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Gowerfest comes home to award-winning real ale
Welsh bands Alaw, Cerddcegin, Builth Wells-born Jack Harris, Pat Smith
and Ned Clamp plus Wales-Isle of Man power trio Barrule are booked for
the Gower Folk Festival, which returns home to The Greyhound pub in
the picturesque setting at Oldwalls near Llanrhydian, on the weekend
of June 14-16, 2013. The festival spent 14 years at The Gower Heritage
Centre in the village of Parkmill, but now the Centre has said it
cannot accommodate them anymore. But the festival has landed on its
feet; The Greyhound is a CAMRA award-winning micro-brewery, and the
powerful line-up includes Fay Hield and the Hurricane Party, the Paul
McKenna Band and Lori Watson’s Rule Of Three from Scotland, MoltenAmba,
James Delarre and Saul Rose, Fásta from Ireland and Canada, Jon Swayne
and Becky Price, Cupola-Ward, Jack McNeill and Charlie Heys, Ireland’s
Polly Barrett and dance teacher Kerry Fletcher.
http://www.gowerfolkfestival.co.uk/
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Welsh bands for Cambridge
South Wales folk-fusion five-man Jamie Smith’s Mabon, who are
intensively promoting their latest CD Windblown, and Newport-based
Rusty Shackle have been announced for the opening Thursday night in
Cambridge Folk Festival, which runs from July 25 to 28 at Cherry
Hinton Hall.
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Tune-Chain from trac
Trac,
the Welsh music development organisation, are bringing out a weekly
series of videos of Welsh traditional players; the aim is to inspire
budding musicians and to instil in them the importance of Welsh
culture.
Click here for the latest.
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Fernhill, Spooky Men’s for Roots Unearthed
Cardiff music series Roots Unearthed takes its summer break with two
concerts from fabulous Welsh quartet Fernhill on Tuesday, July 2 and
Aussie “blokes’ choir” The Spooky Men’s Chorale in the main auditorium
of St David’s Hall on July 23, as part of the Welsh Proms Fringe.
St David’s Hall is closed for August, and Roots Unearthed compere Dave
Haslam introduces solo guitar master Martin Simpson on September 10,
Eliza Carthy
and Tim Eriksen on October 30, must-see South Wales roots-fusion
quintet Jamie Smith’s Mabon on November 26. Future guests are The
Steve Tilston Trio on January 28, 2014 and
Sarah Jarosz,
on a February date to be confirmed. All events take place in the Level
Three Lounge at 8pm.
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Songwriters hold workshop and concert
English songwriter and musician Pete Morton joins up with Llanwenarth
resident Anne Lister for a special songwriting workshop and concert,
which is being held in Llanwenarth Village Hall, just west of
Abergavenny, on June 22. The Day Of Songwriting starts with the
workshop (10.30am – 4.30pm), and ends with the concert (8pm). The day
costs £30, inclusive of the concert.
For details of the day click here.
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Rory in Cardiff
Outstanding songwriter and performer Rory McLeod will be amazing the
Whitchurch Rugby Sports and Social Club audience when he appears on
Thursday June 20 (8pm). Aidan Sheehan, the Rugby Club events manager,
says: “If you have ever been lucky enough to have seen his
tour-de-force performances live on-stage, then you will know how good
he is. If you have never seen him perform, then honestly, you must. He
is a folk and harmonica award winning, shoe-tapping, Blues
harp-blowing, guitar-plucking, spoons-wielding, trombone-playing folk
and acoustic roving troubadour delivering thought-provoking,
meaningful lyrics.” Tickets will be on sale at the Club, in Samuels
Cresent, Whitchurch, Cardiff, and at the Second Tuesday Club, in May
and June at £12 each.
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MacKeeman for Mwldan
Gordie MacKeeman and His Rhythm Boys, from Price Edward Island, are an
Canadian old-time band who serve up roots music “with an energy level
that practically yanks you out of your seat by the collar” – and
they’re appearing at Theatr Mwldan, Cardigan, on June 13 (8pm.)
http://www.gordiemackeeman.com/
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Vin heads Newport Guestlist
Vin
Garbutt heads an impressive programme at Newport Folk Club, which
meets every Thursday at The Fugitives athletic club in Rogerstone on
June 13. Union Jill are on the list on July 11, Mick Ryan and Paul
Downes (September 12) and Faustus (October 3). The Lyceum Folk Club
also meets in Newport on Thursdays, and their list is Eddie Walker
(June 20), Mrs Ackroyd (July 11) and Martyn Joseph (September 26).
Eddie Walker is bowing out in style. Apart from Llantrisant and
Newport, he’s gigging at The Angel in High Street, Llandeilo in
Pontardawe on June 21 and The Valley Folk Club in the Ivy Bush,
Pontardawe, on June 22. The Valley Folk Club welcomes Graham Larkbey
on July 19, then on August 16 club members join Pontardawe Summerfest
(successors to the late lamented Pontardawe International Festival) in
Pontardawe Arts Centre for a Showcase, to be followed by a Celtic
Sound ceilidh. Back
at
the Ivy Bush, the wonderful Welsh/Estonian duo Sild, ex-Boys Of The
Hill guitarist Martin Leamon and Sille Ilves, play on September 20.
