Christmas 2025

Weihnachtspyramide, Bristol Christmas Market 2025
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

Well, we finally made it last week to the Dragon Folk Club Christmas themed session, and what a session it was. There were ten singers including two first time visitors: father and daughter, Ray and Sally. We welcome them to the Dragon's lair and hope they return soon and often.

Whether you've visited us before, been a previous regular, or haven't even heard of us until today, you are very welcome to come along any Friday we meet; this Friday, 26th December, is one of those rare occasions when the Dragon is having a rest, but we'll be back on 2nd January with an optional theme around New Year, Twelfth Night, Epiphany, and anything else appropriate that you can think of.

Back to last week, everyone contributed Christmas songs (and one monologue), starting with Denny and the Boney M. version of Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord (Jester Hairston, Frank Farian, Fred Jay, Hela Lorin) - the main song of this medley was repeated later by Sue as Mary's boy child (Jester Hairson). This is a sort of theme since Our second performance of the evening came from Paul with the Sans day carol (roud 514) and it was Paul himself who later returned to roud 514 in the form of The holly and the ivy.

Colin gave us The boar's head carol (roud 22229) on a plate (Caput apri defero ('the boar's head I bear') Reddens laudes Domino ('rendering praises to the Lord')) and Simon immediately continued the Latin strand with Gaudete, from Piæ Cantiones (Finland, 1582).

Stuart and Carrie sang two songs with their roots in Yorkshire: Sweet chiming bells (roud 936 - Nahum Tate) a version of While shepherds watched from the Sheffield carols tradition; and Kate Rusby's Home.

Ray's debut song at the Dragon was O holy night (* roud 25609 - Placide Cappeau, translated by John Sullivan Dwight). Sally kept a low profile at this stage: happy to watch and listen.

Bob temporarily cast away his signature (self-styled) miserable blues for some rock'n'roll with Chuck Berry's Run Rudolph run (* Chuck Berry Music, Johnny Marks, Marvin Brodie).

The songs new to the Dragon database were coming thick and fast as Sue gave us When a child is born (* Ciro Dammicco, Fred Jay). And so was ended the first rotation.

As usual I will list the songs sung by newcomers, in this case Ray and Sally:

• Ray - A spaceman came travelling (Christopher Davison (Chris de Burgh))
• Ray - White Christmas (Irving Berlin)
• Ray and Sally - Silent Night (Franz Xaver Gruber, Joseph Mohr, John Freeman Young)
• Ray and Sally - Winter wonderland (Felix Bernard, Richard Bernhard Smith)

Songs not already mentioned that were new to the Dragon database, though not necessarily never before sung at the club were:

• Carrie - Ring out, solstice bells (* Ian Anderson) - the second of two songs from the repertoire of Jethro Tull sung on the day the band's original guitarist, Mick Abrahams, died. The other came from Bob and was So much trouble (Brownie McGhee).
• Paul - Gods rest ye merry pagan folk (*)
• Carrie - The wren (* roud 32955)
• Sue - Santa Claus is comin' to town (* J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie) was our last song of the evening.

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

(Number of people present - 10 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 (#).

Christmas II 2019

December Grey Seal Pup at Donna Nook, Lincolnshire
(Photo: Simon Meeds)

Last week's session didn't have an official theme but predictably there were a lot of Christmas levef-overs from the previous week. Having said that, this weeks selection of recordings is a bit patchy because as with all left-overs there were the bits no one could really palate and some that seemed to repeat more than might be ideal.

This Friday, 27 December there will be a session and if you need a theme it will be Boxing Day, so expect to hear plenty about wrens and maybe some wassails as well. If that's all a bit specific for you then just come along with some songs to cheer us all up. The most important thing is that you come along and give us some support because we may need it.

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.