The Folk of Anker Folk

          It's good to know that people are listening to this programme. Online as well as in hospital! And of course, for those who wish to refresh their memories, most of the shows are all still available via a "Listen Again" facility. Most of the tracks we have featured are generally available elsewhere, although some you might hear for the first time, because they are from my private collection and are quite definitely unique.

           It's always healthy to have a balanced debate about who is featured and who is on, but as John Goodman and I put in all the hours of voluntary, unpaid work researching, recording and broadcasting the show, it is our choice of music that gets air play. Although we do occasionally get requests which we are happy to comply with. 

       "Anker Folk" does not purport to represent any one genre,although it is important to understand that when the idea was first pitched, it came as a result of a conversation and then meetings between individuals from the Hospital  Radio Station and Nuneaton Folk Club.

        When it goes out "Live" it is broadcast internally, via the Hospicoms service, externally on AM, and world-wide,On line.  I know that people have listened to it in all three forms because they have told me so. Most if not all programmes are available via a "Listen Again " facility-so if you can put up with me and John wittering away between tracks, you could put it on, minimise it and then have it playing whilst you work on your novel or thesis on your desktop P.C.

        For some time I have been promising to publish a list of artistes featured so far. We did our First show in September 2016-so we are still in our infancy and not yet a year old . Even so, I'm proud to say we were nominated for a Specialist Radio award towards the end of last year. We didn't win in the end-but it was nice to get some recognition. 
     Though the shows are once a month, we did do two Christmas programmes and two in March 2017, with a Comic Relief Special added in. Just for interest, and to try to demonstrate that we are doing our best to represent all genres, here is a breakdown of who we've played so far. Those asterisked have played at Nuneaton Folk Club.  Any cynics amongst you may note that Nunc, the NFC Resident Band, have not been played at all. 

LOCAL TALENT -Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Coventry etc

Paul Moore*                            Daisybell*                     
Rod Felton                              Kevin Dempsey*          
Bob Brooker*                           Dragonhead*                
Thrup'nny Bits*                      Steve Adams                                 
Des Patalong*                          Allan Richardson                         
Hedgehog Pie                           Paper Circus* 
  Pennyroyal                             Maria Barham*                          
  K.C.Jones*                              Bill Bates*                        
Izzie Derry *                             Nick Drake  
Dave & Julia Taylor                  Brian* & Marie Phillips  
Norman Wheatley                  Malc Gurnham & Gill Gilsenan*
Black Parrot Seaside*               Kristy Gallagher* 
John Kearney*

OTHER ARTISTES

Ed Sheeran       Ralph McTell                  Alison Krauss
Scarecrow             Molly Davies*              John Renbourne  
James Taylor     Loudun Wainwright           Eric Clapton
Lou Monte                Geezinlaws           The Spinners        
Tim Hardin         Eva Cassidy                     Bob  Dylan
David Bristow       Johnny  Butten             Dougie McClean 
 Mike Oldfield       Bert Jansch                Kate Rusby 
Joe Ely                  Lyle Lovett                  Christy Moore        
Joan Baez            Judy Collins                Vashti Bunyan
Nick Dow             Claire Hamilton            Zeid Hamdan
John Tams             John Richards*          Donovan
Cosmotheka           George Formby              Gregg Cave        
Peter Sellers            Pete Seeger                 Jackson C.Frank    
K.D. Lang                 Luke Kelly                    Winter Wilson*           
Sting                      Bonnie Raitt              Spiers & Boden  
Martin Carthy           Eliza Carthy            Cara Dillon                    
Si Barron*            Phil Hare*                   Billy Bragg            
Shirley Collins         Kathryn Tickell           Gerry Rafferty
Peggy Lee               John Prine                    Johnny Cash
Bonzo Dog Band     Paul Robeson                 Nic Jones 
Oscar Brand             Jean Richie                  Gordon Giltrap     
Roy Harper             Eddie Reader                Sunjay Brayne
 Dick Gaughan        Lonnie Donnegan          Joel Sonnier
J.J.Cale                  Krauss & Plant                Kirsty McColl
Charlie Drake           Cat Stevens                   Joni Mitchell     
Jeff Beck                  Kate Wolfe                    John Martin
Simon & Garfunkel  Maddy Prior                Downes and Beer      
Danny Pedler & Rosie Butler Hall*                Peggy Lee  
Richard & Linda Thompson                          Peter Paul & Mary
Gren Morris & Sam Stephens*                    Pro Cantione Antiqua
Bob Kirkpatrick and Ashley Hutchings           
                                                                      
BANDS

Steeleye Span            Mr. Fox                         The Dubliners 
Amazing Blondell       Young Tradition        The Battlefield Band 
Jethro Tull                    Brier                               East of Eden
The Chieftains             Gryphon                          Capercaillie
Show of Hands            CSNY                              Led Zeppelin 
 Sweeney's Men          The Fureys                      Morbid Angel  
 The Watersons           The Imagined Village       The Pogues   
 Folly Bridge                 Incredible String Band     Pentangle   
 The Young 'Uns           Ocean Colour Scene         Prelude  
  Beggars Velvet          The Carter Family          Fairport Convention
                                    Kim Lowings & The Greenwood*  

NOTABLE OMISSIONS

-some of these are pencilled in for future broadcasts.......and some  are not......

