Candlelight Vigil @ Stanley Street, 8pm Sunday

Back in June here on the News and Reviews blog we posted our support for the Hope Not Hate campaign ahead of the European Elections. Liverpool Acoustic continues to stand firm alongside those who take positive action to combat fascism, hatred, bigotry, violence and discrimination in any form.

Liverpool Acoustic fully supports the Candlelight Vigil that's taking place in Stanley Street in Liverpool City Centre on Sunday 1st November at 8pm. It is hoped that thousands of people will congregate in support of James Parkes, the 22 year old trainee police officer, who was savagely beaten by a gang of brainless young thugs last Sunday.

I'll be there. Will you join me?

Graham

The following is taken from the facebook group that can be found here

CANDLELIGHT VIGIL AGAINST HOMOPHOBIA

Sunday 1st November at 8 pm on Stanley St, Liverpool.

This event has been organized by "friends of the liverpool gay scene" following the shocking homophobic attack that has recently taken place on Stanley St, the heart of Liverpool's gay quarter.

United by our cause, the assault of James Parkes and let us not forget the tragic loss of Michael Causer, many within the Gay community are confused, angry and at a loss over how we can make a positive lasting difference, sooner rather than later, against homophobia in such dark times.

We hear many calls for 'real action' to be taken both peacefully and with great anger, however it would be unwise for us to be overly passive and counterproductive of us to fight with fire but we can take that burning desire for change and turn into to something that will unite us in a positive and peaceful way.

This event is not a march or a chance to vent our anger but it is a chance to reflect, debate, comfort and bring our community together to show Liverpool that we have light at the end of the dark tunnel in the ongoing struggle against homophobia.

We can no longer tolerate brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, family and friends being denied the basic human right to feel safe in Liverpool Gay quarter so please bring a candle and join your friends, family and community in Stanley St this coming Sunday to light up these dark times.

This event has been arranged quite quickly and although many "friends of Liverpool gay scene" are involved anyone willing to help with the organization or promotion of this event please feel free to get involved as this is a community gathering,not a political, group or self promotional event.

The next Liverpool Acoustic monthly newsletter will follow on Monday 2nd November.

Events for weekend 30th October - 1st November 2009

Friday 30th October - Mochacoustic
8.00pm @ The Mocha Lounge, Sir Thomas Street

One of those rare occasions when Mochacoustic doesn't clash with Liverpool Acoustic Live, so get along and enjoy Gary Maginnis, Vinny T Spen, The Hang Project, spoken word, and open mic.

myspace.com/mochacoustic2

Friday 30th October - Hungry Wolf Band Night
8.00pm @ Heebie Jeebies, Seel Street

Two bands (The Scoundrels, and The Targets) and one acoustic act (Andy Pink), plus free entry, and £2 bottle offers. Sounds like a great night!

myspace.com/hungrywolfbandnight

Friday 30th October - Battle of the Bands final
8.00pm @ Osqa's Piano Bar, Oldham Street

Three weeks of heats have been building up to this. Who will be crowned champions of the Liverpool Irish Festival 2009? There's only one way to find out as it happens, and that's to be there! Free entry.

liverpoolirishfestival.com

Saturday 31st October - Liverpool Irish Festival All Star Concert
7pm doors @ St Bride's Church, Catharine Street

Now a mainstay of the Irish Festival, this year the Family Folk-up presents Sam Proctor and Chris O'Malley, supported by Des Hurley, Stevie Byrne and Tad Sargent.
Also featuring Chris Boland, John Murphy, Fiona McConnell, Liam Muphy, hosts The Random Family, and Lizzie Nunnery. myspace.com/therandomfamily1 Tickets £5 from liverpoolphil.com (Bring your own drink)

liverpoolirishfestival.com

Sunday 1st November - All Dayer
3pm to 11pm @ The Zanzibar

Basement Live launch party tonight

Tonight - Wednesday 28th October - is the official launch party for Basement Live. It takes place at Rococo, which is the basement lounge at Modo on Concert Square (off Bold Street).

The night starts at 9pm, and for the launch there will be champagne, plus the regular 2-4-1 cocktail offer, and £2 on selected bottles. And did we mention it's free to get it?

