Mike Starkey - RIP

Mike Starkey (Photo: Simon Meeds)

The Dragon Folk Club is sad to inform of the passing of Mike Starkey on Sunday, 12th April 2026.

Mike had been coming along to the Dragon Folk Club for "many, many years", since it was held at The Lamb in Iron Acton. He was a fine unaccompanied singer.

Mike had a long history with music, not just folk music. He sang with Dave Marshall and Amanda as the "Terrible Two and Amanda", and also with the "Westerleigh Wailers" who performed many times at folk clubs and festivals.

He was with the Bristol Shantymen and appeared with them at folk clubs and festivals all over the country. Mike sang with the shantymen on many sea-going vessels and at shanty festivals in Poland, Liverpool, Whitby, Bristol, and Cardiff, among others.

Mike was for a long time our MC and his wife Maggie the proprietor of the Dragon Folk Club. He also successfully MCed at other folk clubs and at festivals.

This week we have also heard of the passing of Dragon stalwart, Tom Mossman, so I suggest that tonight's session (17th April 2026) and maybe the next few sessions might have an additional (always optional) theme of songs they sang. Here is the very incomplete list of Mike's songs from the Dragon database.

Addams Family Theme, The     -     Vic Mizzy    
Admiral Benbow     -     roud 227    
After The Gold Rush     -     Neil Young    
Albertina     -     translation by J Glyn Davies of the Norwegian shanty Skonnert Albertina
All Among The Barley     -     roud 1283, Elizabeth Stirling    
All The Good Times     -     Bob Pegg    
All Things Dull And Ugly     -     William Henry Monk, Eric Idle    
Amazing Grace     -     roud 5430, John Newton    
And Now I'm Easy     -     Eric Bogle    
Apple Tree Wassail     -     roud 209    
As We Were A-Sailing     -     roud 492    
Away to the Western Front     -     Mike Starkey    
Bald Eagle, The     -     Vera Johnson    
Band Played Waltzing Matilda, The     -     Eric Bogle    
Bang away Lulu     -     roud 4835    
Banks Of Marble     -     Les Rice    
Barrett's Privateers     -     Stan Rogers    
Battle Of Sowerby Bridge, The     -         
Black Sloven     -     roud 6475    
Black Velvet Band     -     roud 2146    
Black White Yellow And Green     -     roud 9212    
Blackleg miners     -     roud 3193    
Blood Red Roses     -     roud 931, Possibly A L Lloyd    
Bloody Great Fishes Are Whales     -         
Boar's Head Carol, The     -     roud 22229    
Bold Fusilier     -     Pete Coe based on traditional    
Bonny Black Hare     -     roud 1656    
Boston Harbour     -     roud 613    
Bring Us A Barrel     -     Keith Marsden    
Bully in the alley     -     roud 8287    
Byker Hill     -     roud 3488    
Card Playing Song     -     roud 884    
Children Of The Train     -     Mike Starkey    
Chinese Bum-boat Man, The     -     roud 10465    
Christmas Day in the Cookhouse     -         
Christmas Goose, The     -     roud 3204    
Cindy Oh Cindy     -     roud 21449, Robert Nemiroff, Burt D'Lugoff as Robert Barron, Burt Long    
Claudy Banks     -     roud 266    
Cockerham Devil, The     -     Pru and Roger Edwards    
Collier Brig, The     -     roud 1855    
Come Landord Fill The Flowing Bowl     -     roud 1234    
Come Write Me Down     -     roud 381    
Crack Your Whip (Bristol Mail)     -     Keith Marsden    
Cutty Wren, The     -     roud 236    
D-Day Dodgers     -     roud 10499, Lance-Sergeant Harry Pynn    
Dancing At Witsun     -     Austin John Marshall    
Dead Dog Cider     -     Trevor Crozier    
Devil In York, The     -     Tim Brooks    
Dido Bendigo     -     roud 584    
Doctor Mack     -     roud 1861    
Don't You Let Nobody Turn You 'Round     -     Tom Paxton    
Donkey Riding     -     roud 4540    
Doodle Let Me Go (Yaller Girls)     -     roud 3221    
Down The Road     -     Bill Staines    
Drovers, The     -     Keith Marsden    
Drunken Sailor     -     roud 322    
Duw It's Hard     -     Max Boyce   
English Country Garden     -     roud 29760, Fred Wedlock    
Enniskillen Dragoons     -     roud 2185, Tommy Makem    
Farewell Shanty     -         
Farmer's Boy     -     roud 408    
Fathom The Bowl     -     roud 880    
Fed Up With The Fields Of Athenry     -         
Female Drummer, The     -     roud 226    
Fireship, The     -     roud 4841    
Firing the Mauretania     -         
Five Constipated Men     -         
Flower Of Scotland     -     Roy Williamson    
Free And Easy     -     roud 1084    
Gloucestershire Wassail, The     -     roud 209    
Good English Ale     -     roud 1512    
Grey Goose     -         
H'ist Up The John B's Sails     -     roud 15634    
Hal An Tow     -     roud 1520    
Hanging Johnny     -     roud 2625    
Happy Man, The     -     roud 1230    
Hard Times Of Old England     -     roud 1206    
Harry Brown     -     Pete McNab, Mike Starkey    
Haul Away Joe     -     roud 809    
He Back, She Back     -     roud 930    
He Jumped Without A Parachute From 40,000 Feet     -         
Heights Of Alma     -     roud 830    
Here's To Good Old Whisky     -     roud 10523    
Herring Song, The     -     roud 128    
High Germany     -     roud 904    
Hitler Has Only Got One Ball     -     roud 10493, Attributed to Toby O'Brien; tune Lieutenant F. J. Ricketts as "Colonel Bogey March"    
Hob Y Deri Dando     -         
Hog-eye man     -     roud 331    
