Early in 1968, a group of young British
musicians, born from the ashes of various failed regional bands
gathered together in hunger, destitution and modest optimism in
Luton, North of London. With a common love of Blues and an
appreciation, between them, of various other music forms, they
started to win over a small but enthusiastic audience in the
various pubs and clubs of Southern England. The breakthrough
came when they were offered the Thursday night residency at
London’s famous Marquee Club in Wardour Street, Soho.
The early Jethro Tull released their first
Blues-oriented album, This Was, in the latter part of 1968
before moving on to more home-grown and eclectic efforts in 1969
with Stand Up and a flutter of single releases, including Living
In The Past, in the UK market.
Benefit, Aqualung, and Thick As A Brick
followed and the band’s success grew internationally. Various
band members came and went, but the charismatic front man and
composer, flautist and singer Ian Anderson continued, as he does
to this day, to lead the group through its various musical
incarnations.
Jethro Tull were, by the mid-seventies, one
of the most successful live performing acts on the world stage,
rivalling Zeppelin, Elton John and even the Rolling Stones.
Surprising, really, for a group whose more sophisticated and
evolved stylistic extravagance was far from the Pop and Rock
norm of that era.
With now some 30-odd albums to their credit
and sales totalling more than 50 million, the apparently
uncommercial Tull have continued over the next three decades to
travel near and far to fans across the world.
After forty years at the bottom, at the top
and various points in between, Tull are still performing
typically more than a hundred concerts each year. Ian Anderson
and Martin Barre remain at the centre of a group of sometimes
changing but highly capable – indeed excellent – musicians.
Currently, Doane Perry, veteran Tull drummer of some 24 years
experience, together with John O’Hara on piano and accordion,
and David Goodier on bass guitar are to be found in the line-up,
delighting audiences and continuing the legacy of Tull’s music
with its rich variety and depth of expression wherever fans,
young and old, want to hear Rock, Folk, Jazz and
Classical-inspired music for grown-ups.
www.jethrotull.com
Very Special Guests
40th Anniversary World Tour 2009
In a world where bands come
and go in the blink of an eye, the enduring
success of Steeleye Span is one of the great
stories in rock music.
2009 will see them
celebrate an incredible forty years together, an
achievement made all the more remarkable by the
fact that the band has seldom been more active
in its career.
The current line-up of
Maddy Prior, Peter Knight, Rick Kemp, Liam
Genockey and Ken Nicol has in fact become the
longest serving of any across the years.
At a period in their career when most bands
are happy to settle down to rehashing past
glories, Steeleye Span have pushed on with a
succession of acclaimed albums, each seeing them
re-define their classic sound. Their fortieth
anniversary year will be spent in much the same
way as every other; they will play live (two UK
tours, plus visits to Australia and USA) and
make music, releasing a new album that will
typically see them buck their own trend and go
back to their roots, the interpretation of
traditional song. This though, has always been
the Steeleye way. Tied not to the past, the
present or the future – simply timeless.
The Lancashire Hotpots
is a comedy folk band from St Helens, Merseyside,
England, formed in December 2006. The members are Bernard Thresher
(vocals, guitar, drums), Dickie Ticker (accordion, hand
percussion), Bob Wriggles (bass, acoustic bass) and
Willie Eckerslike (drums, vocals).
The Lancashire
Hotpots record songs about Lancashire and other British
culture (e.g. "Chippy Tea", "He's Turned Emo",
"eBay Eck"). Their first single, "He's Turned Emo",
gained over 230,000 plays on MySpace (as of 17th March
2008) and was featured on BBC Radio One by Colin Murray.
Their debut album, Never Mind The Hotpots was a minor
hit, reaching number one comedy album in the UK (on
iTunes) and number two in the BBC 6 Music Album
Charts.
The band have appeared on several TV and
radio stations, including 97.4 Rock FM and Channel M.
The Lancashire Hotpots recently had a very successful
spot at the Wickerman Festival 2008, held in Dundrennan,
Scotland.
They released their second album, Pot
Sounds on November 16th, 2008.
