FAVERSHAM FOLK CLUB

PLEASE NOTE:

(Unless otherwise stated entrance = (£6 Members / £7 Non-Members)

PLEASE NOTE:- Doors Open at 7:30 Music starts at 8:00


And Booked So Far - 2024
17^th July	Sound Tradition (£11 / £12)	Sound Tradition is an a cappella folk foursome (David, Linda, Catherine and Moose) singing in glorious harmony. Their varied repertoire ranges from lively chorus songs to lilting ballads, and from medieval times to the modern day, but always with an ear for the English folk tradition. They have proudly supported such luminaries as Martin Carthy, Dave Swarbrick, Chris Wood and Roy Bailey but also enjoy the main stage in their own right. Hailing from East Anglia, Sound Tradition can be found at clubs and festivals across the country – come and join in! “Powerful and rousing traditional songs with lovely harmonies. Go and see them!”
4^th September	Enda McCabe (£8 / £9)	Enda McCabe lived in Faversham for over twenty years, before returning to Ireland in 1998. He recently completed an M.A. in Irish Traditional Music Performance at the University of Limerick and lives in Conamara, an Irish speaking area of County Galway. Enda performs a mxiture of traditional and new songs in Irish and English mixed with some short and some tall tales. He is currently working on a new album “Full Circle” with Dublin fiddler Colly Moore.
18^th September	John Conolly (£9 / £10)	JOHN CONOLLY is an internationally-respected songwriter, who has based his style firmly in the British folk tradition. His most popular song, “FIDDLERS’ GREEN” – a fisherman’s vision of Paradise – is performed and loved all over the world. John’s childhood was spent not far from the docks in the English fishing port of Grimsby, where the River Humber joins the North Sea, and where his grandfather and great-grandfather learned their trade as shipwrights in the riverside dockyards. As the fishing industry declined, following the “Cod Wars” with Iceland, John watched the local fishing fleet limp into oblivion, and began to chronicle the lives and labours of the men who worked on the trawlers and along the waterside. “FIDDLERS’ GREEN”, written in the 1960’s, was popularised by folk artistes like the Dubliners and the Clancy Brothers, and has become firmly embedded in the canon of maritime music. John’s first contact with folk music was in Primary School, where he recalls being marched into Morning Assembly to the tune of Percy Grainger’s “COUNTRY GARDENS” – although he didn’t know it was folk music at the time! His interest in creative writing, however, was sparked off at Clee Grammar School, where he was encouraged to write poetry by an enthusiastic English teacher (affectionately known as “Killer” Sleigh), and his first published work (inspired by a Spike Milligan joke) appeared in the School Magazine – here is a mercifully-short extract from John’s “ODE TO A DOOR -KNOCKER”. . .
25^th September	Reg Meuross (£11 / £12)	Reg Meuross is an English singer and songwriter based in Somerset. He has released 15 solo albums. His song-writing contains narrative, protest and commentary. Meuross first appeared on the British acoustic music scene in 1986 when he formed The Panic Brothers with comedian Richard Morton. He made an album called In The Red, produced by Clive Gregson. "The Brothers" appeared regularly on TV, including on Friday Night Live; and at Edinburgh, Sidmouth, Glastonbury and other festivals. Following his work with The Panic Brothers, Meuross formed a roots band, The Flamingos, featuring former Graham Parker guitarist Martin Belmont, Bob Loveday from the Penguin Café Orchestra and Bob Geldof's band, and Alison Jones of The Barely Works. The Flamingos recorded an album, Arrested, in 1991. Meuross toured until 2009 with Hank Wangford and The Lost Cowboys as a member of the band, and also as a solo artist with Hank Wangford on the "No Hall Too Small" tour. Meuross's solo recording and touring career began in 1996. He has released 15 albums as a solo artist. In a review in The Guardian in 2016, Robin Denselow described him as "one of the more versatile, under-sung survivors of the English acoustic scene." He co-wrote Seth Lakeman's first single, "Divided We Will Fall", from the album The Well Worn Path, released on the Cooking Vinyl label in November 2018.
16^th October	CJ & Dave Reay (£8 / £9)	When the pair met as drummer/vocalist and guitarist in the gypsy jazz ska band, Gypskazz, each had no idea that the other shared a passion for folk and country, but once the secret was out, they knew they had to try out some songs! The result, now with some successful festival appearances under their belt, is CJ & Reay, providing a set of Americana, acoustic covers and originals that encompasses the energetic and the lyrical, delivered with passion and a little humour.
30^th October	Hunter Muskett (£9 / £10)	Hunter Muskett is an acoustic/electric 3-piece playing distinctive original songs in a folky, bluesy sometimes Americana vein. Formed in 1968 the band played at home and abroad until 1974 producing two, now collectable, albums: Every Time You Move with bassist Danny Thompson and the Keith Relf produced Hunter Muskett. Doug Morter went on to carve out a career as the ‘go-to’ vocalist/guitarist of the folk-rock scene performing with the likes of: Magna Carta, Albion Band, Maddy Prior, Michael Chapman and Jerry Donahue... Since resuming touring in 2010 Hunter Muskett has released two further CDs of new material: That Was Then This Is Now and Unafraid and Sober.
