EARLY August traditionally brings something of a lull across the region’s folk venues, and indeed our only notable event this week comes tomorrow night at Reeth’s Memorial Hall, with the never-say-rest perennial favourite of the local scene and beyond, Vin Garbutt.

It’s always well worth the picturesque trek up to Reeth for their monthly concerts, and tomorrow Vin has added support from Sarah Dean.

We have advance notice also of a huge national event on October 16, with Water Aid’s Big National Ceilidh, with barn dances and shindigs organised across the UK to raise money for the many people across the world to whom clean, safe water is a dream that this event hopes to help bring to a reality.

If you know a band or organisation that wants to get involved, send an email to ceilidh@wateraid.org There’s a torrent of new folk music CDs on the way, and the ones I’m looking forward to hearing include the latest from popular Anglo- Australian duo James Fagan and Nancy Kerr, a newie from Hartlepool’s harmony group The Young ‘Uns, a fine selection of Irish whimsy from Colum Sands, a compilation from the soon-to-disband Scottish group The McCalmans, a taste of Celtic class from flautist Michael McGoldrick, and long-awaited offerings from two stalwarts of the English folk scene, Roy Bailey and Rory McLeod, both with distinctive styles and a leaning to the political side of song.

Allow me also to mention my own forthcoming new album with The Bad Pennies, onto which we’ve invited a bunch of our favourite local performers to make cameo appearances, including Lou Killen, Benny Graham, The Young ’Uns, Hinny Pawsey, The Tyneside Maritime Chorus and world spoons-playing champion Bert Draycott.

There’ll be a chance to win a copy of this album in the weeks ahead, so watch out for that.