April Showers and the Merry Month of May

Phew!!

April and May have been hectic to say the least with lots of gigs and general Rain stuff...I'd better get on with it then, eh?

Wednesday April 2nd, The Swan Inn, Stone
A wonderful return trip to a very lovely watering hole in Stone, as ever the locals had a great night and the not so locals were friendly too, chatting about Who songs with a couple of Telecoms engineers and general chit chat with another couple at the bar.. This really is a very friendly venue and so lovely to play.. I simply can't recommend it enough. We performed well and went down well, which is really what its all about...

Saturday 5th April - Rode Hall Farmers Market
After playing in November and it was cold and rainy, we thought we'd spy our chance with a lovely spring morning at Rode Hall... and guess what? It flipping well rained, rained and then rained some more... the pun being entirely intended. We were sharing a gazebo with the very lovely Raggedy Anne, who makes the most amazing headgear and knitted stuff.. each minute bought a new challenge of trying not to get the gear wet.. We played superbly under the circumstances and thoroughly enjoyed it, the tea stall bringing us hot cups of tea certainly helped, as did the bread donation by London Road Bakehouse, graciously received.. Its really something different to play there and really lovely.. Just a pity the weather was poor.. Oh well, can't pick the weather. Our gear ended up a little soggy, but our spirits weren't dampened.

Sunday 6th April - The Berwick, Sneyd Green
Oh dear...we've all done it, played to an empty room. The landlady was terribly apologetic and really was very lovely about the whole thing. In fact the pub was empty anyway, which was a tragedy for them too. One very lovely lady did come through and watch the last few songs and was enormously supportive, finding out that she was a fellow musician after was cool. She explained she was a drummer with punk band, and really enjoyed our set, getting up on the keyboards to show how she could play a couple of classical pieces that she learned by ear!! At least we managed to get home early after a hectic weekend!

Saturday 19th April - The Royal Exchange, Stone
From and empty pub to a relatively full one. The Royal Exchange, a new venue for us, was another lovely venue to play. Michelle, the landlady runs a tight ship (its a Titanic Brewery pub, you see.. lol) and the assembled crowd were in strong voice, singing along to some of their favourites, we have been invited back to do their Beer Festival in June, which bodes well.. definately a great night.

Saturday 26th April - Freedom Feed'em cafe, Longton
The Freedom Feed'em Cafe is a brilliant idea, and serves the people of Longton simply scrumptious food and only as for 'what you can afford to pay'... which is very noble, staffed by enthusiastic volunteers it made a pleasant change to play there. We played acoustically and were joined in on a couple of songs by a few folks.. which was nice.. We were supplied with ample cups of tea and in our break were fed a delightful Veg Biriani with rice and apple crumble for pudding. Its nice to see something good for the people of Longton and to see it so well attended too.

Saturday 3rd May - The White Lion, Penkhull
Another return trip to The White Lion in Penkhull, another favourite of ours with a great crowd, including some of our friends who turned up to lend their support, which, as always is gratefully received. It was good to hear some feedback for some of the new songs in the set and just simply a smashing night!

Sunday 4th May - The Lymelight Festival, Newcastle under Lyme
A relatively new festival held in the centre of the town and one to watch.. There was a full size outdoor stage, which was nice to play on, tbh, and the everso lovely Nigel on the sound desk, with Clive, who's gear it was.. made sure our sound was perfect, even when we had a glitch and lost the sound, they were swift in their execution to put it right. We played to the few people milling around, and waved to Viv from Lymestone Brewery, who was frantically putting up the beer tent ready for the hoards of people who were promised to arrive. Being the first on has its pluses.. means you can get off stage early and get on with the day, the downside is not many people were there.. however, those who were there seemed to enjoy what we did, so it was a success, imho. Vouchers were handed to us to get a free drink from the Hippy Hippy Shake co. or Lymestone Vaults... It was a tad early for a beer.. so I made do with a rather tasty blueberry smoothie, which was divine...

Saturday 17th May - The Boughey Arms, Audley
A last minute booking at The Boughey, another favourite venue, meant that we were caught on the hoof, as it were. Still, we managed to set up and perform our usual delightful range of songs for the assembled crowd. A number of diners were in, sampling the fine foods served there and a couple of people who'd been there all afternoon, who stayed to chat. It was nice to be back there, hopefully we'll be back again before the year's out.

Sunday 18th May - Gresley Folk and Ale Festival, Alsagers Bank
Having played this event last year, it was lovely to be invited back to play again this year. However, things had changed, last year there was a rolling stream of acts, this year, not so many.. however it didn't quell the spirits of the people in attendance, who were joyfully entertained. Was nice to catch up with a couple of fellow musicians too, Tim from the Slippery Hill Boys and Ian Buchanan and Esther Brennan (who followed us), plus assorted people who listened from the Beer Garden (who were taking advantage of the weather and soaking up the rays while sampling the fine ales.. Definately a good gig and well worth waiting for.

Sunday 25th May - The Horseshoe, Crewe
Another short notice arranged gig, at this delightful Robinson's house in Crewe, arranged by the lovely John, who had seen us previously at The Nags Head and decided we were the right folk for the job. The landlady and her family took front row seats and bopped along and sang along to a large proportion of the set and certainly seemed entertained, much applause followed, and a mystery guest in the guise of Mr Kev Orbisounds in the audience ensured that this will be one we won't forget easily.

Saturday 31st May - The Fox, Elworth
Elworth, for those of you that don't know lies just outside Sandbach and was easier to find than Googlemaps suggested, thankfully Graeme was at the wheel and knew where it was. The Fox is a really really nice looking pub, its recently been modernised and it definately shows. However, trying to sing when you have a cold isn't easy, so a few bum notes were hit tonight, which I'm not proud of, but the show has to go on!! We were made very welcome by Graham and Sally and yes, a few of the crowd were reminiscing as they sang along.. which is a good sign. We were greeted at the end by a lively fellow, rather the worse for wear and who danced in front of us, suggesting that we try "You've Got to Show Me Love".. duly noted, though getting the chords to a dance track may prove tricky...

That's the gig round-up for April/May.. what else??

Well we have loads of ideas in the pipeline, including video shoots, new songs, new cover songs and, well, just loads of stuff...

We've also been confirmed for Alsager Festival in July and Cloggerfest in August.. which we know are going to be great events!!! More gigs coming up.. so just keep your eyes peeled!

Until next time... tatty bye..