Holmfirth Anthem, The     -     roud 1046    
Homeward     -     Cicely Fox Smith, Sarah Morgan    
Hounds Are Out, The     -     roud 1869    
Hounds are out, the     -     roud 24901    
I Can Hew Boys     -     Dave Dodds    
I Couldn't Take My Eyes Off Her     -     Dave Plaskett    
I Don't Want To Join The Army     -     roud 10263    
I Once Loved A lass     -     roud 154    
I Will Go     -     traditional, Roddy MacMillan    
I Wish I Was Single Again     -     roud 437    
I'll Tell Me Ma     -     roud 2649    
I've got sixpence     -     roud 1116    
Idlers And Skivers     -     Keith Marsden    
Jack Of All Trades     -     roud 3017    
January Man, The     -     Dave Goulder    
JCB Song, The     -     Seamus Moore    
Joe Hill     -     Alfred Hayes, Earl Robinson    
John Barleycorn     -     roud 164    
John Cherokee     -     roud 4693    
Johnnie Lad     -     roud 2587    
Johnny Come Down to Hilo     -     roud 650    
Jolly Ploughboy, The     -     roud 163, Possibly John J. Blockley    
Jolly Waggoner     -     roud 1088    
Land Rover     -         
Last Shanty, The     -     Tom Lewis    
Last Valentine's Day     -     roud 6475    
Lish Young Buy-a-broom, The     -     roud 1865    
Little Fishes     -     roud 5477    
Liverpool Judies     -     roud 928    
London River     -     Rod Shearman    
Lumbered     -     Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley    
Marching Inland     -     Tom Lewis    
Martin Said To His Man     -     roud 473    
Mary Ellen Carter     -     Stan Rogers    
Miner's Lifeguard, The     -     roud 3510    
Mingulay Boat Song     -     Sir Hugh S Roberton    
Mobile Bay     -     roud 4696    
Mop Her Down     -     roud 17004    
Morley Main     -     Keith Marsden    
Mrs McGrath     -     roud 678    
Nancy Myles     -     Kevin Sheerin    
Napoleon Bonaparte     -     roud 1626    
New York Girls     -     roud 486    
No Use For Him     -     Eric Bogle    
Noah's Ark Shanty     -     roud 318    
Normandy Orchards     -     Keith Marsden    
Oak and the ash, The     -     roud 1367    
Old Man's Song, The     -     Ian Campbell    
One More Day     -     roud 704    
Outward And Homeward Bound     -     roud 18905    
Pace-Egging Song, The     -     roud 614    
Padstow Drinking Song, The     -     roud 1252    
Paris here I come     -         
Parting Glass, The     -     roud 3004    
Pay Me My Money Down     -     roud 21449    
Peter's Private Army     -     Martin Graebe    
Pogles Wood     -     John the Fish    
Pretty Nancy Of Yarmouth     -     roud 407    
Quare Bungle Rye     -     roud 2404    
Red Haired Mary     -     Sean McCarthy    
Rochester Recruiting Sergeant, The     -     Pete Coe, based on a The Bold Fusilier    
Roll Alabama Roll     -     roud 4710    
Roll the cotton down     -     roud 2627    
Roll The Old Chariot     -     roud 3632    
Roll the Woodpile Down     -     roud 4443    
Rolling Down To Rio     -     Rudyard Kipling, Edward German    
Rolling Home     -     John Tams    “Round goes the wheel of fortune”
Rolling Home     -     roud 4766    “Call all hands to man the capstan”
Roman Gladiator, The     -     Bruce Campbell    
Ryebuck Shearer, The     -     roud 24820    
Sailboat Malarkey     -         
Sally Free And Easy     -     Cyril Tawney    
Sam's gone way (aboard a man o' war)     -         
Santianna     -     roud 207        
Scarborough Fair    -     roud 12 
Sebastapol     -     roud 8293    
Sebastopol     -     roud 5007    
Seven Drunken Nights     -     roud 114    
Shantyman     -     Bob Watson    
Shoals Of Herring, The     -     Ewan MacColl    
Side By Side (parody)     -     original by Harry M Woods    
Skipper Jan Rebeck     -         
Smuggler's Song, The     -     Rudyard Kipling, Peter Bellamy, Christopher Le Fleming    
South Australia     -     roud 325    
Spanish Ladies     -     roud 687    
Spencer The Rover     -     roud 1115    
Sweet ladies of Plymouth     -     Peter Bellamy    
Sweet Nightingale     -     roud 371    
Take Your Time     -     Peter Mundey    
Thee's Got'n Where Thee Cassn't Back'n, Hassn't     -     Adge Cutler    
Three Day Millionaire     -     Mike Waterson    
Tom's gone to Hilo     -     roud 481    
Twanky-dillo     -     roud 2409    
Twenty Fourth Of February, The     -     roud 951    
Vicar And The Frog, The     -     Stan Crowther    
Wassail Song     -     roud 209    
Watch And Chain     -     Dave Webber    
We Sing Hallelujah     -     Richard Thompson    
We Wish You A Merry Christmas     -     roud 230    
We're All Surrounded     -     roud 9164    
What Is The Life Of A Man     -     roud 848    
When Johnny Comes Marching Home     -     roud 6673    
When Jones's Ale Was New     -     roud 139    
When This Lousy War Is Over     -     Tune: Charles Crozat Converse    
When Yellow's On The Broom     -     Adam McNaughton    
Whip Jamboree     -     roud 488    
Whisky Johnny     -     roud 651    
Wild Colonial Boy, The     -     roud 667    
Wild Goose Shanty, The     -     roud 328    
William Brown     -     Arthur Hagg    
Working Man     -     Rita MacNeil    
World Cup Willie     -     Lonnie Donegan    
World Turned Upside Down, The     -     Leon Rosselson    
Ying Tong Song     -     Spike Milligan    
Young Banker     -     roud 3321    
Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah     -     Allie Wrubel, Ray Gilbert

