I did have "Just me", but I now see that loads of solo performers have that, so... "Solo".
Influences
Charlie Parker, John Scofield, Boden & Spiers, Nancy Kerr & James Fagan, Steely Dan, XTC, The Beatles, Dusty Springfield ...
... Nic Jones, Kim Richey, Martin Carthy, Steeleye Span, Fairport Convention ...
... everybody, nobody ...
... Richard Shindell, Maggie Holland, June Tabor, Martin Simpson ...
... and on, and on ...
... Kurt Vonnegut. So it goes.
Sounds Like
None of the above! Influenced by? Oh, yes, if only subliminally. I try not to copy anybody.
Here's the gratuitous list for getting me noticed in the search facility. I may have at some point or other covered a song by or been likened to all/many/some/none of the following:
Bob Dylan
John Lennon
The Beatles
Steve Earle
Chris Wood & Andy Cutting
Martin Carthy
Kelly Joe Phelps
Anna Massie
Spin Doctors
Good Charlotte
Chris Smither
John Martyn
Alison Krauss
Lucy Kaplansky
Kim Richey
James Taylor
Steve Tilston
Gillian Welch
Bob Fox
Kate Rusby
Nic Jones
Record Label
No aspiration in that direction. It's just a habit
" 'Cos it's fun, that's why." Hamish loves the folk scene in all its variety – 'cos it's fun. The participation, the interaction, the spontaneity: the total "live" performance thing.
Having appeared as the guest artist at clubs from Cumbria to Sussex and featured at festivals from Yorkshire to Dorset, he is equally at home in a small, intimate acoustic setting with whites-of-the-eyes contact right up to bigger stages with audiences in hundreds and thousands. "Seeing them
floundering about in all those little coloured sugary balls is such a hoot" he says. (Okay, so he's never actually played to thousands. But that's not going to stand in the way of a fantastic joke about cake decorations.) Meanwhile, back at the profile... communication is what it's all about. Whether it's putting over the drama of a traditional ballad or setting up a rousing chorus, the audience is always an integral part of the performance.
He doesn't like to mention his self-deprecating sense of humour. "Because", he says, "it's not very good."
Originally from the east coast of Scotland, folk music was always part of the landscape. But it was on moving south half a lifetime ago and discovering English folk music that his performing really took off. His repertoire is now taken from the traditions on both sides of the border, laced with some original and contemporary material. And fun. And cake decorations.
I've had quite a few enquiries about my guitar. It's a Northworthy. My one's a Carsington Custom. Top's solid spruce, back and sides are solid myrtle from Tasmania. The neck, however, is an old sycamore fence post! Tell Alan I sent you...
And here are some YouTubes from the Gainsborough Folk Festival in October 2009:
Elizabeth Clare / Hares on the Mountain (written and/or arranged by Chris Wood):
Christmas Island by me:
Sweet Minerva written by Linda Kelly of Hissyfit:
Navigator by Phil Gaston who wrote it for The Pogues. This version is after Kris Drever who worked his magic on the song:
THANKS FOR THE FRIENDSHIP & SUPPORT, MUCH APPREICATED, STOP BY WHEN YOU GET A CHANCE AND GIVE A LISTEN AND LEAVE A COMMENT ON YOUR THOUGHTS..............
PEACE, LOVE & HAPPINESS, MICHAEL ps--I'm the one with the beard
Thanks for being our friend...
We've moved, too - now upsatirs at Albert & Pearl, 118 Upper
Street, Islington (opposite the Town Hall). December SoftlySoftly is on
THURSDAY 3rd ..hen from January, it's every first and third
Wednesday of each month...
See you there I hope x
A bit of advance notice - MondayMonday proudly presents Rún and Steven Finn and more at The Wilmington Arms, Clerkenwell on Monday 7th December
Rún collect and arrange old folk songs written in the ancient language of Erin. So far, thanks to Nora from Donegal, they have a nice wee collection of well-known ditties and are now adding to their repertoire with some unusual old forgotten songs from the province of Ulster. Rún are five fantastic lassies who perform four-part vocal arrangements of old Gaelic songs like ’An Cailín Rua’ (the red-haired girl), ’Casadh an tSúgain’ (twisting the hayrope) and ’Bo Na Leath Adhairce’ (the one-horned cow). Rún is the Gaelic word for ’secret, wish or love’ (cf. rune). See http://www.myspace.com/runceol ..
Steven Finn’s ears were filled with the music of Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Johnny Cash and old time country music. Aged 15 he began teaching himself the guitar, learning songs like Leadbelly’s ‘Bourgeois Blues’ and Charlie Daniels’ ‘The devil went down to Georgia’. On hearing Bob Dylan songs Finn started to write his own words and in doing so found a lifelong passion for Jazz and Folk Blues, a getaway car he could drive. See http://www.myspace.com/stevenfinn for more details
It is a pleasure to have you as my new MySpace friend… I find your MySpace page, your talent and your enthusiasm for music pleason’ to many… I welcome you’re other MySpace friends to visit my MySpace page that I’ve dedicated to my admiration of many talented guitar playing musicians of many styles… Stop by check it out and leave a comment if you like… Thanks Ken…
From Across The Vast Reaches of our Uncharted Realms... we bid you Welcome & Well Met!!!...
Feel free to stop by any time!... We now have a Facebook page & group as well... In fact, there's a bunch of networking links on our page here....
If you want the News Of Import™....well, that we need a regular e-mail to send to... Try as we might, the formatting gets trashed when we try to post it here...
We are looking forward to seeing our friends next weekend (10th to 12th July) at Roger's Rant - a Dorset celebration of traditional & contemporary folk music, song and dance. There will be some of the best of local amateur singers and musicians as well as some from further afield. There is also the opportunity for aspiring singers and musicians to have a go in a friendly atmosphere at the Sports Club. The Village Hall will be used for the dance workshops on Saturday & Sunday afternoons, with a Ceilidh on Saturday evening.
The Kittiwakes - CD Launch - Clerkenwell 22nd June
Leigh-on-Sea 3-piece, The Kittiwakes, celebrate the release of their Midwich Records debut, ‘Lofoten Calling’, a collection of original folk songs written about the people, landscape, folklore and history of the Lofoten Islands above the Arctic Circle and influenced by the traditional music of Norway and the British Isles.
'The Kittiwakes craft timeless and magical acoustically dappled folk treats - gentle and alluring ostensibly Gaelic in sound texture and gorgeously flighty braided as they are by corteges of mandolins, accordions and violins.' [LOSING TODAY]
'The Kittiwakes (rissa tridactyla): delicious, intriguing and evocative music, beautifully played and sung by this talented trio. Recommended to twitchers and lovers of folk music alike' [LEIGH FOLK FESTIVAL]
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