Absent friends

Geoff Gammon (Photo: Simon Meeds)

As you may have seen in the previous week's blog report, we heard last week of the recent death of our friend Geoff Gammon who had been coming along to the Dragon Folk Club since September 2016. Last week's Dragon Folk Club session included quite a number of songs from Geoff's repertoire.

Remember that this week's session on Friday 20th October 2023 has the optional theme of Harvest. So if you have any songs of farming, the countryside, plenty, even about fishing, now is the time to bring them out. All following of the theme, however tenuous, will be considered, and if you can't follow the theme then come along and sing, play or otherwise perform anyway.

As usual, I've tried to mention songs new to the Dragon database (*), though not necessarily to the club as well as those songs from Geoff's repertoire (@). So in order to avoid repetition, those are the symbols I will use to indicate them.

With Colin as MC we set off with the first song coming from Chris: She's like the swallow (roud 2306).

Roger sang Ramona (* roud 25739 - L Wolfe Gilbert, Mabel Wayne) in the style of the Bristol accent (complete with the Bristol "L").

John's first song was Lou Reed's Oh! Sweet nuthin'.

Colin, unwittingly, was the first to contribute to the selection of songs from Geoff's repertoire with Being a pirate (@ Don Freed).

Denny sang The bunch of thyme (roud 3) and Paul followed with Love farewell (roud 1301).

Simon sang only songs from Geoff's repertoire throughout the evening, starting with All around my hat (@ roud 22518).

Starting the second rotation, Chris gave us The banks o' Doon (roud 13889 - Robert Burns).

Former guardsman Roger took out his harmonica and spelt out his day with Reveille (*) and Sunset (*).

Colin referred to Geoff's performances of Pat Cooksey's The sick note by giving us Stanley Accrington's Sicknote: the reply (*). Sorry, there's no recording of it either here or in the playlist linked from "a selection" below.

Denny didn't claim that Geoff had sung Fiddlers' Green (John Conolly) and I can't find any record that he had, but she said it reminded her of him somehow. Paul however sang Lament for the fishing (@), written by former Dragon Derek Brinkley, which Geoff certainly sang. Sorry this is another with out a recording, and indeed one without a definite agreed tune (see Derek's 'Young Buchan' comments at the linked Mudcat thread).

Simon's next song was Battle of New Orleans (@ roud 17913 - Jimmy Driftwood).

Roger acknowledged that he risked a forfeit for singing Wild Rover (@ roud 1173). Don't worry, we don't do forfeits here.

Simon sang Robert Coltart's jingle for his confectionery business, Coulter's candy (@ roud 19019).

Chris surprised and amazed us all by reciting Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky (*). It seemed Roger was following in a similar line of thought with an excerpt from John Donne's Meditation XVII (*), but he followed that short piece with Ralph McTell's Streets of London (@).

Colin sang Peter Sarstedt's Where do you go to my lovely (@) and Simon gave us Bob Dylan's Blowin' in the wind (@).

Colin's next song, new to the Dragon database, was Soon may the Wellerman come (*). This song from New Zealand was popularised in 2021 when Scottish postman, Nathan Evans, published a video of him singing it on TikTok. The video went viral, and despite the song not being a shanty, a new wave of popularity for shanties was born. The Wellerman of the song is an employee of the Weller brothers, Englishmen of Sydney, Australia, and Otago, New Zealand, who were the founders of a whaling station on Otago Harbour and were New Zealand's most substantial merchant traders in the 1830s. New Zealand–based music teacher and folk music compiler Neil Colquhoun claimed to have collected the song around 1966 from one F. R. Woods. Woods, who was in his 80s at the time, had allegedly heard the song, as well as the song John Smith A.B., from his uncle.

Simon's last contribution of the evening was Black velvet band (@ roud 2146).

Colin finished off the evening with Stan Rogers' Mary Ellen Carter.

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

(Number of people present - 7 of whom 7 performed)

The Last Farewell

Roger Whittaker in 1971

At the Dragon Folk Club session last week it was great to welcome visitors Tricia and Tony. Tricia sings and plays the ukulele, though her instrument was conspicuous by its absence, and describes Tony as "an experienced audience".

Colin, as MC, started the proceedings with The good ship Ragamuffin (roud 10466). This is a music hall song written around 1882 by John J Stamford for William J "Billy" Ashcroft. Stamford also wrote McNamara's Band for Ashcroft. This (Ragamuffin) was the first song of the evening new to the Dragon database (usual disclaimer: not necessarily new to the club). There were many new songs for the database on this occasion, so rather than get repetitive I will mark them with an asterisk (*).

Tricia's first song was Race of long ago (*), based on a poem by Cicely Fox Smith called Racing Clippers.

