Club Programme

Another eagerly anticipated booking for Cathryn Craig and Brian Willoughby at The Black Swan Folk Club. Cathryn Craig has performed with renowned artists like Chet Atkins, Shel Silverstein, The Righteous Brothers, and Jorma Kaukonen. Her great-grandfather, Jacob Sowder, was featured by Cecil Sharp in the book *English Folk Songs From The Southern Appalachians*. Brian Willoughby is celebrated for his exceptional guitar skills, playing both electric and acoustic, and is associated with the progressive folk/rock band Strawbs. He has also worked alongside Mary Hopkin, Joe Brown, Roger Whittaker, Bridget St. John, Jim Diamond, and Monty Python. Together, Cathryn and Brian have collaborated and recorded with Nanci Griffith. In 2019, Brian returned to the Strawbs for their 50th Anniversary concerts in the USA, where Cathryn joined as a guest vocalist. Their song "Alice’s Song" was selected as an Aled Jones Highlight of the Year on BBC Radio 2, and the Strawbs’ version became the theme tune for Autism Awareness, used by The National Autistic Society. Cathryn appeared as Simon Mayo's star guest on BBC Radio 2Day, broadcasting live from Nashville. The duo received accolades such as Martin Chilton’s Folk Gig Pick of the Year for *The Telegraph* and a nomination for Best Duo from Folking.com.

Back to the Black Swan Folk Club for Hunter Muskett a favourite band for us. They’ve been around the folk and acoustic scene individually and collectively for longer than they care to remember. They are an acoustic/electric 3-piece playing distinctive original songs in a folky, bluesy sometimes Americana vein. Formed in 1968 the band played at home and abroad until 1974 producing two, now collectable, albums: Every Time You Move with bassist Danny Thompson and the Keith Relf produced Hunter Muskett. Doug Morter went on to carve out a career as the ‘go-to’ vocalist/guitarist of the folk-rock scene performing with the likes of: Magna Carta, Albion Band, Maddy Prior, Michael Chapman and Jerry Donahue... Since resuming touring in 2010 Hunter Muskett has released three further critically acclaimed albums of new material: That Was Then This Is Now, Unafraid and Sober and Roll On. Members of the band are now coming together every couple of years or so to tour the UK and it’s great to welcome them back to the club.

*This is a seated show with all seated unreserved* Pioneering singer, songwriter and guitarist John Smith has been at the forefront of British folk and roots music for twenty years. He has amassed over 125 million Spotify streams and played his songs all over the world. He cut his teeth opening for the late, great John Martyn, and has since worked with a host of artists including Sarah Jarosz, the Milk Carton Kids, Patty Griffin, Joan Baez, David Gray, Tom Jones and Jackson Browne. As he marks his 20th anniversary in music this October, John's new release Gatherings celebrates, revisits, and reimagines songs from his first three albums, with brand new interpretations of his own and audience favourites from over 2,000 live shows. Pre-save Gatherings here: https://slinky.to/Gatherings Reflecting on these treasured compositions, John said: "I've learnt as time goes on that the songwriter isn't necessarily in charge of the songs. Sometimes it feels as if it's the other way round, that a song will reveal itself fully when it's ready to be sung." Gatherings features guest appearances from Lisa Hannigan, The Staves, Siobhan Miller, and Dan Mangan (all on vocals), Adam Levy (guitar) and Nick Pini (bass). It was produced by John and mixed by Ryan Freeland (Bonnie Raitt, Aimee Mann, Joe Henry, Ray LaMontagne). First single "Salty and Sweet" (featuring Lisa Hannigan) is out now, about which John shared: "One morning in 2010, I woke up with this song in my head, sung in Lisa's voice. The thing is, I didn't yet know Lisa. I met her a little while after and told her about it. She told me that I should sing it myself, but she'd be happy to duet. This song is the one people always shout out for, it gets the biggest singalong at the end of a show. I wanted to record a version with just Lisa and I in the studio, no frills, as if we were sharing a mic in a room full of people." Looking back on a remarkable 20 years, in John's own words.... "I went self-employed in October 2005 after a gig at Ullapool Guitar Festival that paid as much as a week at my four part-time jobs. Back then, I was working all day and playing every night in any pub, restaurant, or cinema foyer in Liverpool that would have me. All I had was my six-string and a handful of songs. Fast forward a few months, when out of nowhere I was offered a support slot for John Martyn. Suddenly I'm on tour! I found my calling on the road. Some two thousand shows later, here I am trying to make sense of it all. I was excited by the opportunity to re-record songs that have grown and changed over the years. To be honest, they change as soon as you leave the studio and get on stage; but I realise now that a few were perhaps recorded too soon, before they were fully formed. Others just feel more comfortable now that I've lived with them for a long time, like old friends. I took the chance to gather these songs and record them as I hear them now. These songs carried me everywhere through the years. They took me to places and introduced me to people I could never have expected to find. Along the way, I've met so many great musicians who have become true friends. I'm fortunate to have some of my favourites join me on this record - Lisa Hannigan, The Staves, Siobhan Miller, and Dan Mangan all contribute vocals, while Adam Levy plays a guitar solo as if he were singing. Nick Pini joins on bass, alongside a small ensemble lending colour to this imagined landscape. Finally, Ryan Freeland kindly agreed to mix the album, working his magic in vivid brushstrokes. Gatherings is a ten-song selection of audience favourites, revisited and reimagined, for all the people in the crowd who have stuck with me through the years; but also an opportunity to show these songs to a new audience." 'Smith's voice is a rare and deeply soulful combination of granite and velvet' Sunday Times