The special launch night will be gosted by Ogo Nzeakor, and feature:-

• Indie pop singer/songwriter Rich Addis


• R&B pop singer sonwriter Jay Norton


• Flamenco guitarist and singer Jay and Felix


• 1920's French Jazz duo the amazing Nouveau Django
  
  

New event - Acoustic Live Lounge

New tonight - Acoustic Live Lounge!

That's right, the legend that was Acoustic Slice is no more, and has been replaced by a brand new event in the same venue, at the same time, with the same successful format.

Hosted by Liverpool's own Barry Briercliffe, every Monday night Acoustic Live Lounge will feature two booked acts and a varied selection of open mic performers. It all kicks off at 8.30pm, and it's free.

Monday 26th October - Vinny T Spen, and Stuart Todd

Monday 2nd November - Avant Gardner, and Rachael Dunn

Monday 9th November - The Lees, and Karen Cleary

Monday 16th November - The Good Intentions, and The Rachel James Band

Monday 23rd November - Suzanne Jones, and Miles Carrington

myspace.com/acousticlivelounge

Review: Acoustic Strawbs @ Live Lounge at Baby Blue

Review: Acoustic Strawbs @ Live Lounge at Baby Blue
Sunday 6th September 2009

The gig was part of the ‘Live Lounge’ series of concerts at Baby Blue, “an intimate night of live music in stylish surroundings, featuring an eclectic mix of live bands and acts of both national and international status”.

The venue is a basement club beneath the Blue Bar and Grill in the heart of the Albert Dock which is both stylish and cosy and has great acoustics with its exposed brick walls and arches.

Acoustic Strawbs took to the stage with no introduction and went straight into their first track ‘Bless the Daytime’. I was immediately struck by their tight harmonies and energy. The intro of their opener was sung acapella and the combination of their three powerful vocals made for an impressive and engaging start. The three-piece perched on top of stools and had a laid back style, exuding a confidence and ease that comes with years of performing. Each of them wore a flowered print shirt, a nod towards the hippy-style of their formative days.

The Strawbs formed in 1964 and were the first UK signing to A&M records. They recorded their first single ‘Oh How She Changed’ in 1968 and released their debut album Strawbs in 1969. Since 2007 The Strawbs have been recording and touring in two formats. There is the acoustic format which performed tonight featuring Dave Cousins on guitar and lead vocals, Dave Lambert on guitar and vocals and Chas Cronk on bass and vocals. There is also the electric format of the band which in addition to Cousins, Lambert and Cronk features Rod Coombes on drums and Oliver Wakeman on keyboards.

Tonight’s gig was peppered with interesting anecdotes from the band’s four decade spanning career. Half way through the set Cousins quipped that he has to pinch himself when he thinks that it is forty years since the band released their first album. The band performed their debut single ‘Oh How She Changed’, a song which instantly takes you to a swirly, misty morning in the sixties. Cousins told of a festival the band appeared at in Norway last year in a town with a population of 127 where they played a 2am gig to a crowd of “Norwegian hippies”. This gig inspired the next track of the set, ‘Midnight Sun’.

Cousins introduced the song ‘Copenhagen’ as a tribute to their friend the late Sandy Denny. The Strawbs recorded an album with Sandy Denny in 1967 entitled Sandy Denny and the Strawbs. The recording took place in an old cinema in Copenhagen and was completed in a day. Cousins spoke of how Sandy Denny - who he referred to as a “skylark” and as having “the voice of an angel” – was a big part of the band’s history. The tribute to her was tender with soothing guitars and gentle vocals. The band clearly have a huge amount of affection for her and this was evident in their emotional performance of the track.

Lead singer Cousins was demonstrative and theatrical throughout the set and belted out song after song with flourishes of his hands. The sound the band created with just three guitars and three voices was impressive and filled the cavern-like room. They are certainly masters of their instruments and the guitars and vocal harmonies complemented each other perfectly. Whilst watching the gig it occurred to me that they would be perfect for the Cambridge Folk Festival. I have since discovered that they in fact headlined the festival in 1983 having been invited to reform for it after disbanding in the early eighties (they also played the first Cambridge Folk Festival in one of their earliest incarnations in 1965). I hope to see them perform at the festival at some point in the future.

