Keep me informed (From The Northern Echo)

Keep me informed

6:36pm Thursday 5th January 2012 in Folk By Jez Lowe, Folk Music Columnist

I START the year with a plea to promoters, organisers and artists to make a real effort to keep me informed about your events, news and plans in the months ahead, by emailing me here at jez@jezlowe.com.

Later this month, I’ll be off on my travels once again, and will be otherwise unreachable for a good few weeks. I’d hate to think our readers might miss out on any of the great folk music that is happening locally.

This week begins at Skelton’s Duke William where tonight local lass Marie Little is their first guest of the year.

On Saturday, The Doonan Family make their traditional appearance as opening act on the Davy Lamp’s alwaysimpressive calendar of concerts over in Washington. My own traditional first local gig of the year is a solo show at Westoe Club in South Shields on Sunday night.

Monday’s choice is between local singer and guitarist Graham Walker at Stockton’s Sun Inn, and wild wackiness from the irrepressible George Welch at Newcastle’s Bridge.

Finally, followers of Facebook might be interested in tracking down a set of photographs posted by Martin Whitley, taken by his late brother, Graham, during the Seventies and early Eighties, and featuring many familiar local folk faces at events like Redcar Folk Festival, Durham Folk Festival and lots of other memorable get-togethers from our younger days.

Graham Whitley was at the heart of the local scene for many years, as a singer, dancer, organiser and general life and soul of the party, and it’s nice to see his legacy making an appearance once again after all these years. Was our hair really that long back then?