News
9th January 2009
Happy New Year folks, but before I commence with talk of future plans, I need to take you back to June '08 and continue the story from before. In June, we had finally tied up the loose ends of my dad's estate and we moved to a slightly larger house round the corner from the other one. The move itself was characterised by my personal carrying of belongings from door to door. Partly, this was to escape the financially punitive clutches of the removal people but also, it seemed crazy to hire somebody to turn up with a great big van, fill it up and then drive 500 yds up the road to empty it again! So, there I was, weaving and wobbling up North Street, small chest of drawers in my arms, bag of CDs crammed into a dangling shoulder bag; a horse might have been good - but then we really are in a shoot from Steptoe & Son! It was good to suddenly find ourselves with more space. Something we had eventually run out of at North Street as the portfolio of life grew without any factored filing space.
In between gigs and lessons, the next few weeks were taken up finishing off refurbishing North Street to make it available to let. The aforementioned new bathroom was planned to cost us around £2k all-in. It ended up costing us £5k! This was largely down to a complete twat of a tradesman who decided to walk out on us halfway through installing all the plumbing. We were then left in a situation where we had to call someone to pick up the pieces and also buy new parts, as some of the stuff he had bought didn't fit or didn't work. I think, all these life-skills that are almost inevitable in our modern world should be taught to you at school. I know some schools do deal with these things now, but the ability to service your car, install and maintain your heating system, budget for a household, do simple re-wiring etc are problems that most us encounter at some point, and the mere fact that so many tradies fill the gaps leads me to be believe that most of us don't know what we are doing and are simply swimming blithely in shark-infested waters!
Anyway, enough of the diatribing. June also saw me do a few gigs with the Dragon Slayers around Cheshire. This is a band that consists of Don May on the violin, me on the guitar, Gordon on percussion and John Lynch - luthier and civil engineer extraordinaire - on banjo, mandolin and sound. We did a successful run of pub gigs in the June /July time. Most were comfy middle-class eateries in rural Cheshire, but they provided decent money and we responded by doing everything from jigs and reels to Bessie Smith via Keane and Willie Nelson! Great sound, good fun. Future gigs are planned so watch these spaces.
June of course is also the time of my daughters' birthdays. Caitlin is, in many ways, typically fifteen and just wanted to do her own thing. Vawny however, was 18 and we had a big party at her mum's with Caitlin and I doing a singing duet, and Three Point Turn playing in the garden. (Great tune!) Great day. She thought it was wonderful; and that's all that matters. The midsummer month also saw me do the March Town Summer Festival. Average weather - this, or below, seems to be the way it is now - but a great day. I did a slightly poppier acoustic set sandwiched in-between a rock band and Ivan Garford's jazz quintet. It went down well and you can see some of these events captured for posterity (and a wider audience daft enough to listen) on YouTube.
July saw me do another short folk club tour. In the itinerary this time was a visit to the Manor Club in Wallasey. I had been to the previous incarnation of this club 25 years ago and the same people are still involved - older, greyer, wiser(?!) - but still playing and presenting (cheers to Gill, George and Roger!). It was good to get this gig. I had started out doing floor spots in 1980 at clubs like these on the Wirral, and whilst they were friendly enough, they could never be persuaded to book us feral youngsters in our own right, and we had to migrate elsewhere in order to develop. This kind of bullish, conservative intransigence is something that is now almost a feature of an otherwise inspirational and cohesive folk scene across the UK. Never mind, if you can wait 25 years!!
Part of July's schedule was a gig at the Ship Victory in Chester. This was part of my continuing commitment to raise money for the Angela Gildea Cancer Trust but for Vawny's 18th I had promised that I would get Tom McConville - one of her favourite musicians - to play for her. He couldn't make the day itself so I asked if he would do this gig with me. He agreed, and the wild musical potpourri was completed by Mikey Johnson (with whom I was staying in his smart new Heswall home - cheers mate!) on a compact electronic drum kit. Obviously there was no rehearsal time, just pure seat-of-the-pants stuff. But, Chris and Nick (from Full House) turned up and we ended up jamming the night away. Marvellous stuff. Roll on a similarly leftfield idea for 2009! The Trust however benefitted to the tune of £150. A decent evening's work.