The band seemed to really enjoy playing the venue with Cousins commenting on the “nice room” with its “brickwork and echoes”. Their final track ‘Lay Down’ reflected the opening track of the set with its acapella intro and strong harmonies. The band ended the gig with as much energy as they opened it with and left the stage with the parting words “See you again in another thirty years!” The appreciative crowd called for more and the band obliged by returning to the stage for an encore. A woman I spoke to at the end of the gig enthused that The Strawbs sounded the same tonight as they did forty years ago when the band provided the soundtrack to her and her husband’s courting days. You get the impression that this is a band that will play until they drop and judging from the reaction of the crowd their fans hope to see a good few years out of them yet (even if thirty may be slightly on the ambitious side!).

© 2009 Gemma Kelly - gemma[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk
Liverpool Acoustic - liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

Details of upcoming Live Lounge gigs can be found at babybluelivelounge.co.uk and include, this Wednesday 28th October, Adrian Edmonson & The Bad Shepherds, with special guest Ella Edmonson.

Liverpool Acoustic Live preview - October 2009

Liverpool Acoustic Spotlight #19
Preview of Liverpool Acoustic Live 23/10/09

1. The Complete Unknown - Shoulda Known Better

2. Daniela Bove, with Nicole Collarbone - Sunset (live)

3. Zoe Nicol - Watching Trains

4. Graham Holland - The Greens

Download the show for free
(right-click to download)

Or listen online below

(not available for email subscribers)

The next Liverpool Acoustic Live gig is taking place on Friday 23rd October 2009 at the View Two Gallery on Mathew Street. The doors open at 8.00pm and the music starts at 8.30pm.

Entrance is £4 on the door, or £3 in advance from contact[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

STOP PRESS - TUESDAY 20th OCTOBER

Unfortunately both Mark Wilson and Tony from The Complete Unknown have had to pull out of this gig due to personal reasons and illness respectively. We wish Mark and Tony all the best and hope to re-book them for a future Liverpool Acoustic Live.

Never fear, though. We've still got Daniela Bove and Nicole Collarbone, and Zoe Nicol. Also giving us a full solo set will be Rosie Jones, plus there will be a couple of songs each from Graham Holland, Tony Kehoe, and Stuart Todd.

Daniela Bove
myspace.com/danielabove
facebook group

Daniela Bove is a singer-songwriter from Buckinghamshire. At University she formed a trip hop band which she describes as being great fun. In 1997 she went solo, and two years later came across Stephan Altman on a tube station platform and discovered a shared love of folk and electronica.

Steph and Daniela worked together for a few years, with Steph becoming Daiela's guitarist, producer and friend. Daniela explains "the musical chemistry was immense.. we still fight like kids, cuss and shout at each other like brother and sister.. but come up with a beautifully ambient sound, unreflective of either of our feisty characters."

Daniela's debut album - Deep Blue - can be downloaded as an album or by track from daniela.dloadshop.com

Songs from the forthcoming live Take Three EP - featuring Daniela and her band The Belongings - can be listened to on her MySpace profile. The EP will be available as a limited edition CD soon.

Performing with Daniela Bove will be cellist Nicole Collarbone. Nicole studied in Liverpool before moving to her new job in Milton Keynes. She says that the best thing about playing the cello is that it works with so many styles and genres of music, so there is always something new to get involved in.

Over the years Nicole has collaborated with Paul McDowell, Kaya, Alister Said, Sonnenberg, MK-based Garry Murphy (as Speeding Mellow and the Crying Coach), and The Neil Campbell Collective.

In 2006 Nicole released a CD of music for guitar and cello with Neil Campbell called Fall (details here) and on 30th October this year she'll be performing with the Neil Campbell Collective at the small concert room at St George's Hall for the world premier of Frankenstein, a new multimedia work written by Neil and based on the famous Mary Shelley novel.

Zoe Nicol
zoenicol.com
myspace.com/zoenicolmusic

Singer Songwriter Zoe Nicol is a maverick in the world of folk music - a storyteller with a lyrical twist, but more than that, Zoe is an artist who possesses the rare ability to leave an audience breathless. Music promoter Paul Dunton writes “I recall the moment I first heard Zoe sing I felt completely moved and inspired, you could hear a pin drop as the audience listened intently, everyone present was totally absorbed by her performance.Her songs are beautifully crafted, rich in both melody and creative edge.”