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Georgia Ruth releases Pines CD
Aberystwyth-born songwriter Georgia has released her debut album, Week
Of Pines, on Gwymon Records in May. Recorded and produced by David
Wrench over six days last August at Snowdonia’s Bryn Derwen studios,
this varied and intriguing collection of songs features members of
acclaimed country-folk band of brothers Cowbois Rhos Botwnnog and a
special contribution from Lleuwen Steffan.
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Julie, Ceri join Causley quest
Devon-based singer and accordionist Jim Causley teams up with Fernhill
songstress Julie Murphy and Bethlehem Village Band/Cerddcegin harper
and trombone player Ceri Owen-Jones to stage a show titled The Poetry
of Charles Causley, the celebrated Cornish writer who was a distant
cousin of Jim’s. The Trio will be available for Autumn festivals and
will be touring October and November this year.
A new album, Cyprus Well, comes out in the summer, commemorating the
10th anniversary of the death of Causley. It was recorded live in the
poet’s house in Launceston, Cornwall, and many of the tracks, which
Jim has set to music, feature Causley’s own piano. The project aims to
bring wider attention to Causley’s poems and raise awareness of the
Charles Causley Trust and their mission to preserve Causley’s house as
a writers’ retreat.
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Lucinda, Cara stage Welsh gigs
Cara Luft, founder member of Canada’s The Wailin’ Jennies, and
three-times Grammy award-winner Lucinda Williams is coming to Wales
for a trio of gigs at the end of June.
Lucinda, who will be performing from her extensive catalogue in her
only Welsh tour date at Aberdare’s Coliseum Theatre on Saturday June
29, blends blues, folk, country and rock in soulful lyrics and has
been honoured as America’s best songwriter by Time magazine. She is
one of the most uncompromising and consistently fascinating writers
and artists. This show reunites her with her long-time collaborator
and friend, guitarist Doug Pettibone. The Guardian said of her:
“Williams radiates such outlaw cool that it’s surreal to think that
she’s currently enjoying mainstream success… few could match her
extraordinary voice.” Tickets for the 8pm show are £25 in advance and
£28 on the door.
Cara brings her elegant guitar and her expressive songwriting to The
Muni Arts Centre in Pontypridd (8pm, Thursday, June 27), The Stage
Door in The Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl, (8pm, Friday, June 28), Wyeside
Arts Centre, Builth Wells (June 29) and over the border in The Hive,
Shrewsbury (June 16). The Muni tickets are £10 in advance and £12.50
on the door, while The Stage Door tickets are £11.50.
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Gerhard records bilingual stories
Pontypridd harper Bethan Nia, translator Louise Rossiter and reader
Catrin Doyle are all featured in CDs of stories for children in
English and Welsh, which storyteller Gerhard Kress has recorded. The
CDs are called The Little Old Man With The Long White Beard/Yr Hen Ŵr
Bach Gyda Barf Gwyn Hir. Gerhard, a fluent English-speaking German who
lives in Pontypridd, tells the five stories in English while Catrin
reads the Welsh translation.
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Aeroplanes fly in for Cuffern
Pembrokeshire indie-folk stars Paper Aeroplanes - who have just
released their new CD, Little Letters - have been added to the Cuffern
Festival, which takes place in the walled garden at Cuffern Manor,
Roch, Pembrokeshire on 6-8 June. Belfast singer-songwriter Anthony
John Clarke, spellbinding American duo Dana and Susan Robinson and
local four-piece Quarto appear on Thursday. On Friday, An Evening of
Christian Music provides a different style when young christians and
non-christians from around the county will gather for Cath Woolridge’s
Sound of Wales (as seen on the recent Songs of Praise from St Davids
Cathedral) and Harry Bird and the Rubber Wellies, a four-piece band
who are also on a return visit. On Saturday, there’s an evening of
cool folk-rock featuring Moulettes (BBC Brit Award nominees, currently
supporting The Levellers and Arthur Brown on tour), My Back Pages, a
Bob Dylan tribute band from Brighton, Paper Aeroplanes – Sarah Howells
and Richard Llewellyn, just back from a tour in Germany and embarking
on their own UK tour to promote the forthcoming CD. The evenings will
feature fine food and drink from local producers, including Phill and
Maggie Vickery from the Preseli Brewery, Pen-Lon Brewery and Gethins
Cider.
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Roy postpones Llantrisant party
Cardiff traditional singer Roy Harris has postponed his eightieth
birthday party at Llantrisant Folk Club, The Windsor Hotel, Pontyclun,
following an operation which took him a long time to recover. A Song
And Tune Night will be held instead on Wednesday June 19 (8.30pm). The
Llantrisant guest progrmme starts off with The Hut People (July 3),
Broom Bezzums (July 10), Jon Heslop from Cornwall (July 24), Sara Grey
and Keiron Means (August 28), Pete Coe (September 18), Jerry Epstein
and Ralph Boddington (September 25), and Eddie Walker’s final
Llantrisant appearance before he retires (October 2).
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