August came and brought rain and dullness, followed by more of the same in September. These months were packed with ceilidhs and anonymous pub gigs. If you've ever done an anonymous pub gig, try it. Nobody knows who you are, 'cos they don't know who they are, or even where they are! I played in a stately home in Derbyshire followed by a football field on the edge of Oldham. I played solo in a country park near Wolverhampton (great gig, cheers Reg - watch it on YouTube!) and on the roof of a block of flats (never mind the Beatles!) in Coventry. I travelled to a council estate in Mansfield and drove through cascading mountain water in scenic North Wales - at the same time!! We were settling into our new home when I went on a short tour again in October. This took me up the road to Spalding, out into the West Midlands and to a bizarre breakfast show gig on Radio Cambridgeshire where I sang the news in my improvisational mode. I was also lucky enough to perform at the brilliant Banbury Canalside Festival where I made some new friends, among whom were the brilliant Cathryn Craig and Brian Willoughby. She is an American lady with the 'voice' and he was the guitar player in the Strawbs for 30 years - 'nuff said. Thanks to our great friends Colin and Linda Britt, who were with us on the day, and also to Derek and Mary Droscher for great organisation. There are selected videos from these gigs available to watch (for free!) on YouTube.
By November, college classes were back with a vengeance, and I'd also acquired a few new guitar pupils. But, the telling event came on the 14th - the occasion of my 50th birthday (OMG!!) - with a (sold-out) guitar concert at March Town Hall with Jacques Stotzem. Again you can see some of this on YT. This has now become something of a regular event in the Fens and now, something of a moveable feast. Last year, Wisbech, this year, March, 2009?? It was a brilliant night - rounded off with a gathering at our 'new' house - and the best way I could think of celebrating my birthday. Jacques even bought me some Belgian Trappist beers for my birthday. The man is a a star! But really the thanks must also go to my lovely wife Steph who organised the buffet etc. and managed to buy me a new Canon printer/scanner in the process! Amongst the audience at the guitar concert was our new tenant at North Street - courtesy of our old neighbour John 'J P' Porter - Kenny Elliott keyboard player with 70's band Seventh Wave, amongst others. We've already had a few loose jam sessions. Life doesn't get that much better! Then, we learned in December that Steph's dad had lung cancer. Then we went to see Elton John at the 02 Arena on New Year's Eve. All aboard the rollercoaster! More on all of this in the next installment when I shall bring you up to date with the new album (recording starts January) the gigs, and some of the more personal events and issues. All the very best for 2009. Love Phil.
26th September 2008
April and May saw me drifting around the country on a few folk club dates. April was more 'tour-based' with several gigs on the spin and, after playing at Bishops Stortford (cheers Mac!) - a snippet of which appears as a YouTube video of a new-ish song 'When The Tide Comes In' - and the smashing Orpington Lib Club (cheers Sue!) I found myself playing a Paddys' night gig at Liverpool's Atlantic Tower Hotel. In itself, that is nothing remarkable, except perhaps the view of the magnificent Liver building and the revitalised dock areas. However, this gig finished at 2 in the morning. I looked out of the window, and yes, it was snowing! I had to get back that night (to Cambridgeshire) because the following night I was at Ruskin House in Croydon. (I know.....you're thinking: 'Who organises this guys' schedule!')