Tom Mossman - RIP

The Dragon Folk Club is sad to inform of the passing of Tom Mossman at the beginning of April 2026.

Tom had been coming along to the Dragon Folk Club since about 1981. In those days it was held at the Lamb in Iron Acton and the pub shut by 11pm. Tom would rush back into Bristol to the Stone House which stayed open until 1am, with every artist imaginable dropping in on their way home from gigs - it was like a folk collage. Tom was able to learn from the best, including Fred Wedlock to Loudon Wainwright III.

Tom played original, blues and contemporary songs with guitar, banjo, mandolin and harmonica. During his days at The Stone House he played support to the likes of Wizz Jones, Diz Disley and Isaac Guillory. In 1992 he won the Best New Artist Award at the Wath Folk Festival.

He came from a musical family; his father played the piano, his mother was a dancer and Tom recalls his grandfather with his wooden doll dancing to the rhythm of his fingers drumming on a plank (just like Seth Davy in Glyn Hughes' song Whiskey on a Sunday). Tom's musical influences included Bing Crosby, The Beatles, Flanagan and Allen, Don McLean, Paul Simon, Jim Croce, Dr Hook, Jake Thackray, Buddy Holly, Eric Clapton, Louis Armstrong, The Shadows, Scott Joplin, Carole King, Duke Ellington and Jimmy Young and even with that raft of influences there still seemed to be some room for Tom to be himself.

