Category: Guests

28th October – Kent DuChaine

Kent DuChaine the nomadic Bluesman from Minnesota is back at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 28th October and this will be welcome news for his many fans in these parts. His abundant energy and enthusiasm means there is no chance of nodding off when he is playing. Kent’s guitar playing is exceptional and combined with the power of his voice and his passion for the Blues means it’s another night not to be missed at the Irvine Club.

Kent’s potted history is: born in Wayzata, Minnesota; formed a garage band at 13; and it was reading Eric Clapton album notes led him to check out a Robert Johnson album at his local library. So taken aback was Kent by the album, that he almost wore it out listening to it. The music of the Mississippi Delta had captured him.

In 1969 Kent learned to play slide guitar and ten years later he found his beloved Leadbessie – ‘a beat-up 1934 National Steel Guitar’ as he describes her. It’s kitted out with extra heavy strings to cope with his ferocious style and there is now a whole lot of gaffer tape on Leadbessie as well! The name Leadbessie is an affectionate amalgam of Blues legends Leadbelly and Bessie Smith.

Kent lives to spread the Blues and has clocked up countless thousands of miles and close on 100 overseas tours from his South Georgia base in the USA. Songs about Kent’s youth, his adventures, family and friends are linked by frank anecdotes in true troubadour style.

He always brings something of his own interpretation to covers of standards such as Little Red Rooster, St James Infirmary, I’ll Be True To You or Trouble in Mind. His intricate, finger-picking slide-guitar and use of his hand as a handhammer beat, all contribute to the sheer intensity of a Kent DuChaine performance.

Wednesday 28th October is a night for Blues fans to enjoy at Irvine Folk Club with Kent DuChaine. The Club meets in Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road, starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB.

14th October – Steve Dan Mills

Steve Dan Mills is a new name to Irvine Folk Club and he makes his debut appearance on Wednesday 14th October. He is an American singer and songwriter and was a co-founder of Speed 35 – one of the first folk-rock bands in the American South.
A native of Milwaukee in Wisconsin, he eventually settled in Nashville, Tennessee, began a solo career in the mid ‘70s and did the rounds of the journeyman singer for a number of years. He has a rich and powerful voice and there’s a chance that you may have heard him as he is frequently asked to narrate documentaries and also does voice-overs for commercials – listen out for Ben & Jerry’s or Gatorade!
His vocals and songwriting talent is best heard on songs like ‘Inside out lookin’ in’ – taken from a CD of the same name: a song about the pain of being misunderstood. His songwriting has been described as reflective, sensitive, moving and healing – songs that can illicit tears and laughter and also instil hope. He accompanies himself on acoustic guitar and harmonica. Having moved to London a couple of years ago, Steve Dan Mills regularly tours the length and breadth of the UK.
On Wednesday 14th October, Steve Dan Mills will be at Irvine Folk Club in Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road. The Club starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB. Floor singers and Storytellers are always welcome !

Fraser and Ian Bruce album launch concert in Glasgow on Saturday

I thought club members would appreciate a reminder about the Concert and Album launch for Fraser & Ian Bruce – Mrs Bruce’s Boys – this Saturday, 10th October at Adelaides, Bath St, GLASGOW, 7.30. Tickets and details from www.trad.org.uk

Fraser used to be an MC at Irvine Folk Club and did a great night at the club recently. On that night, his brother Ian played guitar, but for this evening as Mrs Bruce’s Boys, you get the full power of Fraser and Ian together.  A little bit of as they were then, a bit of as they are now – and a hint of things to come.

