Category: Guests

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.

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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.)

5th August – Fraser Bruce

Fraser Bruce is back at Irvine Folk Club and he tops the bill on Wednesday 5th August after a fairly lengthy absence from the folk music scene. He was a very familiar face in the early days of the Club when it met weekly at The Eg although, depending on your age, this might be the first time you’ve heard him.
London born and Rutherglen reared, Fraser sang solo for a number of years singing traditional ballads as well as contemporary material. Then as now, he accompanies himself on acoustic guitar. There came a time when he brought his wee brother Ian to gigs and later they formed a formidable duo: each having a powerful voice and excellent guitar skills. In particular, their harmonies were spot on. They recorded three albums and toured worldwide. Ian then moved on to a solo career and Fraser took a break from the folk scene. But now he’s back.
Fraser has four shows at St Bride’s as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. He will be appearing alongside brother Ian and Moe & Ian Walker. The programme describes them as ‘four veteran performers’!
Wednesday 5th August is the final Club night before the 48th Marymass Folk Festival starts on 19th August. Therefore, limber up for Marymass by going along to Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road on 5th August to hear Fraser Bruce. The Club starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB.
Speaking of Marymass, tickets are now available and Folk Festival leaflets giving all details of the five day bash are in all sorts of outlets. If however, you need to check info or want to reserve tickets – and that would be a smart idea as Vineburgh, the venue for the Thursday and Friday concerts, is a small, intimate venue – contact Joyce on 01294 551047 or visit www.irvinefolkclub.org.uk

Have just heard that Ian will accompany Fraser on his visit to Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday.

22nd July – Claire Hastings

BBC Radio Scotland Young Musician of the Year for 2105 Claire Hastings is the special guest at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 22nd July. She is well thought of by her peers and music critics alike – even if she plays the Ukulele as her chosen instrument!
Claire is from Dumfries and sings and plays with a confidence that belies her years. She has a very fine voice and is said to be a compelling storyteller. After she graduated from the RSAMD with a degree in Scottish Music, Claire and her Ukulele travelled round the world for 18 months before she decided that being in Glasgow is where she really wanted to be.
She has been involved in a variety of workshops around Scotland including leading a Singing Workshop on Mull for people with Dementia and more recently delivered Tiny Tunes for Tiny people to a Mother & Baby Group in Edinburgh.
Claire has also undertaken several teaching projects including one for people in Glasgow with Mental Health issues and working with Feis Rois in Dumfries & Galloway primary schools teaching Scottish music and singing. Currently she is training to be a Colourstrings teacher and maybe she will explain what that is to those of us who don’t know.
As well as all of that, Claire is part of a duo with Robyn Stapleton and part of the Top Floor Taivers band. Claire’s debut album is promised for early 2016!
At the Irvine Club on the 22nd July, the talented Jenn Butterworth will be alongside Claire. So to hear the current Young Trad Musician of the Year, get along to Irvine Folk Club for 8pm on 22nd July to Vineburgh Community Centre in Quarry Road where it is BYOB.
And finally, Saver Tickets priced £40 are now available for this year’s Marymass Folk Festival and cover concerts on the Thursday, Friday and Marymass Saturday Night. It’s a bargain. Contact Joyce on 01294 551047 or email JoyceIFC@aol.com

8th July – Chuck Fleming and Benny Graham

‘What’s gannin on?’ is a well-used phrase on Tyneside and is doubtless a favourite with the guests at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 8th July Chuck Fleming & Benny Graham. Chuck is from Loanhead in Midlothian now living in Co Durham whilst Benny is a Tynesider through and through.
Chuck & Benny have been playing together for years in Pubs, Clubs and Festivals and have now decided that this is the year to go on tour – well, over Hadrian’s Wall for a start! Happily, the Irvine Club is included in the tour schedule as Chuck has been a favourite with Irvine audiences going back to when he was the fiery fiddler with the legendary JSD Band playing in what was then The Drill Hall in Irvine – now the Volunteer Rooms.
Chuck is a terrific fiddle player and also plays mandolin and guitar. Over the years he has worked with the likes of Kathryn Tickell and awesome concertina player Alistair Anderson. He was founder member of Five Hand Reel and now teaches fiddle and mandolin. The irrepressible good humour of Chuck is well known and on stage nothing seems to phase him.
Benny Graham is a singer and songwriter who served his musical apprenticeship in North East of England Folk Clubs. It was there that he learned the songs that grew out of the heavy industries that grew out of coal, steel and ship building on Tyneside and also the musical culture of the rural North East. He has a very good voice and also plays Button Box Accordion. After working for a few years as solo performer, Benny formed the three part harmony group Pegleg Ferret and toured the UK and the Continent.
His career then took a different direction when he joined a premier Tyneside theatre where he has since worked as a singer, songwriter and also a stage and production manager. Benny has numerous albums to his name.
Chuck Fleming & Benny Graham will be a mighty presence at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 8th July at Vineburgh Community Centre. The Club starts at 8pm and yes, it’s BYOB. Make sure you can be there.