You can still hear Tom's singing on his YouTube channel and on that of Terry Helyar.

This week we have also heard of the passing of our former MC, Mike Starkey, so I suggest that tonight's session (17th April 2026) and maybe the next few sessions might have an additional (always optional) theme of songs they sang. Here is the very incomplete list of Tom's songs from the Dragon database.

Across The Great Divide     -     Kate Wolf
American Tune     -     Paul Simon
Autumn Leaves     -     Joseph Kosma, Hulló levelek, Johnny Mercer
Bad Bad Leroy Brown     -     Jim Croce
Be As You Are     -     James Taylor
Blues Run The Game     -     Jackson C Frank
Boys Of Kilkenny, The     -     Roud 1451
Brother Can You Spare A Dime     -     E. Y. "Yip" Harburg,  Jay Gorney
Comedians And Angels     -     Tom Paxton
Cootamundra Wattle     -     John Williamson
Diamantina Rover, The     -     Hugh McDonald
Duncan     -     Paul Simon
Echo Mocks The Corncrake, The     -     Roud 2736
From Clare To Here     -     Ralph McTell
Girl From The Hiring Fair, The     -     Ralph McTell
Green Eyes     -     Kate Wolf
Her father didn't like me anyway     -     Gerry Rafferty
Ho Ho Flaming Ho     -     Kevin Bloody Wilson, Tom Mossman
Home Lass Home     -     Tom Mossman
Lasso The Moon     -     Tom Mossman
Let Me Down Easy     -     Ralph McTell
Linden Lea     -     William Barnes, Ralph Vaughan Williams
Looking For You     -     Allan Taylor
May You Never     -     John Martyn
No Other Name     -     Paul Stookey
Pop Goes the Weasel     -     Roud 5249
Roll On The Day     -     Allan Taylor
She Loved A Portuguese     -     Paddy Roberts or Patrick Cogshill
Shiver Me Timbers     -     Tom Waits
Standing At The Door     -     Allan Taylor
Sweet Baby Jane     -     Tom Mossman
These Dreams     -     Jim Croce
Trouble In Mind     -     Richard M Jones
When Annie Took Me Home     -     Tom Paxton
You've Got A Friend     -     Carole King
Your Song     -     Elton John, Bernie Taupin

Surprisingly good - Excellent

(Photo: Simon Meeds)

For last week's session we had tentatively suggested the theme of "numbers". Knowing that all of our core members except Simon were otherwise engaged, he quite expected to be singing alone for the evening. Don't worry, it happens occasionally. Whoever is there has to stick around for a while in case others turn up, and if you are at a folk club then how better to pass the time than to sing.

Amazingly though with a quarter of an hour to go until our usual start time someone came through the door. It was Johannes, who is in Bristol for about a month and trying out various clubs while he's around. Simon explained the situation and Johannes was happy to stay on the basis of a singing pair.

No sooner had Simon, the stand-in MC,  started to sing than in walks Ray, who we have seen before, together with Kirsten who said she probably wouldn't sing - we tried to gently persuade her, but with no luck this time.

So, there were to be three singers, and with two relative newcomers there were bound to be plenty of new songs for the Dragon database. Unsurprisingly, only Simon really approached the theme, but that's fine.

As previously announced, because this Friday is the day after World Voice Day, the theme will be "Songs about Singing", but as usual the theme is entirely optional, so please come whether you sing, play, tell stories or perform in any way as long as it's acoustic - or indeed don't perform and wish to be our audience, partake of some banter and maybe join in a chorus or two.

Simon harked back to the previous week's Easter theme with The pace-egging song (roud 614) because of the counting in the chorus.

Johannes' debut was Johnny Barnes (* roud 39909) and was the first of many newcomers to the Dragon database.

Ray completed the first rotation with Every Time (* Tom Paxton).

As is the tradition I will mention all of the songs we heard from newcomer Johannes, who was very game to dig out thirteen songs through the evening. It would have been very understandable and perfectly fine if he had opted to site out some of his turns.

