All the Christmas and New Year shenanigans are behind us and it’s now time to get 2024 rolling. What better way to do that that with an evening of singalong fun with Christine, Alex and Mhairi at Nitten Folk Club. Visiting the club for the first time since 2015 (where do the years go?) Luckenbooth delivered a great selection of what might be called ‘bread and butter’ folk music to a warm and delighted audience. Almost every song was a folk club ‘standard’ – from Bonnie Charlie’s Noo Awa’, The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen, Come by the Hills, Shift and Spin, and so on; the audience seemed to know all the words to almost every song and, of course, sang along with with customary Nitten gusto.
New chairman Ian Duncan was, unfortunately, not feeling too good so Jim Weatherston kindly stepped up to the plate and was rewarded when the first spot was closed with a rambunctious rendition of John Denver’s ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’, which, as members and regular visitors will know, is a real favourite of Jim’s (only kidding, Jim – you did a marvellous job). Time, then for the raffle and this was conducted by outgoing chair Charlie while Robert Mackie and Gillian Anderson did the ‘running. Well done to all and congratulations to the prize-winners.
The second spot was every bit as entertaining and warmly familiar as the first; She Wears Black Clothes, I Still Miss Someone, Old Maid in a Garret, the list goes on. Mhairi put her fiddle down occasionally to play guitar and midway through the second show sang her own composition ‘Lullaby for the Forgotten’ a moving tribute to all those caught up in seemingly never-ending wars. The evening was rounded off with the Spinners’ classic Gypsy Rover – another ‘jiney-in wan’ and the audience needed no persuasion in doing just that. An encore was inevitable and another great singalong tune ‘Wagon Wheel’ hit the spot. Thanks to Christine, Alex and Mhairi – Haste Ye Back.
Many thanks must go to the floor spots: Ronnie, Neil and Robert in the first half, and Tom, Paul and May in the second. Well done everyone.
Next month we welcome the wonderful ‘Skirlie’ back to the club. Rab Ferris, Kevin Patrick, Alison Tunnicliffe and Eddie McGlone are Skirlie, playing an eclectic mix of trad, Celtic and transatlantic material which is reinterpreted using the ‘Skirlification’ approach! Rab plays whistles and percussion, Kevin is on mandolin, dobro and guitar, Alison plays violin whilst Eddie plays bass and chapman stick. All four of them do vocals. Rab, Kevin and Alison all come from a background of and involvement with trad music from an early age whilst Eddie has played with various bands including a UK tour with the renowned Soul singer Ben E King. Make sure you don’t miss what is bound to be a fabulous show.
The Committee