Stan found us Waiting for a train (* roud 699, laws H2, Jimmie Rodgers). Simon gave us King of Rome (Dave Sudbury) before Sue took us to Big Rock Candy Mountain (roud 6696, Harry McClintock) and Bob returned us to the American railroad with Golden Rocket (Hank Snow).

Roger was showboating with Ol' Man River (Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II) before Chris sang She's like the swallow (roud 2306) sweetly despite having a frog in her throat.

And so ended the first rotation. We went on to sing an impressive total of 38 songs during the evening. You can hear mostly other people's renditions of all but one of them by following the "a selection" link below. I will however mention a subset of them starting with those sung by newcomer Tricia:

• Green grows the laurel (* roud 279)
• Breaking wind suddenly (* Les Barker)
• The Nightingale (* roud 1093, laws M37)
• Here's a goodbye to you, dear Mabel (* Don Thompson) This is the only song of the evening not present in the linked playlist "a selection"
• Farewell to the Clan Line (* Ron Baxter, Ross Campbell)

Talking of "farewell", Simon noted the recent death of Roger Whittaker to whom he was originally introduced by his parents' record collection. He didn't sing The last farewell (Roger Whittaker, Ron A Webster) in the title of this report, but rather Durham town (Roger Whittaker), complete with the geographical inaccuracy which sees the River Tyne flowing through the city rather than the Wear.

Stan and Bob both sang several songs from the pen or the singing of Hank Williams with the effect of marking his recent hundredth birthday. Among them was Stan's rendition of Jambalaya (* Hank Williams, Moon Mullican).

Other songs sung during the evening included:

• Stan - Take these chains from my heart (* Hy Heath, Fred Rose)
• Sue - Gatherin' rhubarb (* Keith Hopwood, Phil Bush), from the mini-series Soul Music based on the Terry Pratchett novel of the same name
• Bob - Drivin' nails in my coffin (* Jerry Irby)
• Stan - Hawaiian sunset (* Sid Tepper, Roy C Bennett)
• Sue - Make you feel my love (* Bob Dylan)
• Colin - I married my Jenny Wren bride (* Shep Woolley)
• Stan - Poor little fool (* Sharon Sheeley)
• Stan - I'm just a country boy (* Fred Hellerman, Marshall Barer)

Simon finished the evening with a rousing chorus song: 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)

Christmas 2018

A very satisfactory number of singers were present at our Christmas session last week and not only did they enjoy the singing but also the nibbles at the break - more than just the expected mince pies though there were plenty of those too. Officially this Friday's session (21 December) has no theme but if you want to continue with Christmas, Yule, Bah Humbug or anything else seasonal then no one will stop you.

MC Colin made an earlier-than-usual start with Gather Round The Family (Bonny Sartin), so it was only during Tom's first song, You've Got A Friend (Carole King), that Mike and his canine companion, Indy arrived.

Terry H was trying some of the songs he plays less frequently and some entirely new material. The first of these was Lady Franklin's Lament (Roud 487, Laws K09).

Christmas 2016

Photo: Nick Webb

Our Christmas session didn't get off to a good start. When I arrived we were based on the cold, dark patio and definitely not singing. One person had already given up and gone home and Colin was threatening not to have a session the next week (this week, 16 December).

The reason for this turmoil was that a wake was taking place in our usual bar and a children's party in the main bar. Eventually the wake finished and we were allowed in. We actually got started before 9 o'clock and despite competing with the children's disco for the first few songs things soon quietened down, so despite possible rumours, there will be a session this Friday at The New Inn. Remember though that we will not meet on 23 and 30 December, so the next Dragon Folk Club session after 16/12 will be on 6 January. More details of that will come out later this week, so please be sure to be at this week's session, or failing that read the blog or any announcements that may appear on our Facebook page in the next couple of weeks.

A cornucopia of song

Frederic Weatherly, the Englishman
who wrote Maggie's nemesis song, Danny Boy

Before I get started on this week's report I must remind you that due to a private party in our usual venue, there will be no Dragon folk club session this Friday (22 April). We will be back with a belated St Geoge's Day theme next week (29 April), when you may also wish to mark Wthe 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death.

Last week's Dragon session was surprisingly well attended given the absence of a couple of regular faces. It's always good to see Tom and Terry H in our midst, and Paul was a surprise visitor. Apparently he was all geared up to go to another club on the night but realised at the last minute it wasn't on, so he made the long journey from home to see us, at least for the first half.

Note that this is the semi-regular Paul and not Paul of Paul and Jenny last week. If they both turn up together I'm going to have to ask for surnames. Oh, the lot of the blog writer is a stressful one. ;-)