By chance we heard that both Johannes and Kirsten are half German, and so Johannes gave us three songs in the language:

• Die Gedanken sind frei
• Die Moorsoldaten (* Johann Esser, Wolfgang Langhoff, Rudi Goguel) - previously in the Dragon database only for the English translation
• Die Internationale (*) - originally written in French as a poem by Eugène Pottier and put to music a year later by Pierre De Geyter, this has been translated into many languages including into German by Emil Luckhardt. Previously the Dragon database only included an English version of which there are at least three.

Here are the rest of Johannes' songs except for one which will come later:

• The bee-boy's song (* Rudyard Kipling, Peter Bellamy)
• Windy old weather (* roud 472)
• They're going to build a motorway (* Leon Rosselson)
• My bonny bonny boy (* roud 293) - another version of roud 293, The grey hawk, was already in the Dragon database
• Georgie (* roud 90, child 209), an English traveller version of the Scottish song Geordie, which was already in the database; I won't attempt to comment on which came first.
• Buckets of rain (* Bob Dylan)
• Freight train (Elizabeth Cotten)
• The ant and the grasshopper (* Leon Rosselson)

Here are the other songs (yes there were even more) that were new to the database:

• Ray - Here's a health to the company (* roud 1801) - I picked the linked video for this report on 13th April 2026, the same day that Moya Brennan (Máire Philomena Ní Bhraonáin) of Clannad passed away.
• Simon - Eighteen pence on the bed (*# Tommy Daniel)
• Ray - Willow tree (* roud 18831)
• Ray - I got a name (*  Charles Fox, Norman Gimbel)

Simon asked Johannes to sing a closing song for the evening, bringing each of the singers' total to thirteen performances. I was not however so unlucky for the club since, defying the early expectations, it was a great evening.

• Johannes -  Shoals of herring (Ewan MacColl)

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

(Number of people present - 4 of whom 3 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though no always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

Easter 2026

Calvaire à la Sainte-Baume
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

The Dragon Folk Club Easter session last week (on Good Friday) was egg-cellent, not only because we had a decent turn-out of nine people, eight of whom performed, but also because three of those people were first timers at the Dragon.

Lee and Kris, members of the band Reivers' Gallows,  had intended to visit us before, but at that time their chosen campsite was waterlogged, so it was not until now that they made it. Sam, the other newcomer, was on his travels by train and decided to drop in. The problem was that Facebook had sent him to the Bristol city-centre pub of the same name, so on finding us he was a little later than planned (no issue), and had to leave early to get back into town and catch his onward connection. Let's hope all three of them find their way back to our little club again. They all seem to have enjoyed it and we regulars definitely enjoyed their contributions.

The lesson is, to check that you have the right address for us. The most common issue is that Facebook insists on providing an inaccurate map (not exactly Sam's problem), so make sure you find us on Google maps or some other system, not using Facebook's mapping.

This Friday's session is very tentatively themed "Numbers" since it falls on the hundredth day of the year. We are likely to be low on the number of regulars, so your presence as well as your singing, playing, storytelling or anything else will be most welcome this week whether or not you wish to follow the proposed theme. As always, anything goes as long as it's acoustic.

Although Lee and Kris had arrived first it seemed a little unfair to ask them to open, so stand-in MC, Simon, started off in the Easter theme with The pace-egging song (roud 614). The theme was only lightly followed during the evening, but that's perfectly fine; our themes are always optional.

Next came Lee (guitar and vocals) and Kris (violin). Lee warned us that though most of his songs may seem familiar, they are usually somehow modified. I have taken a slightly inconsistent approach in this report to their songs, but where possible I have linked videos of Lee singing so you can get some idea of what was happening.

As usual for a duo we asked them to sing two songs. First they gave us Back Home in Derry (Bobby Sands, Lee). Sam asked whether the song was written before or after Gordon Lightfoot's Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Lee agreed with Simon that the simple answer was "after", but said that his Irish father remembered singing something very similar before, so it was most likely adapted from a traditional song. Their second song was Matty Groves (* roud 52, child 81).

Paul's first song of the evening was Seven virgins (roud 127) and Denny added The good old way (roud 23864).

Sam's first song was Barbara Allen (roud 54, child 84). He said he'd added a refrain which is fair enough, but digging through the Dragon database I found Lucy Stewart's version, which seems fairly close to Sam's version and repeats the last line of each verse.