Dave Lambert’s arrival in 1972
coincided with a move towards a harder rock style. The
first single with Lambert on board, "Lay
Down", hit the UK charts at number 12, followed by a
single from the album penned by Ford and Hudson, "Part
of the Union", which went up to number 2. The album
Bursting at the Seams also reached number 2 in the
album charts and the band undertook a 52-date UK tour to
packed houses.
A reunion on Rick Wakeman’s TV show Gas Tank in 1983
resulted in an invitation to reform to headline 1983’s
Cambridge Folk Festival.
1993 saw the band touring in the UK for their 25th
anniversary, but the next few years proved rather quiet.
Until 1998, that is, when Cousins staged a 30th
anniversary bash in the grounds of Chiswick Park in
London, which saw several different line-ups of the band
perform on a bright summer’s day in the open air. The
final line-up of the night – the "Bursting at the Seams"
line-up plus Willoughby – became the ongoing version of
the band, with annual tours in 1999, 2000 and 2001.
The line up for Doncaster
Rocks acoustic set is – Dave Cousins, Rod
Coombes, Chas Cronk and Dave Lambert
The Popes were
formed in 1993 by Shane MacGowan , after he was sacked
from the Pogues. The band developed a blend of Irish
folk and punk sometimes known as Paddy Beat. The Popes
released three albums with MacGowan as well as a variety
of EP's and singles. They recorded one studio album ,
Holloway Boulevard , one live album , Release The Beast
, an EP, Are You Looking At Me ? , and several singles
as a solo group.
These days The Popes are a new and
dangerous animal , the sound has gotten harder and yet
remained melodic , Celtic and original. The Popes are a
rock’n’roll band with the soul of a fiddler at the
crossroads … The line up has changed over the years ,
and again in the recent past , after the tragic death of
formidable instrumentalist and banjo player Tom
McManamon . Tom was a major contributor to the bands’
unique sound , but lead vocalist and principle
songwriter Paul McGuinness , aka Mad Dog, has remained
throughout. The current line up consists of Paul
McGuinness, guitar and vocals , Charlie Hoskyns , guitar
and vocals , Will Morrison , drums , Laurie Norwood ,
bass and vocals , Fiachra Shanks , mandolin , guitar and
vocals and Ben Gunnery , fiddle. The band have finished
recording the new album 'Outlaw Heaven' , which features
Shane MacGowan & Spider Stacy of The Pogues . The album
is mixed and ready to go , and is due to be released in
April of 2009 , with a tour planned for early in the
year .http://www.thepopes.uk.com/
Julie Felix is the first solo folk
artist to be signed to a major British record
company. She signs with Decca and producer Hugh
Mendl enthuses she could be 'the first big break
through on the British Folk Scene'. First album
'Julie Felix' and single, 'Someday Soon' are
released.
1966 Julie becomes the resident
singer on the amazingly popular 'Frost Report' , and
quickly becomes a household name.
In 1968
Julie is given her own TV series of 17 shows,
Directed by Stanley Dorfmann, this is the first
colour series produced by the BBC, and is sold to
virtually every country in the world including
Russia! Guests include Spike Milligan, Richard
Harris, Leonard Cohen, Dusty Springfield, Donovan,
and Jimmy Page.
In the late 1970's Julie moved to
Norway where the title track of her 1976 album Hot
Chocolata went to number 1 in the singles chart.
Julie recorded two successful albums
in Sweden on the Scranta Gramafon label. In the 1980's
she moved back to California and took a break from the
music world. She studied Yoga, meditation and healing.
In the late 1980's she participated in a peace march
through Central America. It was a dangerous march, and
witnessing the suffering of the indigenous peoples of
Latin America inspired Julie to start singing again.
She returned to her house in
Hertfordshire, England, and began singing for Latin
American refugees, for women's and gay rights and for
peace projects including protests against the war in the
Gulf. She established the first New Age Folk Club, The
Magic Messenger, providing a platform for budding
musicians and poets. Julie created the Remarkable
Records label and released Bright Shadows, her first
album for 10 years. In the 90's she set up Goddess
Tours, arranging trips and pilgrimages to sacred sites
throughout Britain, Turkey France and the American
Southwest.
In June 1998, Geminian Julie
celebrated 35 years as a professional singer and 60
years of life; a life blessed with music, magic and
adventure.
