Remembrance 2022

Yes, we were back down to two singers at the Dragon Folk Club session last week, but those who were there stuck pretty well to the Remembrance theme throughout and an interesting variety of songs were sung. If you can be there this Friday that would be great and to make things easier there will be no theme.

Colin was MC as usual and started of proceedings with Jim Woodland's Ghost Story, from the singing of Roy Bailey.

Simon gave a first outing to his rendition of Mike Harding's The Accrington Pals. This was the first of four songs Simon gave us from Mike's singing, three of which he wrote. The others were: Jimmy Spoons (Mike Harding), Bomber's Moon (Mike Harding) and And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda (Eric Bogle).

In the absence of Derek who sometimes sings it, Colin performed The 51st Highland Division's Farewell To Sicily by Hamish Henderson (roud 10501), set to the first, third and fourth parts of the pipe tune 'Farewell to the Creeks' by Pipe Major James Robertson of Banff.

Colin sang the Vera Lynn version of Lili Marlene (roud 15403, German words by Hans Leip, tune Norbert Schultze, variously translated into English by Norman Baillie-Stewart, Tommie Connor, and Theodore Stephanides). After this Simon had to sing The D-Day Dodgers (roud 10499, Lance-Sergeant Harry Pynn) to the same tune.

I was unable to find a YouTube recording of The Kriegie Ballad (roud 10516, Robert Garioch) which Colin sang so you won't find it in the playlist linked from "a selection below". 

Colin sang a couple of Steve Knightley (Show of Hands) songs: Battlefield dance floor and The Gamekeeper.

Simon finished the evening, probably slightly off-topic with Claudy Banks (roud 266, laws N40).

Now listen to a selection of songs sung during this session.

(Number of people present - 2 of whom 2 performed)

D-Day 75 - Dragon 50

Commando Memorial, Spean Bridge
(Photo by Simon Meeds)

We're continuing the Dragon Folk Club 50th anniversary celebrations through to the end of June, so please come along and celebrate with us. Everyone is welcome but if you've been at the club any time during its long life you may like to perform something you performed on previous visits. We'd certainly love to hear it.

Last week's session was the second in the series of 50th anniversary events and was time also to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day with a variety of war and anti-war songs, some of which had specific relevance as did MC Colin's first, Shores Of Normandy by folk singer Jim Radford, the youngest known D-Day veteran (aged 15 years and 8 months at the time). The song, sung by Jim not Colin, went onto top the Amazon and iTunes download charts.

Geoff took a random dip in his repertoire and came up with Marty Robbins' Big Iron.

Simon went for a song about the war rather than D-Day with Liz Padgett's Plover Catcher which left the goal open wide for Mike to score with Lance-Sergeant Harry Pynn's D-Day Dodgers (Roud 10499), remarking that his father was one of them.

CDs, rakes, doffers and marbles

Outside the pub at Tinsley Green, Sussex, 1936.
The singer George 'Pop' Maynard
is seen on the right of the picture.
(Photo from Keith Summers Collection)

It was good to welcome Geoff back into the fold last Friday after his sabbatical, so he made us quorate once again, which is always a good thing.

Colin was MC and started us off with Jordan Is A Hard Road To Travel (Dan Emmett - Roud 12153). The first two lines of the song, at least as Colin sang it, are "Rain forty nights, gonna rain forty days,
Gonna rain on the Allegheny mountains" which inspired Derek to sing the First World War song, Raining, Raining, Raining.

Geoff's first song after his recent break from the club was Far Away In Australia (Roud 25792) although I'm pretty sure that's not where he's been.

Beginning with an end

Humpback Whale

This week's report will be abbreviated and at least initially won't include links to YouTube. This is because I am writing this from a hotel room in Athens. No, I'm not on holiday, and not even on an exotic song-collection trip - it's all to do with my day job I'm afraid. But after a nice and impressively cheap meal I am set up to write some sort of report of last Friday's session, and I will be at the next session on Friday if KLM can get me back in time.

Some present may wonder how I counted 5 present. No the fifth wasn't the club hound, Indy, but the former landlady of The Bridge Inn, who joined us as audience for a few songs - sorry I don't remember her name, I hope she will forgive me. Someone didn't even recognise her - no names there either! ;-)

Presidential Inauguration

The Mayor of Trumpton

A sadly low turn-out again for last week's session but at least we were five in the first half of the evening and there was some interesting back and forth of ad hoc themes. There was no official theme but this Wednesday is Burns' Night, so this Friday's theme (27 January) is all things Scottish or Burns - your presence is required.

The most popular mini-theme last week was the inauguration of President Trump. Some songs were thought appropriate and others were simply modified to fit. Colin was MC.

Steve C started the evening off with Old Shep (Red Foley). It was the song Elvis Presley sang at his first public performance, aged 10 on 3 October 1945 at the Mississippi-Alabama Fair and Dairy Show.

June, evacuation, invasion and remembering Jean Ritchie

British troops evacuating Dunkirk's beaches

It was good to have two young and apparently enthusiastic visitors even though they didn't perform. Roger told us later they were army cadets. Colin took up his now customary role as MC and asked Derek to start us off.

Derek made his theme June, this being the first DFC session of the month. His first was The Three O'Donnells ("As I roved out one morning, was in the month of June"). Mike followed up with Thousands or More (Roud 1220).

Simon, having noticed that Jean Ritchie died earlier in the week, sang his version of her The L&N Don't Stop Here Anymore, based on the singing of Michelle Shocked.

Colin noted that it was the 75th anniversary of the end of Operation Dynamo, which saw a flotilla of "little ships" evacuate British and French soldiers from Dunkirk. To mark the occasion he put the poem, The Little Boats Of England to music.

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.