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Club Newsletter April 2004

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This news letter's a cooperative effort. Just like running the club!

I'm sitting finishing this off having listened to the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. In the Radio Times there's a sort of quote from Mike Harding, one of the originators of the awards, to the effect that "the folk underground is as healthy now as it was in the 1960s & 70s, with .... folk clubs continuing to be the launch pad for many performing careers, ...." I think I'd be right in saying that the St. Denys Folk & Blues Club is really doing its part to keep that process going.

Despite the change of venue - maybe we should call ourselves the St. Denys Nomads, we seem so often on the move - the club's still going great guns! There was a fantastic Christmas Party and since the New Year the club has had numbers in excess of 30 most nights. And what nights they have been.

We've had BBC South Today along to film (that shows my age, maybe these days it should be video) at the club as part of an item they were doing on Gene Burton. This was one of a 3 part series Roger Finn was recording on folk music in the south. One of the other items featured quite a number of the club's members in the shape of the Priory Hard Shanty Crew. They were filmed at a much less friendly time of 8:30 in the morning on board HMS Victory. The third item featured Bob Copper at his 89th birthday party. He's not a member of the club though he would be very welcome if he could make it!

The following week was the club's Song Writing Competition. There were twenty, yes 20, songs entered. As previously, the category was 'anything goes' as long as both words and tune were original. The songs were marked by the whole audience, including the singers, not a panel of judges, so there was some very frantic writing down, adding up, checking and double checking after all the papers were gathered together before we arrived at a winner. The results were

1st place - Steve Daniels
'Why Oh Why?'
2nd place - Rod Livingstone
'Round the Wrekin'
3rd place - Gene Burton
'You Never Were My Darling'

The next three places were awarded commendations. I know it looks as though I can't count but there were 2 equal sixth places.

Rod Livingstone - 'Phoenix'
John Baker - 'The Vulture Song'
Ted Comben - 'The Bull-Shit Song'
Dave Nixon - 'Long Time a-Waitin''

We may have to change the rules a bit next year to try to reduce the rush at the end. Any suggestions?

The next week's session was just the usual 'anything goes'. With 35 people there, most of them performers, it was the now expected great evening of songs and tunes.

We're now into February and the club nights continue to be fantastic fun. February's special night featured Jaquie Caulton on the 17th, who accompanied her own and others' songs using both guitar and cello, not at the same time I hasten to add. In the following months we're planning to feature some of our younger members so I've pencilled in Tessa Livingstone & friends for March, Gene Burton for April and Sue Harris for May but as I write these have yet to be confirmed. See the web site or 'phone for up to date info. about these and other feature nights.

We will be running a new venture for us in the not too distant future. Our very first GUEST NIGHT. It will be on 22nd June, a Tuesday as usual, and will feature RON TRUEMAN-BORDER. The evening will start early, at 7:30, as he will be running a song-writing workshop for an hour beforehand. It is intended to use the upstairs room though we will have to come down stairs to get our drinks. Again, see the web site for confirmation of the details.

 

Carole Sunter & Dave Nixon