Zoe grew up with the influence of Joni Mitchell and Eva Cassidy who inspired her to become the sincere and heartfelt artist her fans have come to love. Her captivating stage presence is embellished further by her modest and enchanting persona, she is able to reach out and connect to an audience through her live performances and recordings.

Zoe hails from Tunbridge Wells in Kent and is currently attending Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts studying performance and song writing. Her debut EP entitled ‘Walk Against The Wind’ was released in the summer of 2008 and sold out by the winter of that same year. Zoe's full-length debut album is due to be released in June 2010.

Graham Holland
itsafrogslife.net
grahamholland.co.uk
myspace.com/grahamhollandmusic

Graham Holland is a local singer-songwriter with a silly sense of humour inspired by the likes of Flanders and Swann, Tom Lehrer, Jake Thackray, and Noel Coward. Better known as the host of the monthly Come Strut Your Stuff poetry and acoustic music event at Liverpool's Egg Cafe, and latterly as the face behind the Liverpool Acoustic website and live gigs, Graham has decided to dust off his guitar strap and inflict a handful of his songs on a helpless, captive audience. Don't worry, it'll be over with before you know it.

Liverpool Acoustic Spotlight #19

If you get the chance, please support your local artists by emailing them, joining their mailing lists, leaving them comments, going to their gigs, and buying their music direct from them where possible.

The Liverpool Acoustic Spotlight is produced and presented by Graham Holland on behalf of the Liverpool Acoustic website. It is also available on the Internet courtesy of Art In Liverpool FM (Defnet Media), and is a proud member of the Association of Music Podcasting - supported by Libsyn

The theme music is King of the Faeries by Andrew Ellis from his CD Midnight On The Water.

Help required for Liverpool Acoustic Live

Liverpool Acoustic Live needs your help.

Unfortunately the person who used to look after the door for the Liverpool Acoustic Live event at the View Two Gallery can no longer make it due to changing work committments.

This means that we're looking for one or two people who would be willing and able to help out. It's nothing too taxing - all you need to do is to open the door to let people in, take their payment, and direct them up to the top floor. Nothing to it really.

We need someone from 8.00pm to 10.15pm once a month. The successful person will get a free drink or two, and can come up and enjoy the second half of the gig for free. The person will also be paid.

If you can help, or know someone else who might want to do this for us, please get in touch. You can use the Contact Us form, or email contact@liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

The next Liverpool Acoustic Live is this coming Friday 23rd October - more details to follow.

Liverpool Irish Festival 2009

Did you know that Guinness is celebrating its 250th anniversary this year? Well if you'd read October's newsletter you would. What you wouldn't know, however, is that this is the 200th Liverpool Acoustic News and Reviews blog post since we started back in April 2008, so we've got together with Guinness (not officially, you understand) to mark this double celebration.

And we thought we'd celebrate the occasion by telling you all about this year's Liverpool Irish Festival!

The festival runs from today, Friday 16th October, to Sunday 1st November.

This year's festival is as broad as ever, with heritage walks, photography, a book launch, a ceili, Gaelic Football matches, drama, cinema, and lots and lots of music.

And as far as the music goes, there are free concerts, ticketed concerts, and traditional music sessions in venues across the city and beyond - far too many to list here. Several of the music sessions have an entry charge (notably those at The Casa and in The Rodewald Suite at the Phil) which is to cover PA costs and also because these are 'super sessions' where the musicians leading the event will also get up and do some numbers on stage. However (and here's the good news!) the festival organisers want to support our local musicians so if you turn up with an instrument you will get in for free!

Most of the acoustic music events are in the Liverpool Acoustic diary liverpoolacoustic.co.uk/diary

You can also get full details from the Liverpool Irish Festival website liverpoolirishfestival.com

And you can download a pdf of the festival brochure here.

Jessicas Ghost seeking new members

Here's a question for you. Do you know of any good musicians who are looking to join a band at the moment? If so, Jessicas Ghost might be the answer.

Mart and Sarah from the band have decided now is the time to disembark from the Jessicas Ghost train so they need some more people to come on board. They are looking for people who can play one, two or more of the following instruments - guitar, keyboards, mandolin, ukelele, harmonica - or anything else that's interesting!

There are sample tunes at myspace.com/jessicasghost so have a listen and see if you, or someone you know, would like to help shape the future musical direction of the band. Those interested can email jessicasghost@hotmail.co.uk and tell them what you can do!!

