Black Swan Folk Club

E-Newsletter 9

May 2003

  1. LAST NIGHT'S FUN (Friday 23rd May at the National Centre for Early Music). Chris Sherburn, Denny Bartley and Nick Scott strut their formidable stuff a week on Friday at the last of this season's concert specials. They really are talented musicians and the interplay between pipes, concertina and guitar is amazing to hear. Denny's singing just gets better and better and their stage banter is some of the funniest this side of Vin Garbutt. They may be only one third Irish by birth, but there are few better Irish music acts in the whole business.
    There are still plenty of tickets available, and indeed there should be tickets on the door on the night. If you can book beforehand it eases our peace of mind, and if you can buy through the club or Cassadys it's even better news as all your cash comes to us. Use the NCEM Box Office if that suits you best, but bear in mind we have to pay 10% of all receipts (plus VAT) as commission.
    Support on Friday comes form the seasoned Leeds-based singer/guitarist Kevin Loughran , drawing on his large repertoire of folk songs old and modern. It's a prompt start by Kevin at 7.30pm, followed just after 8pm by Last Night's Fun.

  2. CITY OF YORK FOLK DAY, SATURDAY 31 st May. Plans continue to take shape for the all-day Folk Day at the Black Swan Inn at the end of the month. I'll try to send out an E-Newsletter Special with final details in a couple of weeks' time. Meanwhile, I urgently need to know a few things:
    • Anybody wanting to do a 15/20 minute feature spot in the Rolling Folk Club should contact me as soon as possible (e-mail or phone), with some idea of your preferred time of day, i.e. lunchtime, afternoon, early evening or later evening.
    • Volunteers to help things run smoothly, and MCs for the Rolling Folk Club are also needed.
    Do bear in mind that the Folk Day is more than just a Black Swan FC event − all the various local sessions and groups are contributing in one way or another. Do come along − it should be a really enjoyable day − and tell all your folk loving friends as well.

  3. CHUMBAWAMBA / BRENDAN CROKER SPECIAL . Next news of a very special EXTRA event on Tuesday 17 June at the Black Swan Inn. Leeds-based radical rock band Chumbawamba have long been interested in traditional folk songs and unaccompanied singing. They sampled Harry Cox and other folk singers on their last CD, and now they are about to release English Rebel Songs 1381-1984 , a collection of acappella versions of traditional songs of dissent.
    Too late for the current club leaflet, I was approached by the band about the possibility of an acoustic York gig − some of them came to see The Wilsons at the Black Swan a few years ago and loved the club atmosphere. At the same time I knew that our old mate Brendan Croker was working on a new show based around Essential Protest Songs , so what better than to bring the two together for an evening of "alternative Leeds" voices? What a stupendous Double Bill!
    There have already been several enquiries from Chumbawamba fans, picking up on it from the band's website, so it seems tickets will sell fast. If regular Black Swan supporters don't want to miss out on this one-off treat, they should book soon . Tickets are a mere £5 each (£4 concessions) from Cassadys, at club meetings or by post from me.

  4. BRING BACK HENRY AYRTON! The regional folk advocacy organisation Yorkshire Folk Arts have organised an e-petition over the BBC's scrapping of our only regional radio folk programme. More signatures are urgently needed. Visit www.PetitionOnline.com/flkradio/petition.html and add your name