Ewan McColl         Alex Campbell Folk Group        Clannad
Bellowhead           Norah Jones                             Sandy Denny
Seth Lakeman       Dando Shaft                              Glyn Finch
 Taj Mahal              Ry Cooder                                 Altan            
Horselips               De Dannan                                Planxty
The Byrds              Leonard Cohen                         Woody Guthrie
Tom Paxton            Melanie                                     Alain Stivell
Jon Harvison          Geoff Higginbottom                  Roving Crows    

    

Thrup'nny Bennett

         It is no coincidence that the last time I blogged was a month ago, after the previous month's show. In the interim between then and now, Nunc have had gigs at Atherstone and Fargos in Coventry, numerous holidays and several illnesses. Unfortunately, mine coincided with the lead up to last Wednesday night and so I was unable to sing with the band or compere, owing to Bronchitis.To say we were up against it  was an understatement. Yet still we triumphed.

     On Tuesday ,the night before, Dave Smart and I set the stage and P.A. up, putting in another late night session at The Crown in the hope that come Wednesday  I would be able to flick a few switches and get us under way. Dave would be a little delayed before the start,but that preparation paid off, as by 7.30pm I'd got all the mikes working, done a sound check and got a Folky iPod compilation playing through the speakers.

       Leading up to that point we'd also had a few logistical problems,with several advertised artistes unavoidably  indisposed and having to juggle in late replacements. . As things turned out,improbably. this made for a magnificently balanced programme with something for everyone on the Agenda.    An additional bonus was spotting Maria Barham,  in the audience and bless her, she was recruited too-after we had started!

       John Kearney  compered the evening, and then with Flossy it would be Nunc  (The Duo) as House Band,with me sidelined due to lack of voice. John did us a nice couple of songs and then he and Flossy did "Ae Fond Kiss" together and " Me Husband's got no courage in him"- a track you'll also find her singing on Pennyroyal's last album. 

          Maria stepped in and having had a wrestle with John Kearney's guitars straps, started with a lovely version of Joan Osborne's "One of Us."  What a talent she is, and how nice it was to see her back up on the NFC stage again! We are all really looking forward to her guest spot in December already. 

Maria Barham 

    Andy Jones had pedalled along the towpath to join us and he added three nicely balanced, unaccompanied numbers to good effect. He also took loads of photographs. And then cycled back home. (Eventually). What a Hero!

         Jan & Campbell Perry then gave us three polished numbers,as they can always be relied upon to do,before Glyn Finch,he of the Twisted Barrel Open Mic nights at Fargos,  warbled his way moodily through "Hard Times,"  and then added a couple more including (I suspect?), one of his own? Glyn returns in August, to share the Top Billing with Brian Phillips,as a double-headed guitar treat to compensate for the disappointment of losing Kristy Gallagher's advertised spot. 

Glyn Finch

         Dr Bennett-that is, Sarah Bennett and Dan Gascoigne-then took the stage to conclude a highly enjoyable first half with an extended set. Great to see talented YOUNG artistes up on our stage when we are told so often that they don't appear in Folk Clubs! They were as good as I have ever heard them They started with "House Carpenter"-a nice version of one of my favourite songs, added a take on Dylan, did some of their own stuff and then finished with their excellent interpretation of "Anjii." We even squeezed in an encore from them.

Dr Bennett

     After the interval, Nunc did my favourite song from our current set, "Angel from Montgomery." Vanity then got the better of me and I tried to sing the choruses along with them. There was nothing there vocally from me after the first verse other than  mournful grunting.  

          Time then for our second Featured Guests, Thrup'nny Bits. Like all of the evening's performers, the TB's are good friends to NFC and did not disappoint, with an eclectic set including their cleverly rude "Bold Sir John" one of their many ornithological titles, "The Magpi,e"  and even a Christmas Song. Being one of (many!) Election Eves, the poignancy of " Bring Out The Banners " was  not lost on the audience who sang the chorus (and others) with the usual spirit and not without some sadness. 

The Thrup'nny Bits