6^th November	Paul Walker & Karen Pfeiffer (£9 / £10)	With “two grand voices – individually and in harmony” (Folker-German Folk Magazine), the Anglo-German duo Paul Walker & Karen Pfeiffer offer a versatile miscellany of self-penned and imaginatively arranged songs, delivered with guitar, woodwind instrumentation and occasional percussion. “I’ve never seen our audience so spellbound!” (Malc Gurnham, Folk Club promoter) So, what is it that makes this internationally touring pair so irresistible? Whilst Paul Walker & Karen Pfeiffer are acclaimed for their image provoking songwriting, expressive vocals and authentic musicianship, they are frequently recalled for their warmth, humour and their remarkable ability to engage with their audience. Karen’s natural theatricality and life affirming playful energy compliment charmingly with Paul’s calm geniality and combined they magically turn a great performance into a real event. In brief: enchanting, entertaining, uplifting. “Great show!” (Graham Norton) Based in Staffordshire in the UK, the duo has toured its shows extensively taking in New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Ireland and most corners of the UK, wooing audiences with Karen’s southern German accent tinged with an ‘oatcake induced’ North Staffordshire dialect from Paul’s heritage. Their latest show ‘Auf Wiedersehen, Me Duck’ was a huge success at the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The pandemic has seen them focusing their attention on writing, recording and developing their online presence. Their live stream ‘Afternoon Tea with Paul & Karen’ is now in excess of 100 shows and still attracts a dedicated international following. The new album ‘Auf Wiedersehen, Me Duck’ was released in May 2022 and received a great amount of radio play, video attention and glowing reviews: "Eclectic, performed with passion and with excellent musicianship." Folk & Honey "Charming, varied and fun" Irish Music Magazine Overall, “A first-class experience.” (Bietigheimer Zeitung)
20^th November	Christina Alden & Alex Patterson (£11 / £12)	Christina Alden & Alex Patterson are multi-instrumentalists and songwriters from East Anglia. Their music is rich with intertwining harmony, sensitive accomplished musicianship and a creative song-writing style that is both delicate and moving. Deeply inspired by the world around them, they have a keen environmental eye to craft stories with the natural world at its heart, reflecting on the relationship between humans and the wild. They have toured extensively in the UK and Europe including a twenty-three-date concert hall tour with Show of Hands (including Union Chapel and St David’s Hall Cardiff), a show at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall for Celtic Connections, headline and main stage performances at some of the UK’s most prestigious folk festivals and performances in Norway, Belgium, France and Ireland. They have written and self-released four albums, composed music for a BBC Radio 4 documentary series and have had over a million streams on Spotify.
4^th December	The Medlars (£9 / £10)	Originally formed in 2009 The Medlars are folk trio from Essex, performing songs and tunes originated and rooted in the folk tradition, revisiting and creating new arrangements of classic English folk songs with a contemporary feel. Its current line up formed from a chance encounter at Folk East 2017, The Medlars are now Alie Barnes - vocals, Emma Hardy - fiddle/vocals, Tom Hardy guitar/vocals. Alie grew up with the influences of the East Anglian fens in her blood and has been performing and running folk clubs since the mid-1980s. Emma has a classical music background and Tom is a self-taught guitarist, with a wide range of influences from folk to punk. Whilst original influences remain, these have expanded, drawing in ideas from within and outside the tradition. The Medlars have performed at festivals, such as Bobbing Barn, Moira, The White Horse, and Upton, and Folk Clubs including Colchester, Hadleigh, Loughton, The Hoy at Anchor, Waveney, and Wivenhoe.
18^th December	Phil Beer (£15 for all)	The Truth… Whilst that may be the perception, I would actually take issue with that statement. I didn’t write it. I’m very good at what I do. The trick is to design what you do in order to accommodate your limitations. Thats why I don’t teach. I leave that to the pros. I’m too busy gigging or making albums anyway. Please stop asking me! The perpetual problem of being a Z list muso/celebrity is how to describe yourself. The most onerous task of all is trying to big yourself up and exaggerate past exploits. I’ve now been ‘on the road’ for 45 years. I’m amazed I’m still standing. I’ve made hundreds of albums with bands/singers/ musicians and done gigs with them. Some are world famous, some you’ve never heard of. The dumbest and most pathetic thing in existence is to see a musicians C. V. that lists the people that they may just have been with on the same bill on the same day at some festival as people that they’ve ‘worked with’. Whilst I ache in the places I used to play (L Cohen!), I’m still up for what is about to happen, not what has been and gone. Hopefully, myself and my compatriots have more to contribute yet before we shuffle off. This is why my catchphrase is… Phil Beer. Plays guitar and fiddle, sings a bit. Sums it up.
25^th December	CLOSED
All Wednesdays without guests.	Singers Nights. Admission £2 for everyone.	Bring your instruments, poems, stories and particularly your favourite songs and join in - or just listen or sing the choruses.

Contact PAT on 01795 423674 to book seats or for information