VE Day 2015

Thumper and Vera - photo by Simon Meeds

This week's session was on the seventieth anniversary of VE Day which marked the end of the Second World War in Europe, and the day after the hundredth anniversary of the sinking of the Lusitania which contributed to the eventual participation of the USA in the First World War. This meant that there was plenty of excuse for the singing of songs on a military theme.

We were joined for the first time in a while by occasional visitor, Ed, who brought along four friends, two of whom were Eleanor and Paul who together with Ed made a group, Ed Hanfrey et al.

Fine singing this week - come back soon

Jean Ritchie

Apart from most of the usual familiar faces we were very pleased to welcome three new ones this week: Matt, Nonny, and Arian, who proved excellent performers, both with their harmony singing and individually. They have only recently started singing together and this was their first outing. I hope they make it the first of many to The Dragon Folk Club and that it might even become a habit.

Simon started off by pointing out that Monday 8th December is Jean Ritchie's 92nd birthday and singing her song, The L&N don't stop here anymore. Phil continued the railway theme with The runaway train (Robert E Massey, Harry Warren, Carson Robison) and George Allen (the dying engineer).

Matt, Nonny and Arian so far have only three songs together and they quickly got through those. I'm sure Mike would have appreciated their singing of Rolling down to old Maui (Roud 2005). Unfortunately he had just slipped out to calm down his dog. The second song from the trio was My lady's coach (probably Sabine Baring-Gould). The third and final song from their early repertoire was The deserter (Roud 493).

More Mike songs, and some others

HMS Mars

Mike and Maggie were off on their travels again last week, so some people took a theme of Mike's songs, but since most of us were sung out of them only three weeks before coverage was patchier than last time.

Richard Started off with Tom Lewis' Marching Inland depriving Robin of his first possible Mike song. The theme was kept going for now with Derek singing Three score and ten. Derek said the scribe at one folk club used to note this one down with what seemed to be a strange symbol. Only years later did Derek realise that the strange symbol was "70".