Three upcoming charity gigs

The good people of Liverpool have never been shy in coming forward to support worthy causes, particularly when there's a good night involved. It just so happens that there are three fundraising events in the next two weeks which have chosen the universal medium of acoustic music to help spread the word and hopefully raise a bit of dosh at the same time.

Tuesday 13th October - World Challenge Charity Night
8.00pm @ 3345 Parr Street
Tickets £5 in advance

Kit Cooney, who some of you may have seen playing at Acoustic Slice, is attempting to raise £3500 before next summer so that he can take part in a trip to Ladakh in North India. You can check out the website here - www.world-challenge.co.uk - Basically the idea is that a group of students raise the money and travel to a third world destination to spend it on a variety of community projects doing all the work themselves.

The concert will feature sets from Kit playing as KC & The Moonshine Band, Karen Cleary, Barry Briercliffe, and Rosie Jones. It's taking place at one of Liverpool's main acoustic music venues, 3345 Parr Street.

Tickets are available from Eddie Cooney or Kit. The facebook event is here, and you can find them on myspace on at myspace.com/bronzebell or email Eddie at eddie1@waitrose.com

Friday 16th October - Fundraising gig for James Bulger House
8.00pm @ Studio 2 at Parr Street
Tickets £6 in advance from 3b records in Slater Street (next to Probe Records)

This event is a fundraiser for James Bulger House which will be a rehabilitation centre for bullied schoolkids in Liverpool City Centre.

This acoustic event features Ian McNabb, T-J & Murphy, Kaya, and Black 'n' Blues plus special guests. We can't tell you who the special guests are at the moment (the old 'sworn to secrecy under pain of something unpleasant happening' routine) but negotiations are under way at the moment and they are really well known.

myspace.com/nadalpromotions

Saturday 24th October - Fundraiser for Clatterbridge Cancer Research
7.30pm to 10.30pm @ The View Two Gallery, Mathew Street
Entrance £3 on the door

The Kevin Critchley Outfit present an evening of the finest quality music to raise funds for local Cancer Research charity - Clatterbridge Cancer Research.
They are very proud to announce that we will be joined by the award-winning songstress Natalile McCool myspace.com/nataliemccool and Pixieland's very own Kai Lena myspace.com/kailenamusic. Freshly baked cakes and a raffle will also feature - a bottle of champagne and other goodies could be yours, including free entry for a year to all Liverpool Acoustic Live gigs for two people!

Luke Moore from the KCO adds "The research done at the laboratories continues to provide breakthrough knowledge that has practical applications in understanding and treating different types of cancer. Clatterbridge Cancer Research receives no government funding- making your support and ours even more essential!"

You can find out more information from the facebook events page here.

One thing that's missing is a poster for the event, so in it's place here's a photo of the Kevin Critchley Outfit on one of their recent charity skydives.

Events for weekend 24th - 26th July 2009

Friday 9th October - Tones of Home
8.00pm @ Studio 2 at Parr Street

Ronan Boyle's monthly night of alternative songwriting returns to Studio 2 and features Homestead, My Albatros, Anne Grete Helgheim, and Blind Dog Moon. Free entry.

Friday 9th October - Ragz
8.00pm @ The Victoria Hotel, Promenade, Southport

Those of you living in the Sefton neck of the woods might want to wander along the Promonade at Southport and pop into the Victoria Hotel to experience the wonder that is Ragz. myspace.com/ragzmusic

Saturday 10th October - Battle of the Bands
8.00pm @ The Pilgrim

Although the Liverpool Irish Festival doesn't officially start until 16th, one of the mainstays of the festival kicks off tonight. Last year's competition was a Battle of the Acoustic Bands, with local outfit Letters in Red being the deserving winners. This year anything goes - electric or acoustic, rock or roots. If you want to take part you need to ring 07804 286145 to book a slot.