Mrs Bruces Boys, Concert Flyer

30th September – Hungrytown

Hungrytown is a new name to play at Irvine Folk Club. They are from across The Pond in the US of A and are the special guests at the Irvine Club on Wednesday 30th September.
Rebecca Hall & Ken Anderson are Hungrytown and this duo and couple have been singing full-time for over 10 years. They met in New York when Rebecca was a Jazz singer and Ken was a Drummer with a variety of Garage Bands – neither of them had sung or had much interest in Folk music. It was when a close and mutual friend died and left her collection of Folk music albums and her Guitar to them that their interest was kindled. Inspired by stories of real life contained in trad ballads, Rebecca started writing songs and she and Ken began singing round the Coffee Houses. Some years later, she and Ken quit their day jobs and moved to Vermont to start a career as full-time touring folk musicians.
Hungrytown are described as playing music that lies somewhere in between folk rock and old time folk with shades of bluegrass! What is known is that Rebecca has a fine Alto voice and she writes the majority of their material. Ken is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, arranges music and also does vocals. The couple’s vocal harmonies are often highlighted in reviews.
Rebecca and Ken have three Albums to their name – Hungrytown in 2008 was their debut release, followed by Any Forgotten Thing in 2011 and Further West was released this year.
Hungrytown are on the road touring in North America, Europe and New Zealand for at least six months of each year. They are currently on a tour of the UK which includes the Irvine Club and from the UK they will play in The Netherlands and Germany before heading home.
Be at Irvine Folk Club in Vineburgh Community Centre on Wednesday 30th September for 8pm to hear Hungrytown. The Club is BYOB.

16th September – Tommy Sands

Tommy Sands. Just mention his name and the eyes light up of those who have heard his songs. Tommy is the very welcome guest at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 16th September. He is doing only five Scottish dates on this tour and Irvine is very fortunate to have secured one of them.
The term ‘internationally renowned’ is a term used a great deal, but it really does apply to Tommy Sands. Lines like ‘sow the seeds of justice’ from Tommy’s acclaimed song ‘Daughters and Sons’ led the late Seamus Heaney, Irish poet and Nobel Prizewinner for Literature, to write – ‘You feel you can trust the singer as well as the song’.
Born in Mayobridge in Northern Ireland, Tommy Sands is a singer, a songwriter, radio broadcaster and social activist. As part of the well-known Sands Family, he played in venues from the Carnegie Hall to Moscow’s Olympic Stadium. As a solo artist, Tommy engages audiences with his songs and stories and his charm. He weaves legend, humour and thought-provoking messages into his songs – many of his songs are about helping shape a better world. His passion is peace and he is often described as The Bard of Peace. The University of Nevada awarded him an Honorary Doctorate for his outstanding work as a musician and ambassador for peace and understanding.
Tommy is involved in peace concerts, lectures, school programmes, workshops and in all of them he shares his songs and their message of tolerance and peace. He is the man who wrote classics such as ‘The Music of Healing’, ‘The Age of Uncertainty’ and ‘Who Knows Where The Wind Blows’.
On Wednesday 16th September at the Irvine Club, Tommy will captivate the audience with his musical skills and his songs of encouragement, enlightened ideas and the joy of living. Make sure you are in the audience at Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road. The Club starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB.

4th September – Fifty Shades of Blue

After another really excellent Marymass Folk Festival, Irvine Folk Club is back on Wednesday 2nd September with 50 Shades of Blue. Their name reflects the fact that their music includes a strong Blues influence!
50 Shades of Blue is a duo based in Glasgow. They play at gigs mostly in and around West Central Scotland. You might have heard them at The Drovers Inn or King Tut’s. They play original material plus covers of favourites from folk, bluegrass and blues. Listen out for a very snazzy Washboard, a Bodhran, Percussion and Guitar when they are at Irvine. 50 Shades of Blue will be different, that’s for sure. Hear them at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 2nd September at Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road. The Club starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB.
A ‘heads-up’ that Tommy Sands is the guest at the Irvine Club on Wednesday 16th September – you might want to put that in your diary.
Back at the 48th Marymass Folk Festival, two World Championships were played out on the final day of the Festival. Yes, Georgina Wilmot from Wormit in the glorious Kingdom of Fife won the Whammy-Diddling and Stephen Quigg from Saltcoats won the Chuckie-Chucking. Contestants in the two World Championships came from far and near including Voisins in France, Stavanger in Norway, Ireland and Dundee as well as nearer home. So keen was a musician to get the hang of Whammy-Diddling that a Whammy-Diddle was spirited away to Rostrevor to allow practice for the 2106 event! All part of the magical mix that is Marymass Folk Festival.

Dawn Martin wins the Marymass Open Stage.

