I grew up listening to my dad’s Bing Crosby and big band jazz records, and the variety of easy listening styles on Sunday radio programme "Family Favourites". At a very early age I got into Buddy Holly and the Everly Brothers, but the musical love of my life has been the music of the Beatles, who wrote the soundtrack for my youth. From there it was an easy step into Prog Rock and the great seventies singer-songwriters: James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Cat Stephens etc. The TV drama "Pennies for Heaven" sent me back to my earlier love of 1930’s music and Al Bowlly, then at a relatively late age I discovered Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald, and even later, classical music.
I started playing in folk clubs and gradually began to soak up folk influences, notably Richard Thompson, Ralph McTell, Christy Moore etc, but from the start my performances weren’t restricted to folk as I introduced music from all the people mentioned above. When I started writing my own songs it was in a similar mixture of styles, as all these various musical influences bubbled to the surface.
Lately I have been concentrating on singing the songs of Paul Simon and performed a show entirely made up of Simon songs in Thirsk recently.
CAN YOU PLEASE TURN UP FOR THE START OF THE NIGHT (7PM) AND SUPPORT ALL ARTISTS - THIS WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED BY ME (FRANK), THE TERRACE AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST ALL ARTISTS THAT WANT TO PLAY TO AN AUDIENCE OF FRIENDLY FACES.
LET'S MAKE IT A GREAT NIGHT - WE HAVE SOME REALLY EXCITING NEWS FOR ALL ARTISTS FOR EVENTS IN 2009.
ANY BANDS THAT ARE PLAYING DON'T BRING DRUMS AS THESE WILL BE PROVIDED - WE DON'T HAVE TIME TO CHANGE DRUMS ABOUT SO STICKS ONLY PLEASE.
ALSO ALL GUITARS WILL GO STRAIGHT THROUGH P.A. SO NO AMPS PLEASE! REMEMBER ITS ONLY 2/3 SONGS!
12 minute slots ONLY 2/3 songs or 12 mins max and 1 must be a xmas one!
If we have time at the end of the night we can have an encore from the peoples favorite!!!!!
I just wanted to say thanks for playing at the TOM club 'Monday Shuffle' night this week. Sorry its taken me a while to getting around to doing it, hope you can play again. Nikki