The heats are on 10th, 17th, 24th at The Pilgrim, with the final on 30th at Osqa's Piano Bar. liverpoolirishfestival.com

Saturday 10th October - The Red Deltas
8.30pm to 12.00am @ Studio 2 at Parr Street

Top local band The Red Deltas - Mats, Will, Alex, and Ralph - perform a rare acoustic set at Studio 2 tonight, with support from 15 Storeys.
myspace.com/thereddeltas

For up-to-date information join the Studio 2 facebook group

Sunday 11th October - Blues on the Rock
1.00pm - 4.00pm @ Fort Perch Rock

Monthly second-Sunday-of-the-month afternoon blues gig hosted by Liverpool blues duo Blue C, who will be starting and finishing the afternoon. Craftily sandwiched in between will be this month's special guest, acoustic ragtime and blues picker Graham Robinson. There will be CDs to be won, a blues disco and Talkin' Blues, where Graham will be quizzed about his own slice of blues history by Raphael Callaghan.

There is a cafe and bottle bar. Admission is £3, and all enquires should be directed to Raphael on 0151 709 5484 myspace.com/bluecblues

Review: Come Strut Your Stuff @ The Egg Cafe

Review: Come Strut Your Stuff open floor poetry and acoustic music event
Monday 7th September 2009 @ The Egg Cafe, Newington

Come Strut Your Stuff is a well established and popular open floor night which takes place on the first Monday of each month at the Egg Café on Newington. Upon climbing the three flights of stairs to The Egg you are greeted by the soothing sounds of Stan the Harper (Stan Ambrose – Radio Merseyside presenter and all round local legend) and the hustle and bustle of the busy café with the sound of clattering cutlery and lively chatter. The best way to describe the look of the café is ‘shabby chic’. I love its mis-matching furniture, purple beams and French windows which on warm nights such as this are left open, giving an airy feel to the place and allowing the sounds of the city to provide a backdrop to the evening with great views across the city’s rooftops. The café serves only veggie and vegan food which is wholesome and delicious, offers plenty of choice and is very reasonably priced. The Egg does not have a licence to serve alcohol but you can take along your own booze provided you order a main meal and pay a corkage of £1 per bottle.

Organiser and regular host Graham Holland
Photo © 2009 Keith Ainsworth

The event is hosted by Liverpool Acoustic’s Graham Holland and he does an admirable job of keeping things running smoothly throughout the night. It can get pretty noisy in the café due to the number of people packed into its relatively small space. The host occasionally encourages the audience to ‘boo’ any particularly rowdy groups in order to try to keep the noise levels to a minimum once performers take to the floor, which is essential as there is no microphone.

Tony and Lily Kehoe perform at the Egg Cafe
Photo © 2009 Keith Ainsworth

The night is divided into three sets with the first beginning at 8pm. Performers are advised to arrive early to book their spots as due to the popularity of the night the slots tend to have been filled by around 7.30pm. Graham’s co-host on this particular night Tony Kehoe takes the bookings and introduced some of the acts as well as performing some of his own songs from his albums It’s No Coincidence and Not Everything Must Lead to Nothing and accompanying his daughter, lovely little Lily, in her regular performance of The Zutons’ ‘Valerie’.

All kinds of performance are encouraged and welcomed from acoustic musicians, poets, storytellers and (on this occasion) magicians! Musicians are limited to two songs and poets to five minutes to ensure that as many artists as possible are able to perform and also that each performer knows exactly how much time they have so they don’t need to feel rushed. The slots are booked on a first come first served basis which means that there is no favouritism of artists and each night is different. There is no set ratio of poets to musicians, meaning that some nights may lean slightly more towards music and vice versa but generally, and particularly on this night, there is an even and varied spread of entertainment. The format works very well, with 10-15 minute intervals in between sets allowing the audience time to grab a coffee/cake and enjoy more of Stan’s harp playing.

Open floor poetry and acoustic music
Photo © 2009 Keith Ainsworth

I have a lot of respect for all of the performers but to name a few who I particularly enjoyed on this occasion there were brothers Tom and Ed who performed a witty reworking of the Cole Porter song ‘Let’s do it, Let’s Fall In Love’. Warrington based poet Terry Caffrey performed three poems: the first about the excitement of waiting to catch a train to travel to a first date, the second about the wonder of watching his pregnant wife’s stomach grow whilst she was carrying their first child and the third about losing a friend to Aids. All three were powerfully written and confidently performed with myself, and from what I could tell, the rest of the crowd being completely engaged by his style and delivery. He certainly made an impression on me and I hope to hear more from him at future nights. There was singer James, a first time performer from South Africa who sang two self-penned songs with a sweet yet powerful voice reminiscent of Jeff Buckley, accompanied by his rather battered looking acoustic guitar and a notebook containing scribbled reminders of his lyrics. Regular poet and acoustic performer Tom George treated us to three of his poems. He is a confident and entertaining performer and tells tales of coffee shop waitresses he admires from afar, flailing September flies he pities and cups he buys in the hope that they will be used as a precursor to ‘shagging’ but which regrettably go unused. Another regular poet is Liam whose poems I look forward to as they are always imaginative and often quite surreal. The topics of this month’s offerings were his sniper-toting granny who takes out neighbours from a vantage point on her roof and a bored man who met his untimely demise whilst carrying out his pointless and thankless day job of measuring an unnamed road!

