Her last album, Sea of Tears was lauded as "album of the year" by critics, was featured on the New and Noteworthy home page on iTunes, and reached #9 on the Americana Radio Chart staying in the top 10 for 2 straight weeks. MOJO gave the album 4 stars and raved; "The comparison game can hardly get any muddier to suggest Lucinda Williams fronting Chris Isaak’s band, with both singer and accompanists at the top of their game.

See www.eilenjewell.com

Crooked Still’s fourth studio album Some Strange Country is an elegant package of superbly crafted musical styles taking country folk as a deep foundation and veering off into exhilarating and exciting directions. It’s amazing music that can hardly be called ‘bluegrass’ or be locked into any one genre. Where Ray Charles gave us ‘Modern Sounds In Country & Western Music’ back to 1962, Crooked Still bring those expressions into the new millennium.

Recorded during a long blizzard in rural Virginia, Some Strange Country expands on the band’s unique blend of Appalachian-based string band styles combining with chamber music strings and pop sensibility, all supporting Aoife O’Donovan’s sultry and sometimes spooky vocals. The album was produced by Gary Paczoza (Alison Krauss, Nickel Creek) and features guest contributions of bluegrass legends Ricky Skaggs and Tim O’Brien and vocals from rising star Sarah Jarosz. There are several gorgeous original songs alongside adaptations of tradition numbers from the likes of Dock Boggs and others plus an unlikely cover of the Rolling Stones “You Got The Silver”.

Still Crooked is an ensemble effort of inspired music making that moves the bands' impossible to pigeonhole style in new directions while honouring their folk roots. "It's hard to pin down our music," bass player Corey DiMario says. "We play improvised old time music, bluegrass, folk and our own songs within the broad context of a string band. Like a lot of today's bands, we have modern and traditional influences that confuse the boundaries. We want to keep blurring those lines to make something all our own." With the release of Some Strange Country Crooked Still cements their status as one of the most innovative and successful bands in American roots music.

www.somestrangecountry.com

Starkly recorded, with a list of songs that includes Blackie Farrell’s dusty cowboy ballad ‘Sonora’s Death Row’, Neil Young’s mystical narrative ‘Powderfinger’, Porter Wagoner’s darkly comic ‘The First Mrs. Jones’, and Paul Siebel’s aching classic ‘Louise’, Seven Curses is raucous and chilling, raw and poignant, an expansive interpretation of a classic American genre. Kicking off proceedings is a honest interpretation of Woody Guthrie’s ‘Philadelphia Lawyer’ and Springsteen’s ‘Johnny 99’.

Jeffrey Foucault is one of the finest songwriters in the US and his albums have garnered praise and support all over the world. His last album, 2009’s John Prine tribute ‘Shoot The Moon Right Between The Eyes’ was hailed by MOJO (4****) and UNCUT who called it “deftly weighted between reverence and reinvention.” Mark Erelli released his first album in 1999 and has since gone on to record a number of well-received albums and share the stage with likes of Gillian Welch, Dave Rawlings, John Hiatt and Dave Alvin. Erelli was also invited to the UK last year as part of the Charles Darwin Song Project which resulted in intensive TV, radio and press coverage.

www.jeffreyfoucault.com
www.markerelli.com

World-folk group Little Sister is supporting Dave Swarbrick at the Red Lion Folk Club, Vicarage Road, Kings Heath, Birmingham B14 7LY on 12th December 2009, 8pm.
Little Sister's Launch Party for their debut album 'Grey to Green' will be held at the Kitchen Garden Cafe, York Road, Birmingham B14 7SA on 30th December 2009, doors open 7.30pm.

To listen to a preview track from the album visit www.myspace.com/littlesistermusic

See www.littlesistermusic.co.uk, http://www.twitter.com/lilsistatwittle, http://www.myspace.com/littlesistermusic for more details.

www.battlefieldband.co.uk
www.templerecords.co.uk

'Robber Barons', the first single release from Battlefield Band's new album 'Zama Zama…try your luck…', has already received airplay on BBC Shropshire, BBC Gloucestershire, BBC Scotland, Folkcast and Celtic Music Radio. The track, written by Alan Reid, looks at greed through the ages, from the 'Robber Barons' of the Middle Ages in Germany to the modern day politicians & bankers. The subject matter is as relevant today as it ever was… "This album started as a collection of songs and tunes about gold. But as we searched, like the alchemists of old, it turned into a wider idea. In the process we saw the greed, disasters and victories inherent in the search and exploitation of various sources of wealth in this world. Then, as if by demonic serendipity, along comes the worldwide economic crisis. We watched the major banks, insurance companies and Hedge Funds etc. implode, discrediting the entire financial system and many of its managers and advisers - But there was still more to come. We, in Britain, could only stand and watch aghast as many (too many) Members of Parliament, and the House of Lords at Westminster, 'the Mother of Parliaments' were exposed for their cynical misuse of the expenses system, often amounting to fraud.
As we put this album together, with our producer Robin Morton, we have been amazed, amused, angered, depressed and hilariously horrified. Who knew about the Zama Zama Boys? Or Ku'ula-kai, the Hawaiian God of Fish; or the extraordinary folklore and history of Chocolate? We will leave you to mine these extraordinary stories for yourselves." - Alan Reid