While this was strictly the end of the first rotation, it was at this point that Bob and Sue appeared. It seemed unfair to put them straight in the limelight, so they joined in early in the second rotation, Sue with The whistling gypsy (roud 1, child 200) and Bob with So much trouble (Brownie McGhee).

As is customary, I will mention all of the further songs from the newcomers. Kris's violin lost its tune due to the cool of the evening, so their last came from Lee performing alone with a little support from the chorus.

• Lee and Kris - The Handsome cabin boy (roud 239, laws N13)
• Lee and Kris - Roll the old chariot (roud 3632)
• Sam - Cells (* Rudyard Kipling, Peter Bellamy)
• Lee and Kris - Ye Jacobites by name (roud V31021 - Robert Burns)
• Lee and Kris - Blackleg miners (roud 3139)
• Lee - Crooked Jack (*  roud 41020 - Dominic Behan)

Apart from those mentioned already there was just one song added to the Dragon database, which was Sue's I will survive (* Freddie Perren, Dino Fekaris).

Simon brought the evening to a close, complete with a mention of Easter and with much support from the chorus, singing When all men sing (Keith Scowcroft, Derek Gifford).

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

(Number of people present - 9 of whom 8 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though no always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

Putting the clocks forward

St Mary Redcliffe church, Bristol
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

At the Dragon Folk Club last week the clocks changing to British Summer Time was a slim excuse for a Spring into Summer theme, but that was what was set. Our themes are of course always optional and no one is humiliated or gets a forfeit for not following them.

It was great to see and hear Dragon first-timer Mick and the return of Terry H after an absence of  what appears to be six years. Many of us see Terry elsewhere, but it was great to get him back on our home patch.

Thanks to everyone who joined in the singing, playing and chat. There will be a session this Friday (3rd April) despite it being Good Friday - we have confirmed with the pub that we can have use of "the barn" function room as usual. Let's make the optional theme Easter, whether that's death, resurrection, eggs, rabbits, Eostre or anything else more or less related to the season. Optional as the theme always is, anything goes as long as it's acoustic. See you there.

In the absence of our usual MC last week, Simon took the reins, inviting Stuart and Carrie to sing first. They gave us Ride on (Jimmy McCarthy). As is usual for a duo, they were asked to sing again immediately and they obliged with Crazy man Michael (Richard Thompson, Dave Swarbrick).

Next up was newcomer Mick. He says he has had a break from playing and is very nervous, trying to play out as much as possible to overcome the nerves, but it barely showed with his excellent guitar playing and characterful voice, singing The banks of green willow (* roud 172, child 24).

Rob sang the first of two songs not to be found on YouTube and therefore not included in the playlist linked below. It was his own The kestrel (*# Rob Winder), apparently about a girlfriend from long ago.

Simon's first of the evening, making mention of Spring, was Memories of East Texas (Michelle Shocked). 

Denny was next, contributing When yellow's on the broom (Adam McNaughton), and Paul sang Seven virgins (roud 127).

Terry H brought the first rotation to a close with his own song, Matron (*# Terry Helyar) - the second and last song of the evening not included in the linked playlist. You can listen to all of the other songs (though not by our singers) by clicking on "a selection" at the end of this report.

As is traditional, I will mention all remaining performances from our first-time dragon, Mick:

• The scarecrow (* Lal Waterson, Mike Waterson)
•  Blind Blake's rag (* Ralph McTell)

The only song from the evening neither already mentioned nor previously in the Dragon database came from Stuart and Carrie; it was Watch me (* Labi Siffre).

The bar closed a little early so we also came to a close after only three rotations, and with a relatively small total of 24 songs and tunes having been sung and played, but the evening was very enjoyable thanks to a great group of singers and some pleasant chat between the songs. It fell to Terry H to complete the evening by singing Sally Wheatley (Joe Wilson).

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

(Number of people present - 8 of whom 8 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though no always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

St Patrick's Day 2026

At the Dragon Folk Club last week we were just three days late to celebrate St Patrick with an evening of mostly Irish or Irish-connected songs. Despite small numbers of singers and Colin forgetting to bring the words to most of his Irish songs we kept it going with some gusto.