We welcome back to the Black Swan Folk Club from Canada our old friend DAN McKINNON. Blessed with a glorious baritone voice, a graceful mastery on guitar, and a hearty laugh that delights any room, Dan McKinnon has carved out his own unique, musical path. From early beginnings in the coffee houses, pubs and bars of Atlantic Canada, to tours throughout the UK, Dan’s performances reveal an enduring respect for the past, tempered by a profound attachment to the present. His keenly observed stories and passionately delivered songs convey a deep inquisitiveness into the human condition combined with the rich heritage of the Maritimes. “Hearing Dan McKinnon for the first time reminds me of the first time I heard Stan Rogers or James Keelaghan…” - Rich Warren, Sing Out!

Our second visit from Tom Bliss with his current run of gigs raising money for Multiple Scelerosis. A nationally-acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, Tom writes catchy story songs in a folk style which typically tell true stories, some funny, some sad - but always powerful. For ten years, he toured the UK with banjo maestro Tom Napper, now residing in Scotland. These days he plays just a handful of gigs a year, all MS benefits, using mandozouki, dulcimer, guitar, whistle, concertina, accordion and harp. The first set will feature award-winning songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Den Miller, and the second a specially-reformed Slide: Derek Magee (fiddle, low whistles) Neil Whitaker (guitar banjo, vocals) John Layton (bass) and Tom (everything else). Active from 2000-4, Slide played all over Yorkshire to major acclaim, and made 2 highly-regarded CDs featuring their unique blend of English, Celtic and American trad, many of Tom's most popular songs, and further songs and tunes from Neil and Derek. With Den adding guitar, percussion, harmonica and autoharp, they sound better than ever.

Back again the fantastic Hunch. Previously we've presented the band in the depths of winter but this time it's a spring booking. A five piece fronted by Mick Doonan of the legendary 70s folk-rock band Hedgehog Pie. Mick comes from a famous Tyneside dynasty (John Doonan Snr, was an All-Ireland flute champion.) he provides vocals as well as flutes and pipes. Bob Thomas was a member of another highly respected folk-rock outfit, Kitsyke Will, and lends his wonderful soul-inflected vocal style to the band as well as singing, playing percussion and harmonica. Alongside these two are the stunning acoustic guitarist/vocalist Chris Hanks and keyboards/accordionist/vocalist Tony Bacon, both alumni of West Yorkshire’s thriving roots scene. Marcus Frost is the latest addition to the line up; with extensive experience in the local blues/rock scene, Marcus brings his unique style of percussion and vocals. This has all the hallmarks of another tremendous night with an eclectic mix of acoustic and folk music stylings.

A New Show Celebrating Two of Our Funniest Wordsmiths from JOHN WATTERSON Without Jake: Jake Thackray, Leeds-born songwriter (1938-2002), is now regarded as one of England’s finest twentieth-century songwriters, known for poetic and witty songs. Gaining fame from TV shows like Braden’s Week and That’s Life, his work has seen renewed appreciation posthumously, admired by artists such as Jarvis Cocker and Neil Gaiman. Without Les: Les Barker, once a chartered accountant in Manchester, found success writing and performing humorous poems at folk clubs and festivals. His musical collaborations include Tom Paxton and June Tabor, and the Financial Times praised his style as inventive and playful. Among his celebrated works are "Reg was a Lonely Glow Worm," and "Spot of the Antarctic."