With the new album 'Zama Zama...try your luck...', Battlefield Band offer us songs both old and newly composed. Alongside new songs like 'Robber Barons' are tracks such as Nina Simone's 'Plain Gold Ring'.
As always with Battlefield Band, they produce Contemporary Scottish music - 2000 years in the making.

The release of the album celebrates the 30th Anniversary for Battlefield Band and their label Temple Records. For 30 years they have created and performed traditional Scottish music with a rare passion and joy, delighting audiences around the globe and evolving into what the press have called:
"...a wondrous, perfectly paced display by musicians firmly in command of their art...a Highland jam that rang the rafters." - The Washington Post

Under their banner Forward With Scotland's Past, Battlefield Band have been distilling their own unique form of the Scottish spirit and exporting it worldwide, with concerts in China, Malaysia, Germany, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Holland, Syria, Jordan, India, Sri Lanka, Egypt, U.S.A., Canada, Uzbekistan and the U.K.

"What the Chieftains have done for Irish traditional music, Battlefield Band are doing for the music of Scotland" - Billboard

Inspired by their rich heritage of Celtic music and fired by the strength and vibrancy of today's Scottish cultural scene, which indeed they have done much to create and fuel, they have led, and been at the forefront, of a great revival in Scottish music. Refusing to be limited musically by suffocating antiquarianism, or the music business' fashions, they have mixed the old songs and music with a new self-penned repertoire, all played on a fusion of ancient and modern instruments - bagpipes, fiddle, synthesiser, guitar, flutes, bodhran and accordion.

'No tricks, no gimmicks, just very fine music' - Mojo

Across The Pond is now available again as an audio blog - see http://ontouracrossthepond.blogspot.com for a range of roots based acoustic music and news.

Born in San Antonio, Texas, singer songwriter Tish Hinojosa has long been a talented and much revered artist both in the US and Europe. Here, on her new studio album ‘Our Little Planet’ - released on CRS on November 17th – Hinojosa , inspired by her rediscovered love for country music, the 12 self-penned songs on this collection feature a deeply Americana mix of traditional bluegrass and Tish's trademark sound of contemporary folk and tex-mex.

The album is produced by and her long-time accompanist, Marvin Dykhuis, who also co-wrote the title song, as well as playing most of the instruments. It also features appearances by celebrated pedal-steel player Greg Leisz, duets with Texas country legends Rosie Flores and Dale Watson, as well as with rising star Carrie Rodriguez, all of which combine to add delightful new textures to "Our Little Planet's" stripped-down country sound.

http://www.mundotish.com

North East musicians Fiona Lander and Paul Mason otherwise known as the duo 'Landermason' are setting up a regular live music night at the Riverdale Hall Hotel in Bellingham, Northumberland.

Bellingham All Acoustic or the 'Baa' Club will take place in the back conservatory of the hotel on the last Thursday of every month (except December) at 8.30pm. This intimate room (seating 40 maximum) will provide the perfect surroundings for the enjoyment of acoustic music.

Fiona explains "The idea is to promote live music at two different levels. Firstly to provide a platform for invited guest artists who we feel deserve a wider audience. Some of these will be local, others from further a field. Secondly we want to encourage music making within the local community. We plan to have several floor spots before the guest comes on, so if anyone feels they could contribute a song, tune or verse on the night, then we'd love to see you. Everyone is welcome, even if you just want to come along, sit back and listen!"

The club kicks off on Thursday 30th October with North East songwriter PETE SCOTT. Pete, who has supported major names such as Lindisfarne, Janis Ian, Judi Tzuke, John Martyn and Richard Thompson has released 3 solo albums to date. His music has also been included in 'The Northumbria Anthology', a musical celebration of the North East of England's history and culture. Don't miss this wonderful live performer who is sure to bring a smile to your face! www.petescott.co.uk Admission £6.00

Other guests booked throughout the year are Kathryn Davidson & Dan Walsh, Gareth Davies -Jones, The Caffrey's, Richard Grainger and Adrian Nation. Keep checking for updates on the website.

For those who wish to make a night of it, an early evening 2 course dinner is available in the hotel restaurant before the concert at £12.00 per head.
Table reservations 6.30 for 7pm
Bookings 01434 220254

For more information about Bellingham All Acoustic:
Tel. 0778 8804784
www.baaclub.co.uk
www.myspace.com/baaclub

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