The event has become a monthly treat for me and I would highly recommend it as a night of varied entertainment in a great venue and to any budding performers I would entreat you to “come strut your stuff’!

© 2009 Gemma Kelly - gemma[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk
Liverpool Acoustic - liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

The next Come Strut Your Stuff is on Monday 5th October, starting at 8pm prompt. If you want to perform you need to be there before 7.30pm to put your name down on the set list and to grab a chair.

Full details from comestrutyourstuff.co.uk

Liverpool Acoustic Newsletter - October 2009

Most people know that the city of Liverpool turns an Irish shade of green on St Patrick's Day each year, but that's nothing compared with the 17 days of Irish-inspired music, art, sport, politics, history, literature and craic that is the Liverpool Irish Festival. This year the main sponsor is Guinness, celebrating its 250th anniversary, so no better excuse is really needed to get down to one of the many events throughout the festival and to raise a glass to the Emerald Isle.

LIVERPOOL ACOUSTIC LIVE

The next Liverpool Acoustic Live is taking place on Friday 23rd October at the View Two Gallery on Mathew Street. The doors open at 8.00pm and the music starts at 8.30pm. Tickets are £4 on the door, or £3 in advance from contact[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

This month we've got sets from the fantastic Mark Wilson, Daniela Bove and Nicole Collarbone, the lovely Zoe Nicol, and The Complete Unknown. The night will also feature a handful of songs from Liverpool Acoustic's Graham Holland.

Full details are in the poster on the main website at liverpoolacoustic.co.uk and all four performers will be featuring on this month's Liverpool Acoustic Spotlight audio show.

DIARY NEWS

So here are this month's movers and shakers. Take it away, Fluff.

You say goodbye...

• It is with great pleasure (and no little smugness!) that we can announce that no acoustic events have stopped running since our last monthly newsletter. At least none that we've heard of!

And I say hello...

• Liverpool's Acoustic Blues Club kicks off this month in the View Two Gallery (see blog post). Hosted by local blues duo Blue C, the event is due to take place on the first Friday of every month. The opening night features music from Tom Doughty, a lap slide guitar player now of international renown. There's also music from Blue C and guests. Full details from myspace.com/bluecblues


• Acoustic Sundays at Tabac on Bold Street make a welcome return this month. It now starts at the earlier time of 7pm and still features some of the best local performers, plus open mic. Don't forget those 2 for 1 offers on bottled beers!


• Cafe D'Art in Chapel Lane, Formby holds regular acoustic gigs. Thanks to Pat Wordley from the cafe for contacting us with the details. You can get more information from http://www.myspace.com/cafedart
  
  
• The Kroaky Open Mic (great name!) takes place every Tuesday from 9.00pm(ish) at The Horse & Jockey in Melling. Thanks to Carla for the info.
  

As always, if there's anything we've missed from the diary then drop us a line and we'll add it.

OCTOBER DIARY SELECTION BOX

Here's a selection of some of the acoustic events taking place in October. Click on the event in the diary for full details and links. If your event doesn't seem to get mentioned then don't get miffed, get even. Drop us a line and we'll mention it next month.

Friday 2nd - Liverpool Acoustic Blues Club @ The View Two Gallery. Music from Tom Doughty, and Blue C. Doors open 8pm, music from 8.30pm, £5 admission.