By the time I left Liverpool the snow was pretty heavy, and it was sticking. I drove sheepishly down the A41, when I got stuck behind two large rigs. Sheepish then became sluggish so, with one mighty breath ( I almost shut my eyes!) I overtook the lorries at a massive 35mph. Around a mile or two later, I looked at the dash and realised I needed diesel and so I stopped at the next 24-hr garage. As I was filling up, the snow was getting heavier, my knackers were freezing, and looking up, I saw the two big lorries go past. Bastard! Anyhow, I finally got home at 5.30am resembling something that Damien Hirst would contemplate putting in formaldehyde. It was still snowing the following day, albeit not so heavily, when we went down to Croydon Folk & Blues club. This a brilliant local venue, it was packed to the rafters and full of quality performers, and is set in the historic Ruskin House (think the Trade Union movement) on the edge of Croydon. The gig was very well-received and I sold a shed load of CD's.
All was well driving back until I heard an almighty clatter somewhere on the A213. I looked in the rear view mirror and couldn't see anything so I blithely carried on driving. However, just past Dartford Tunnel, I could hear all these strange noises but only intermittently. Great, I thought. It's only intermittent, I'll keep soldiering on. By this time Steph was saying 'Why don't you just pull-over and check all is OK?'. No, I thought, as mild panic began to set in. Anyway we made it to the edge of March when the car sounded like it had been taken over by an industrial grinding team. The noise was phenomenal. We ground to an absolute halt. I got out and saw that the tyre had completely shredded from the wheel and the actual wheel itself had been driving for about a mile without a tyre! We were only a couple of miles from home but we had to wait for the AA as my spare was next to useless given that I'd been driving on metal. Bang went my fee, but, we did get home a bit earlier at 3.20am...... Sharing that with several people will help me to purge the lingering demons that visit me in flashbacks on the M25. How did I manage to get that far? Am I a cat? Am I a silly twat?
As the month progressed I visited some old haunts; the brilliant Cross Keys in Uppermill (the best pint of Willy Lees known to mankind) and the Robert Gillow in Lancaster. Both decent gigs and, not too far away that I couldn't spend a little time in West Yorkshire staying first with Alyson Harding - one of the planet's beautiful souls - and then with old friend and songmeister Jon Harvison. Jon lives next door to fiddle genius Tom McConville in the remains of an old quarry. So it gave me an opportunity to visit Tom and do a bit of casual rock climbing. OK, perhaps I didn't do the rock-climbing. Thanks to Jon and Gill for their wonderful hospitality. I then drove down to Chester to do the Saturday guest spot at '30 Years of The Raven Folk Club'. I picked up my daughter Siobhan on the way and had a great night at one of the best folk clubs in the country (thanks to the brilliant Time Bandits for their opening spot) as well as an opportunity to stay over with Nick (Mitchell) - MC, organiser and Full House frontman -and his partner Sharon, and have one or two after-gig drinks. Nick however had gotten out of his car the wrong way (through the roof?!) and had damaged his knee to the point where he was writhing round in agony on the couch. All the best mate. Where do you keep the whisky?
Of course, threaded between these events were all my private guitar lessons and one or two ceilidhs with Three Point Turn (Go to the MySpace site and buy a CD!) The end of April merged effortlessly into May with a gig at the Q Bar in Stalybridge (another Jon Orpheus brainchild) followed by an equally pleasing night at the Lymm Folk Club where I was able to stay with organiser (and another top songwritist) Stewart Lever. Stewart is also a bereavement counsellor, and was incalculably helpful in listening to me talk about my dad. Cheers mate.
May brought a handful of gigs, most notably an appearance at the Nova Scotia in Bristol. I've always loved the 'vibe' in Bristol. Even the gangsters and hoodlums seem (however menacing) laid-back. Maybe it's the accent and the flat beer. Anyhow, I really enjoyed this gig. The standard of floor singers was really high and I stayed with local guitar hero Jim Tigwell in the aptly named suburb of Totterdown (Cheers Jim). Great to see another great songwriter Henry Clements there, as well as DaveTotterdell, a former folk pro from the 70's. Thanks for the CD mate.
