Tag Archives: Traditional and contemporary songs

The Brothers Gillespie on Friday 4 October

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Described by Folk Radio UK as ‘weaving an especially compelling magic’, and ‘showing British acoustic music in its best possible light’, the music of Northumbrian duo The Brothers Gillespie is animated by lyrical songwriting, fine fingerstyle guitar playing, multi-instrumental musicianship and ‘the glorious tones of their blood harmony’ (Sam Lee).

’The stars of the show were The Brothers Gillespie … Imagine the guitar work of the early Nic Jones, the close harmony of the Dransfields and the commitment and honesty of Bob Davenport rolled into two brothers and you’ll get some idea.’ (Mike Harding)

Canadian singer Jesse Thom will be in support, and there will also be some floor spots.

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members) can be reserved via our contact page. Bring your own drinks. Teas and coffees available in the kitchen, 50p.

Jim Causley on Friday 13 September

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More than simply a folk-singer, multi-award-winning singer-songwriter and musician Jim Causley is an all-round entertainer and his concerts give a full night of beautiful singing, moving ballads, hilarious ditties and everything in between. Drawing equally from traditional repertoire, modern songs as well as his own compositions and settings of poems by his relative, the celebrated Cornish poet Charles Causley. All accompanied on piano and various accordions and served with a gurt dollop of Westcountry humour, an evening with Jim is an evening not to be missed!

Since the release of his debut album in 2005, Causley’s unique voice and persona have helped him become one of the most well-loved and respected figures of today’s contemporary roots and folk scene. West country father of folk Geoff Lakeman described Causley as possessing ‘a voice in a million‘ in a recent interview in the Western Morning News, some accolade indeed! 

The concert starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members) can be reserved by emailing us via the contact page. Bring your own drinks – teas and coffee available in the kitchen for 50p.

Sound Tradition on Friday 3 May

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On Friday 3 May we welcome a cappella folk foursome Sound Tradition (David, Linda, Catherine and Moose), who sing a varied repertoire  in glorious harmony, ranging from lively chorus songs to lilting ballads and from medieval times to the present day, but always with an ear for the English folk tradition.

Hailing from East Anglia, Sound Tradition have supported a wide range of top singers at clubs and festivals across the country. ‘Powerful and rousing songs with lovely harmonies.’ Pete Morton

The evening starts at 7.30 pm and you can save seats by emailing via our contact page. Tickets for non-members are £13 and for members are £10. Bring your own drinks, and teas and coffee are available in the kitchen. We have a donation box for a local food bank if you would like to bring something along. Parking is available on Constitution Hill and St Clements Hill if the car park is full.

 

Damien Barber and Mike Wilson on Friday 1 March

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On Friday 1 March we look forward to welcoming Damien Barber and Mike Wilson, two of the finest exponents of traditional song.

A proud Norfolk man, born, bred and heavily influenced by such earlier Norfolk singers as Walter Pardon and Peter Bellamy, Damien Barber is a stylish and distinctive singer, be it unaccompanied or alongside his guitar or concertina. Though he has now resided for some time in West Yorkshire, his roots remain firmly planted in his beloved East Anglia. 

Mike Wilson is the youngest member of the inimitable Wilson Family, the powerful Teesside singing siblings who have raised the rafters at many a festival and folk club event over the years. His musical heritage remains emphatically that of the North East – an evocative mixture of rural and industrial folk songs, both traditional and modern. 

Together, Damien and Mike share an incredibly rich repertoire of traditional songs from around the country, as well as drawing on the work of modern folk writers such as Peter Bellamy, Ewan MacColl and Mike Waterson.

THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT. The concert starts at 7.30 pm. Bring your own drinks – teas and coffee available in the kitchen. Parking available at the hall and in nearby streets.

The Rosie Hood Band on Friday 10 November

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A folk singer/songwriter from Wiltshire, Rosie Hood is known for her strong, pure voice and captivating performances, as well as being a member of The Dovetail Trio. A BBC Performing Arts Fellow and 2016 BBC Radio 2 Folk Award nominee, Rosie has become more than purely a traditional singer. June 2017 saw the release of her first full-length solo album The Beautiful & The Actual, a collection of old and new folk songs, described by The Guardian as “a classy arrival” ****.