Dawn Martin, Marymass Open Stage Winner

Dawn Martin and Willie Sinclair won The Open Stage Competition at the 48th Marymass Folk Festival. Dawn looks happy – Willie looks shocked !!! The Judges were Beth Folkemer of Dearest Home and the weel kent face Tom Smith of Prestwick. A very popular decision – Dawn has certainly earned it. We can now look forward forward to Dawn playing at the Saturday night concert, headlined by special guests Na Leanai – the next generation of The Sands Family from Rostrevor, Northern Ireland. Tell your friends!!

Marymass Saturday Night: Na Leanai – The Sands Family, the next generation.

The Marymass Saturday Evening Concert is always one of the highlights of the year and this year comes into the ‘not to be missed’ category. This post is a request for members and friends to help get the word out about Na Leanai, who will be headlining the Concert at The Volunteer Rooms in Irvine on Saturday 22nd August. Na Leanai may not be a name familiar with music fans in Ayrshire, but once they realise the group’s association with one of Ireland’s first families of folk music, The Sands Family, they will know that they are in for a treat.

MARYMASS_Na_Leanai_SandsFamily
Photograph: Na Leanai and The Sands Family at Fiddler’s Green Festival. (It is the ‘youngsters’, Na Leanai, who will be at Marymass this year, an extended family concert is perhaps something we can hope for in the future.)

Na Leanai are the daughters and sons of various members of the Sands Family and sing the family songs, traditional songs, a few of their own, and play fiddle, whistle and guitar. They recently launched their first CD at the Fiddler’s Green Festival in a concert where The Sands Family and Na Leanai performed their own sets before coming together as a combined family group. It was one of those memorable moments that will live with people for years to come and promises much for their appearance at Marymass Folk Festival, 2015.

All of the Sands family share common traits including good humour, anecdotes and stories and above all great songs. Tommy Sands in particular is a songwriter with a reputation on a world stage, having performed and co-written songs with the legendary Pete Seeger, but brothers Colum and Ben also have that family gift of turning every day experiences into songs.

The name Na Leanai, means ‘children’, although in the case of the Sands it is better expressed as ‘the next generation’. And the next generation is very much in the minds of the organisers of the Marymass Folk Festival as they look forward to the festival’s 50th anniversary in 2017. Marymass Folk Festival was a springboard for many performers who went on to a career in music. Billy Connolly, Aly Bain, Alistair MacDonald, Gallagher & Lyle, The McCalmans, Johnny Silvo and many more, all look to Marymass with fondness and happy memories. For the Sands Family, who first came over from Ireland to play at the festival in the early 1970s, Marymass was important in their decision to become professional musicians. It opened the door to performances in Scotland and beyond for The Sands Family as a group, and also for individual members, particularly Tommy, Colum and Ben Sands who are regular visitors to clubs and concerts to this day.

Festival events run from Wednesday 19th through to Sunday 23rd August with a packed schedule of concerts, sessions and community events throughout the town. Arthur Johnstone & The Stars Band headline the concert on the Thursday evening with Celine Donoghue & Neil Sturgeon topping the bill on the Friday evening. Both of these concerts take place in Vineburgh Community Centre which is the home of the Irvine Folk Club throughout the year.

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Photograph: Stephen and Pernille Quigg at Irvine Harbourside.

There is a particularly strong line up of resident performers who will be appearing throughout the week. The residents include fiddler Tom McConville from the North East of England, who returns after being a main guest in recent years, Sunjay Brayne, a young musician with quite incredible skills on guitar, The Stavanger Harbour Band who are regular visitors to Irvine from Norway, The Alistair McCulloch Trio and Stephen & Pernille Quigg. Ayrshire based Stephen Quigg is well known from his time with The McCalmans, one of Scotland’s top folk groups, and more recently with his wife and singing partner Pernille. A new name among the residents is Hector Gilchrist. Hector has made quite a name for himself in England over many years, and has released CDs on the prestigious Wildgoose label. Hector was involved in the early days of the folk music scene in Ayrshire, moving to the south of England from his home village of Coylton over forty years ago.

Tickets are available online via this website or from Joyce Hodge, 01294 551047. Some tickets will be available on the door, but early booking is advised.

(For anyone who wondered, Na Leanai is pronounced Na lah-nee.)