Saturday 3rd - The Southbound Attic Band @ Cafe D'Art - 8.30pm start, and free entry

Saturday 3rd - Acoustic Dream makes a welcome return. Sue Cullen presents another great night of live music at The New Picket, with performances from The Kraize, The Jel, The Troubadours, Laney Murphy and the Hybrids, and Rain. As always, all money goes to Walton Neoro. 8pm start

Monday 7th - Come Strut Your Stuff @ The Egg Cafe. Open floor poetry and acoustic music takes place once a month in Liverpool's best vegetarian bistro. The event starts at 8pm but if you want to perform you'll need to be there before 7.30pm to get your name on the list. comestrutyourstuff.co.uk

Friday 9th - Tones of Home @ Studio 2 at Parr Street - Ronan Boyle returns with his Irish night featuring music from Blind Dog Moon plus special guests. 8pm start, and free entry.

Saturday 10th - Battle of the Bands heat 1 @ The Pilgrim - Won last year by Letters in Red. Who will win it this year? Part of the Liverpool Irish Festival.

Sunday 11th - Blues on the Rock @ Fort Perch Rock, New Brighton. Blue C host, with guest Graham Robinson. 1pm start, and £5 in.

Tuesday 13th - Charity event for World Challenge @ 3345 Parr Street - featuring 'KC & The Moonshine Band', 'Karen Cleary', 'Barry Briercliffe' and 'Rosie Jones'. Tickets £5 in advance from Eddie Cooney myspace.com/bronzebell eddie1@waitrose.com

Friday 16th - Fundraiser for James Bulger House @ Studio 2 at Parr Street - featuring Ian McNabb, T-J & Murphy, Kaya and Black 'n' Blues plus special guests.
Tickets £6 in advance from 3b records in Slater Street (next to Probe Records)

Friday 16th - Liverpool Irish Festival 2009 opens with a traditional Irish music session at Peter Kavanagh's starting at 10pm

Saturday 17th - Under the Influence VOL 12: Van the Man - Kaya's monthly showcase-cum-tribute night hooks up with the Liverpool Irish Festival, with creative covers and original songs inspired by Van Morrison and performed by Ronan Boyle, The Staves, Dave O'Grady, and Kaya.

Friday 23rd - Liverpool Acoustic Live @ The View Two Gallery, Mathew Street. Music from Mark Wilson, The Complete Unknown, Zoe Nicol, Daniela Bove and Nicole Collarbone, and featuring Graham Holland. Full details from liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

Sunday 25th - Sunday afternoon session @ The Casa - 2pm, free, and all welcome - part of the Liverpool Irish Festival

Wednesday 28th - the official launch party for Basement Live @ Rococo (Modo's basement lounge) - 9.00pm to 12.00am, this is set to be a great night with champagne, free shots, and amazing music. For more information visit the facebook events page. Further details as soon as they're announced.

Wednesday 28th - Adrian Edmonson and the Bad Shepherds @ Baby Blue Live Lounge - famous for Bottom and The Young Ones, Adrian takes to the stage with his folk punk group, with support from Ella Edmonson. 7.30pm start, £15 in advance, £18 on the door.

Friday 30th - Battle of the Bands final @ Osqa's Piano Bar - 8pm start, free

Saturday 31st - All Star Concert @ St Bride's Church - A Family Folk-up presentation, with Sam Proctor and Chris O'Malley, supported by Des Hurley, Stevie Byrne and Tad Sargent.
Also featuring Chris Boland, John Murphy, Fiona McConnell, Liam Muphy, hosts The Random Family, and Lizzie Nunnery. Doors 7pm - music 8 - 11. Bring your own drinks. Tickets £5 adv liverpoolphil.com

AND FINALLY...

After our appeal in last month's newsletter we now have two new team members here at Liverpool Acoustic HQ - Gill Newsham and Gemma Kelly contacted us to say they quite fancied having a go at this reviewing lark, so you can look forward to reading their thoughts in future News and Reviews postings.

While we're on the subject of appeals, we're actively looking for some reliable people who can look after the door at the Liverpool Acoustic Live gigs. Each month we need someone between 8.00pm and 10.15pm to let people in, greet them, take their money, and direct them upstairs. The person concerned will be paid. If you, or someone you know, is interested then drop us a line at contact[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

We've now got a Digg entry, so if you'd like to 'digg' us then you can do that here - the more diggs we get the more visible the website. Don't forget you can also digg any news items you like from the News and Reviews page. "Hi" also to our followers on Twitter at twitter.com/lpoolacoustic and those who are members of the facebook group at groups.to/liverpoolacoustic

Graham (on behalf of the Liverpool Acoustic team)