And a selection of comments from audience members, posting on Facebook:
"Fantastic night at Nuneaton Folk Club."
" Wasn't it good!"
"Absolutely brilliant."
"Incredible! Loved all of the musicians!"
"Great Evening all round."
" Absolutely great night,top entertainment all round."
" What a super evening"
Yet last night,(frustratingly), we had a lower NFC turnout than last month.For another original guest of great quality. Plus a diverse supporting line-up, free food laid on, free parking nearby and a bar in the room. We still had numbers that many other Folk Clubs would envy,but there were gaps and empty tables.
Let's reflect on last night in reverse order-leaving the performers till last. Not because they weren't the best things on--they always are. But because without the others-the audience,the Sound Guys,the pub staff,the photographers and the volunteers helping with setting out furniture,security, logistics and the Raffle,the performers would have one less place to play. As for Richard Burlingham-he's just gone all out to make us feel welcome and at home. Top bloke.
Photographers
Photographers
We always get great pictures from NFC nights,but if John Smith or John Wright are there we know it's going to be exceptional. Both were present last night and whole portfolios of their work,capturing every moment is currently appearing on Social media sites. They ask no favours for any of this-they just do it because they like recording such music venues and their followers for posterity. Imagine the coffee table book that these two could produce! At one stage Anna got them laughing so much they couldn't operate their cameras. I could see their shoulders shaking!
Sound Guys
It was the third NFC night at The Queen's Hall and we are still getting used to the changes. There is a whole lot more to be grateful for compared to previous venues. Not least the fact that the sound is so much easier for us to manage. No more lugging entire P.A. systems up and down stairs. The young James Gang led by Tom,deal with diplomatically with those performing each month. With courtesy,calmness and great tact they do their very best to reassure everyone and set them at ease. Our own Dave Smart has has become virtually redundant. (But let no-one doubt that, for a long time, he kept NFC afloat when no-one else was prepared to step in! ).
When I arrived there early last night,Tom was already at the desk. He'd had the horrors with a few early gremlins. Such is the nature of taking over a central desk which is driven separately by several different bands a week. He'd finally persuaded the sound to come back cleanly out of the Hall Speakers,rather than just through the foldbacks. On the vast stage are two enormous cupboards full of leads,mikes,stands and probably Shergar and Lord Lucan as well. The chaps pluck goodies from these throughout the evening.If something fails or plays up-they know how to replace the guilty item.Performers and audience members rarely see this effort in getting the magnificent sound ready beforehand. It doesn't happen by magic. It happens via skill and sheer hard work.
Kicked off with "When Love Comes To Town" -something we are still working on. We followed that with "Bold Riley," (ditto) and finished with "Bring It On Home,"-Paul Moore joining us for that and "Guilty" which we started the second half with.
What can you say except they've come a long way since Kittyhawk?. It is always invidious taking the "dead spot" after the residents have ballsed up the beginning,but they patiently produced three numbers which were probably around when they first flew. Thanks,guys!
Anyone who has been to the excellent "live" sessions run by John and Anne Harris at The Anker Inn across town will have seen the remarkable Tom Young. Not enough venues are prepared to take a risk with new people. A few get stuck in a niche,repeating the same acts at every session.NFC has always taken gambles. We were prepared to share them with a wider audience and they won hearts everywhere,cornering a niche with a their unique style. We had a "Paper Circus moment" with Tom last night.Tom is a modest quiet lad who perches on a stool and then skillfully whacks out atmospheric (and fairly obscure) American Blues using a guitar without a strap. Jaws dropped open as he made that machine transport us all across a century and over the Atlantic until we were all tapping our feet in a juke joint somewhere north of the Mississippi.
Lesley is a well known performer from the Nuneaton area.She is also a regular at The Blues Jamm over in Weddington on Tuesdays and at The Fox Sessions in Attleborough on Monday nights She has a strong voice,,plays guitar well and is confident enough to really shake up her material. It's taken us a while to persuade her to take to the stage but we're glad she finally did. Her tribute to Dolores Kean was excellent and JK joined her on "Ride On." (JK is anybody's for a shiny sixpence! Such collaborations are commonplace at The Anker! You can just about make out JK here through the blue smoke generated by Lesley's guitar.
Michael Luntley
He's also been at The Anker Inn sessions. Michael had joined us at the old venue too, both solo and with his band. Such is his dedication, that because he was in a high sided van,he parked in the old venue space near Dunelm, as it had no height restrictors. He then walked right across town with his guitar-and all the way back afterwards. He's a fine guitarist,a good songwriter and someone who has put a lot of work into refining his talent. 
FInger In The Jar
Atherstone Folk Club's residents,reduced to just "Finger In," last night. They were without the Jar with Phil being indisposed. Anne and Steve took the last spot before Anna. FITJ are improving all the time. Two really nice people who work very hard on arrangements and harmonies, they took us back to earlier times with some nostalgic cover versions by Bread and other icons of the era.
I'd seen Anna Ryder before,and so I knew what to expect. Not sure all the audience had seen her but they loved her anyway,as I thought they would. She is a good natured goodhearted lady of great talent. She writes songs that are by turns funny,emotional,jaunty and haunting. She is a great multi-instrumentalist and she has a voice that is easily adapted to many different vocal styles. When she does do covers it is most often Blues or Jazz interpretations. I have always been fondest of her Bessie Smith number-the one she opened with last night. It is a feisty, ballsy song with some quite racy lyrics. If that were not enough, the sight and sound of Anna simultaneously playing trumpet and accordion whilst also singing it is an image that stays in the mind for a long time. Added to that her inclination to encourage the audience to join in with improvised jazz licks on imaginary trombones and cornets and you have an unforgettable experience.
. Those who hadn't seen her before were entranced by her versatility and delivery. Even her sound check brought the those present into silence,as she filled the Queen's Hall with her voice,and her nimble keyboard skills. Later we would learn of her empathy with feathers and inanimate objects, her love of Orange Creams (particularly those resident in a Black Magic chocolate selection),and her tendency to annoy her daughter.
Her introductions are very often every bit as entertaining as her songs. Here is her self portrait of last night. Those Orange Creams must have been psychedelic.
I was tempted to start this review by bemoaning another missing cast of thousands who had more important stuff to do last night. Some were working. Some were abroad or travelling back. Some were busy elsewhere.Some perhaps preferred to stay in their armchairs and watch Liverpool play Roma rather than going out to support live music. It is easy to take their absence personally but others will tell me that I am being oversensitive. Maybe I am.
The area is rich in talented musicians.Many were there last night, performing or just watching. Many were not. The facts are that in Nuneaton over the last ten days, the public have had Maddy Prior,Sarah McQuaid and Anna Ryder performing "live" at separate venues in the Town centre. At each one, there were empty seats. It remains a case of # use it or lose it-and in Treacle, the personal preference for a few seems to be indifference. A bit like the Town's senior football club.