Moving on, work was being done on our house as we prepared to let following the sale of my dads bungalow. Fitting the bathroom suite was marginally less stressful than being dangled upside down from a stock at a Dick Cheney chicken-shoot. But, as Kirsty Wark is known to say: 'More on that story later'. The next installment deals with June to the present day. Lots to talk about. Keep watching the YouTube videos. Bye for now. Cheers Phil Hare
4th June 2008
Late 2007 ended with a veritable flurry of new club gigs, AND, even new club gigs with new/different musical dalliances! November saw me do a duo gig with Tony Gibbons at the redoubtable Bothy Folk Club in Southport. This had started life as a Garva gig but as those possibilities receded, Clive Pownceby (chief honcho) decided to let Tony and myself loose. It was the first time in ten years that I had guested there - (Tony wasn't far behind!) so we like to think that this was the reason the place was packed. As such, it went with rather a bang, but this may have been to do with the fact that it was the night before bonfire night, so people were rehearsing for the real thing. Check out the YouTube video of Tony and me playing a couple of tunes.
Following swiftly was a solo appearance at the Brown Cow in Mansfield. Obviously a well-run club (in a less than well-run town!), this place was also packed and I turned in rather a decent gig, if I say so myself. That opinion was justified by 24 CD sales and two encores (you big-headed bastard!) The organiser, Sue Crawford, was unable to make the gig as she had developed a form of cancer. As I write, she is in remission which is great news for everyone. Back at the helm of the club, she is now booked up 18 months hence!
Next up was an idea that I had been waiting to hatch for some time, coming to fruition in my home town: namely the 'What The Folk' gig with Roy Clinging at March Town Hall. I have a great deal of respect for Roy; his genuine passion for old songs and texts, but moreover, his consummate (and sometimes underrated) skills as a performer. My 'idea' was to put the very trad. and the very contemporary ends of folk music together in one concert to demonstrate that the two can work very effectively cheek-by-jowl. To this end, I did a set, Roy did a set, and we concluded with a set together, covering everything from traditional tunes to Jim Reeves and U2! Although the gig wasn't that well attended, it worked really well and we hope to try it out around arts centres and the like in the coming months.
Two more new gigs came for me at the back end of November. The first was at the Witchwood in Ashton-under-Lyne (almost a small rock club with no natural light and a great sound system?!) and was run by a guy called Jon Orpheus who I had the great fortune to encounter on MySpace. Jon is an extremely affable Mancunian hippy who is realising a kind of dream by putting on loads of acoustic-based events in and around North Manchester under the banner of 'AcousticEclectic'. This is (re) introducing the world to artists that have perhaps been frozen out of the 'folk' world by apartheid booking policies and fickle organisers and as such, it almost runs parallel with the local folk scene without ever converging. I have done plenty of gigs in the North Manchester area over the years, but I had never seen any one of the people who turned up at the Witchwood.
With me that night was my old friend and guitar hero Jim Ronayne, whose SatNav almost took us to into Yorkshire (feckin' technology!) I had met up with Jim a couple of nights before as I was up on Merseyside putting the finishing touches to the sale of my (late) father's bungalow (Yes, we finally sold it!). We met up to share our tales of woe (amongst other things, his mum had sadly died - she was a great old girl!) and to put the world to rights which we duly did.
Following a few more corporate dance gigs with Three Point Turn (the album is flying, by the way!), 2008 came crashing in like a Cristiano Ronaldo back-heel! The early part of the year is always a sluggish time; people getting over Christmas and New Year (both socially and financially!) and we were no different. January and February were just a solid round of guitar lessons and college classes and only a handful of dance gigs. Worth noting however, that during this time, I was awarded my Lifelong Learning certificate (PTLLS) from Huntingdon College which now allows me to teach in Adult Education legitimately - the certificate not the college!
The next update will cover from April onwards and will take in my (part-time) joining of a Breton band, two club 'tourettes' (fuck me!) lots of YouTube videos, my acquisition of a 1930s dobro, and a wild attempt to fit a new bathroom suite. Bet you can't wait! Cheers Phil Hare