Make way for Fred

Fred Jordan

That's more like it... we were definitely quorate last week with the return of Geoff from a chessing sojourn, and a visit from Tom. Unfortunately, Rose, the reason for Tom's visit, wasn't with us, concerned as she was about the promised extreme weather. It wasn't really that bad on Friday night in the end. Anyway, we hope to see her sometime in the not-too-distant future.

Colin, taking his usual seat as MC, started us off with The Son Of A Gambolier (Charles Ives). As predicted, Mike walked in with Indy the dog while he was singing.

Tom gave us Across The Great Divide from one of his favourite singer-songwriters, Kate Wolf. Kate died in 1986 at the age of 44, Tom says, towards the end of what had seemed a successful course of treatment for leukaemia.

Derek asked us what we were doing 17 years ago today (9 August 2002). He knew what he was doing. He was at the funeral of traditional singer, Fred Jordan. Derek therefore set himself a theme of songs from Fred's repertoire but not before singing his own tribute. I don't know the official title of the song but I have noted it down as Fred Is On His Way. Unfortunately I can't find a trace of it on the web. The songs he followed on with were:

• The Horn Of The Hunter (Roud 1859)
• The Seeds Of Love (Roud 3)
• The Volunteer Organist (Roud 5378 - William B Gray, George Spaulding)
• The Bonny Boy (Roud 31, Laws O35)

Simon marked the recent mass shootings in the USA with Bob Geldof's I Don't Like Mondays, about another mass shooting in 1979.

Geoff gave us Joseph McHugh (Dermot Kelly) and was followed by Mike with Doodle Let Me Go (Yaller Girls) (Roud 3221).

Colin's second song was Hope The Hermit (Roud V4761) which, once he had exhausted Fred Jordan, inspired Derek to visit another hermit, St Kevin (Caoimhín) with The Glendalough Saint (Gerald Griffin, Samuel Lover).

Tom alluded to the story that James Taylor scribbled down "BSURSUCSIMIM" when he found the inspiration to write Be As You Are (listen to the chorus and all will be revealed).

Mike told us that Dido Bendigo (Roud 584) was probably the first folk song he learnt and sang other than shanties, and that that was about 47 years ago. Always one for a meaningless coincidence I note that this followed immediately on from Geoff's singing of The Curragh Of Kildare (Roud 583) - note the Roud numbers! In a range of over 20,000 what are the chances (don't answer that)? I assume it wasn't intentional on Mike's part.

After many more songs both great and not so great, listen to the playlist below, it was Colin who finished the evening in appropriate style with John Tams' Rolling Home.

Before he left for the evening, we learnt from Mike that he is going into hospital for a spell, so our best wishes go with him for a good outcome. We send our love to Maggie. We understand that Mike's canine companion Indy doesn't need anything from us because he will be "spoilt rotten" in Mike's absence.

Here's a selection of songs sung during this session.

(Number of people present - 6, of whom 6 performed)