This Friday and for the next couple of weeks it will be reserve MC Simon in the chair. He would very much like it if you could make a special effort to come along whether to perform (anything goes as long as it's acoustic) or to listen, take part in the banter, and maybe join in the odd chorus. To get you thinking here are some suggested optional themes:

•  27th March - Spring and the coming of summer (BST starts on Sunday)
•  3rd April - Good Friday - Anything related to Easter (death, resurrection, rabbits, eggs, etc.)
• 10th April - Numbers (100th day of the year)
•  17th April - World Voice Day - songs about singing?
•  24th April - St George's Day, by which time Colin should be back as MC

Feel free to bring your own theme or none.

Last week Colin started traditionally with Galway farmer (Steve Knightley). Colin had sung exactly this song the week before because, unusually, Cheltenham Festival week did not coincide with St Patrick's Day this year, but he couldn't resist repeating it and that's fine by us.

Paul took us from Cheltenham to Dublin with Cockles and mussels (roud 16932).

Simon completed the first rotation with Ride on (Jimmy McCarthy).

There was just one song sung in the evening that doesn't appear to be available on YouTube and is therefore not included in this week's playlist. That was Liz Draper's Galway drawl (#), clearly a parody of Galway shawl, sung for us by Paul.

Despite many of the songs being the usual suspects, and some so called "folk cheese", which in former days would have gained a black mark from our erstwhile MC, there were a couple that were new to the Dragon database:

•  Colin - The harp without the crown (* roud 7989)
•  Simon - Fisherman's blues (* Mike Scott, Steve Wickham)

Colin finished the session, not literally, with Seven drunken nights (roud 114, child 274) - although more accurately, just the first five of them. 

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

(Number of people present - 3 of whom 3 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though no always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).

Mothering Sunday 2026

At Thornbury Carnival 2019
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

Last week's Dragon Folk Club session marked Mothering Sunday so any mention of mothers gained imaginary brownie points.

In our house we are sticklers for "Mothering Sunday" which is a church festival falling on the fourth Sunday in Lent (see % below).

As I am writing this we have just passed St Patrick's Day so this week's Friday theme will be just that. With Denny not available this week, we saw some Irish songs creeping in last week, often also mentioning mothers.

Speaking of last week, Colin was MC and started the ball rolling with Get a little table (roud 3201 - Harry Linn, William Sim) and Simon followed him with Buttercup Joe (roud 1635).

Denny sang I'll tell me ma (roud 2649).

Paul's first contribution was a version of The "fish" cheer /I-feel-like-I'm-fixin'-to-die rag (* Country Joe McDonald) where he replaced "Vietnam" with "little I-ran". This was both to mark the recent death of the author and to demonstrate that the lyrics, although almost 60 years old, are still somewhat applicable to current events.

It was great to welcome Helen back to the club after a longer absence than any of us realised. She completed the first rotation with Poor wayfaring stranger (roud 3339).

There were several "new" songs for the Dragon database:

• Colin - Mother (* roud 10293) - A parody of Mother (written by Howard Johnson and Theo Morse, and recorded in 1916 by Henry Burr). That was a hard one to track down because it turns out to have been recorded by Oscar Brand as half of a track called Correspondence on an album called Bawdy Songs Go To College. To add to the confusion my old friend Terry "Leadfingers" Silver was the only person to mention it (on mudcat) where he called it "Letters to and from a Young Man" after the lyric rather than using its advertised title.
• Simon - Mother and wife (*) from the singing of The Jolly Boys among others.
• Helen - Driving myself home (* Rose Betts)
• Colin - Don't swat your mother boys (* roud 15690 - Brian Hooker, Porter Steele)
• Simon - Mama don't allow (* roud 11793)
• Colin - Momma (* Bob Seger)
• Colin - Mother Machree (* roud 23523 - Rida Johnson Young, Chauncey Olcott, Ernest Ball)

It fell to Paul to finish the evening with Farewell shanty.

% Traditionally people returned to their mother church for Mothering Sunday and by extension mothers were honoured. This is different to Mother's Day, which is an annual holiday celebrated in the United States on the second Sunday in May that was was established by Anna Jarvis in 1908. I believe it is the British greetings card industry that blurred the difference between the two to the point that cards sold for the former are about 80 or 90 percent "Happy Mother's Day" and thus avoided by my wife and me.

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

(Number of people present - 5 of whom 5 performed)

In the above report songs new to the Dragon database (though no always new to the club) are marked with an asterisk (*) and any songs not included in the "a selection" playlist are marked with a hash (#).