Rosie has toured the UK and Central Canada, both solo and as part of The Dovetail Trio, as well as collaborating and performing with a host of fellow musicians including Emily Portman, Jefferson Hamer, Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne and the Andy May Trio. She is currently working with talented accompanists Nicola Beazley (fiddle/cello), Robyn Wallace (melodeon) and Rosie Butler-Hall (fiddle). Link to: A Furlong of Flight

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members) can be reserved via the email form on our contact page. Bring your own drinks – teas and coffee available in the kitchen for 50p.

Tania Opland and Mike Freeman on Friday 14 April

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Our guests on Friday 14 April will be Tania Opland and Mike Freeman. After over three years of pandemic inspired inertia, disruption and chaos, Tania and Mike are back on the road for their somewhat postponed 2020 UK tour.

In 30 years on the road together these two have played at art shows, boat shows, festivals, fairs, conventions, venues large and small and events both private and corporate. But most of the time they’ve been travelling back and forth across the Atlantic to perfom throughout the UK and North America bringing a car full of instruments, a jumble of multi-cultural folk influences, and a ton of fun to any audience they can reach.

They have recorded eight albums between them (including two collaborations with best-selling author Anne McCaffrey, in Ireland), and make numerous appearances as studio musicians on other recordings in the U.S., U.K. and Canada.

Expect songs and tunes from or inspired by americana, eurofolk, early music and global influences, sung and played with hammered dulcimer, 5-string violin/viola, recorder, hurdy-gurdy, clarseach, guitar, djembe and whatever else has been rediscovered when everything comes out of storage.

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets £13 (£10 club members) can be reserved via the email link on our contact page. Bring your own drinks and the kitchen will be open for teas and coffee (50p).

Martyn Wyndham-Read and Iris Bishop on Friday 10 February

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Martyn Wyndham-Read has been involved with folk music for over 40 years. In his late teens he left his mother’s farm in Sussex and headed off, with his guitar, to Australia where he worked on a sheep station in South Australia. It was while he was there that he heard, first hand, the old songs sung by some of the station hands at Emu Springs and he became captivated by these songs and the need to know more of them and where they came from grew.

Martyn moved to Melbourne and became part of the folk song revival there and throughout Australia during the early1960s. Based back in the UK, he has toured worldwide, performing a variety of traditional and contemporary songs. Martyn is accompanied by fantastic box player Iris Bishop: Where Ravens Feed

The evening starts at 7.30 pm. Tickets £13 (£10 club members) can be reserved via the email link on our contact page. Bring your own drinks and the kitchen will be open for teas and coffee (50p).

Tony Hall on Friday 13 January

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Fresh from an appearance at Camden’s Cellar Upstairs Folk Club, Norfolk cartoonist, singer and melodeon player Tony Hall is much appreciated at festivals and folk clubs all over the country. A review in Living Tradition describes Tony as being ‘the master of playing distinctive, quintessentially English style two-row melodeon’, pointing out that he ‘has been heard on Maddy Prior and June Tabor’s Silly Sisters album, and Nic Jones’ superb Penguin Eggs‘, and concluding that he is ‘a man of rare talent’. We look forward to an evening full of entertaining music and good humour to lift our spirits in this chilly season.

Please email via the contact page to let us know if you would like us to save tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members). Bring your own drinks, as the kitchen will be closed. Contributions to Shirley’s donation box will be taken to the local food bank.

Bob Fox on Friday 1 July

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At 7.30 pm on Friday 1 July Norwich Folk Club looks forward to welcoming Bob Fox, a Pitman Poet and the acclaimed Songman in the National Theatre’s West End production of WarHorse. ‘One of the truly great voices from the North East with musicianship second to none’, Vin Garbutt.

Bring your own drinks. Please let us know via the contact form if you would like us to save tickets (£13).

The Churchfitters on Friday 3 June

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At 7.30 pm on Friday 3 June we welcome The Churchfitters, a delightfully quirky band that plays a dazzling array of unusual items, from a motorcycle petrol tank to a glass harp, as well as a number of more conventional instruments, including fiddle, banjo, sax and whistle. Singer Rosie Short’s voice has been described as being ‘like Annie Lennox in full flow’ (Fab Nights Productions).

These three flamboyant characters present their uplifting and entertaining show with a unique dynamism and describe their music as ‘Folk Unlimited’. Mike Harding calls it ‘brilliant and beautiful’ while Dave Pegg says they are ‘the most musically inventive group I’ve seen in decades’.

Reserve your tickets (£13 non-members, £10 club members) by emailing via our contact page. Bring your own drinks.