St George's Day 2026

St George's, Bristol
(Photo: Simon Meeds) 

It was great to have a full complement of singers at last week's Dragon Folk Club session including second-timers Mick, and Kerstin and third-timer Ray. Apart from anything else it leads to a fantastic variety of songs, and some even took on the optional theme of St George's Day and all that is England.

Before I get down to the report, let's note that this Friday is actually 1st May, so we really should have a theme of May, which is mentioned in so many folk songs. The theme is of course as always optional, so the most important thing is that you come and join us, and sing, play or perform in whatever way you wish as long as it's acoustic, and the theme is just a nice-to-have if you can follow it for some or all or your performances. Audience members are of course also welcome as always.

 Back to last week, Colin was MC and started us off with The new St George (Richard Thompson).

Our resident Scot, Heather, followed with what she said was her only English song: John Peel (roud 1239).

Mick gave us his own musical setting of Charles Kingsley's poem Three fishers (*) - note that the linked video is Stan Rogers' setting of the same work.

Simon sang Puff and bold Saint George (#), a parody written by friend of the club, Richard Gillion.

Rob ventured into May slightly early with Hal an tow (roud 1520) and Steve, wishing to remember our recently deceased former MC Mike Starkey, sang Dido Bendigo (roud 584). Mike didn't like fox hunting, but enjoyed some of the songs on the subject, this being one he often sang.

Paul cleaved to the English theme with Fathom the bowl (roud 880) and Denny invoked the recently deceased George Papavgeris with his Friends like these.

Ray and Kerstin, singing together with Ray on ukulele, completed the first rotation with Jolene (Dolly Parton) and And I love her (* John Lennon and Paul McCartney).

There was just one song not found on YouTube and therefore not included in the playlist linked from "a selection" below. Indeed it is a song Colin has sung before and about which I still can't find any details. I assume the title is Britannia waives the rules. There are several similarly titled songs around, but I'm pretty sure I haven't found this one.

Songs and tunes not already mentioned that are new to the Dragon database are as follows:

• Mick - Hesitation blues (* roud 11765)
• Rob - Ballina whalers (* Harry Robertson)
• Ray and Kerstin - I drove all night (*  Billy Steinberg, Tom Kelly)
• Mick - Saturday night rub (* Big Bill Broonzy)
• Kerstin - Komm lieber Mai und mache (* Christian Adolph Overbeck, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart)
•  Heather - One day at a time (* Marijohn Wilkin, Kris Kristofferson)
• Mick - Towersey fair (* Bill Meek, John Conolly)
• Rob - Mrs Barbour's army (*  Alistair Hulett)
• Ray and Kerstin - Sailing (* Gavin Sutherland)
• Mick - St Louis blues (*  W C Handy)

Simon finished off the session with When all men sing (Keith Scowcroft, Derek Gifford). 

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

(Number of people present - 11 of whom 10 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 (#).

RIP George Papavgeris

George Papavgeris (1953-2026)

Your scribe wasn't present at last week's Dragon Folk Club session, but it sounds as though it was a varied and enjoyable affair albeit with one sad message, that being the death of singer/songwriter George Papavgeris, who I didn't know, but whose songs I had often enjoyed.

An appropriate theme for this Friday's session would seem to be Mothering Sunday, so songs of the mother church, and of mothers will be on topic, as well as anything else tenuously linked, but as always the theme is optional and anything goes as long as it's acoustic.

Last week Colin, MC as usual, kicked off with Dona Dona (Sholom Secunda, Aaron Zeitlin. English lyrics by Arthur Kevess and Teddi Schwartz).

Paul followed with Friends like these in honour of the recently deceased writer, George Papavgeris.

Denny completed the first rotation with The road to Dundee (roud 2300).

There were five songs new to the Dragon database last week:

• Paul - The bard (* Steve Thomason)
• Denny - Kitty Kane (* John Warner)
• Paul - Mollymauk (* Bob Watson)
• Colin - Lady Jane (* Mick Jagger, Keith Richards)
• Paul - I mean to get jolly well drunk (* roud 3466)

Colin finished the evening off with a good sing-along Roll the old chariot (roud 3632).

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 (#).

Nostalgia is what it used to be after all

Leo Maguire
(1903 – 17 December 1985)

As we expected, last week's Dragon Folk Club session was down to a kernel of two singers, but sing they did. You may think a lot of the songs are not folk, but when you get two men of a similar age sat down and singing these things can happen. Don't get me wrong, I'm a bit younger and I can go happily along with the same mix. So, it was quite a sixties and seventies evening, but I hope you will agree it was a good selection, even with a bit of folk and near folk mixed in.

Colin started off the evening with Hotel California (Don Felder, Don Henley, Glenn Frey). Geoff followed on with The Whistling Gypsy (roud 1, child 200), which is obviously traditional but I suspect the version Geoff sang was based on this one copyrighted in the 1950s by Leo Maguire.

Despite there being only two singers they managed to get through several songs (including the two mentioned above) not previously on the Dragon Folk Club song database, so I will list the rest of them:

• Colin - Across the universe (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) 
• Colin - Vincent (Don McLean)
• Colin - Lady Madonna (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)
• Colin - Hey Jude (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)

It was also Colin who finished off the evening fittingly with George Papavgeris' Friends Like These.

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

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

A friendly session

(Photo: Vaibhav Sharan)

Last Friday's Dragon Folk Club session saw four singers meet in our usual venue at The Bridge Inn. Colin being MC and having been the first to arrive started things off with a song which we agreed was a suitable starter or finisher: George Papavgeris' Friends like these.

Rob sang us his own Minstrel of the sea about a musician of his acquaintance. He told us that he has not yet made a video of it, so I won't waste time looking.

Simon's first was Dougie MacLean's Caledonia. Colin later sang another of Dougie's songs: Ready for the storm.

Geoff completed the first circuit of the room with his first performance of Ewan MacColl's Morrissey and the Russian sailor.

Geoff sang the last song of the evening, a version of Seven drunken nights. Sorry for the abbreviated report again. Normal service may be resumed next week.

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

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

For the love of women

Last week's session had no official theme but Derek said that he had created one for himself and asked us to guess what it was. No one quite got it but he admitted in the end it was for International Women's Day, which it was. More specifically, all his songs for the evening were sung from the point of view of a woman. I'll mention all of Derek's songs but I'll try to extract the female themes from the songs of our other singers too.

First of all, a reminder that this week's session will have a St Patrick's Day theme. I'll leave it up to you to decide what that can mean for you since there is quite a lot of scope.

MC Colin started us off with George Papavgeris' Friends Like These.

Tumbleweed blows over Westerleigh

Frank Harte

I admit I have had to stretch a point in this report to make things look reasonable. Yes, there were only four of us last Friday, although we were joined in the bar by a couple who while not entirely involved in what we were doing didn't seem to consider it objectionable, so I've included them in the count.

Colin was MC for the evening and he asked Derek to start us off. It later transpired that Derek was suffering from some nasty lurgy but he soldiered on with Johnny Doyle (as requested the linked recording is Frank Harte).