Stamford

Guitar Festival


6 to 8 June 2008

Andy Fairweather Low Band

Martin Simpson

Michael Chapman

Kevin Brown 

Rachel Harrington with Zak Borden

Guy Buttery with Nibs Van Der Spuy

Michael Gray

Steve Hicks

The Hula Bluebirds

A good friend of the Guitar Festival (John Miller from Seattle) once said that looking after guitar players over a weekend was like herding cats. You could say that about programming one! This year I’ve had a lot of help from John Montague (Monty’s Music) without whom….

The Guitar Day in 2007 was a great success – we’ll steal a few ideas from that for this year! – and we’re thrilled, not to say relieved, to present another line-up of first class guitar players from around the world. From the UK we have some of the finest from the north, the south, the midlands and Wales, alongside visitors from South Africa and the US. And that includes well known guitarists like Andy Fairweather Low, Martin Simpson and Michael Chapman ably complemented by less well known players like Kevin Brown, Guy Buttery and Steve Hicks. Dare I say it? – we’re in for a treat!  David Popple Stamford Guitar Festival

 “One of the best festivals. Everybody wants to play there” Michael Roach


Friday 6th 8pm Theatre £14 (£12 concs)

 

8.00pm Guy Buttery with Nibs Van Der Spuy

8.45pm Rachel Harrington with Zak Borden

9.30pm Martin Simpson

 

Saturday 7th 4.30pm Theatre (Fri/Sat tickets, Weekend & Day tickets)

 

4.30pm In Search of Blind Willie McTell– talk by Michael Gray

5.30pm Andy Fairweather Low in conversation

6.45pm Kevin Brown

 

Saturday 7th 7.30pm Ballroom £16 (£14 concs)

 

7.30pm Guy Buttery with Nibs Van Der Spuy

8.30pm Michael Chapman

9.30pm Andy Fairweather Low Band

 

Sunday 8th 5.00pm Theatre £12 (£10 concs)

 

5.00pm Steve Hicks

6.00pm Kevin Brown

7.00pm Rachel Harrington and Zak Borden

8.00pm The Hula Bluebirds

Ticket Prices:

Weekend ticket: £50 (£45 concessions)

Friday concert £14 (£12 concessions)

Friday night/Saturday (til 6.00pm) £23 (£20 concessions)

Saturday ticket: £27 (£25 concessions)

Saturday concert £16 (£14 concessions)

Sunday ticket  £23 (£20 concessions)

Sunday concert  £12 (£10 concessions)


BUY TICKETS ONLINE NOW

Information & tickets 01780 763203


GUITAR FESTIVAL WORKSHOPS

 

 

Andy Fairweather Low Band

Andy Fairweather Low remains one of the UK's most eclectic and charismatic musicians - heartthrob superstar with Amen Corner in the 60s, solo star in the 70s and revered session and sideman since. Andy was born in 1948 in Cardiff and rose to prominence in the 1960’s. His vocals and his distinctive voice were the perfect lead for Amen Corner who scored 6 memorable hits between 1967 and 1969 including No 1 ( If Paradise is ) Half As Nice. More recently Andy has made notable contributions to other people’s records with his appearance in 1978 on The Who’s album ‘Who Are You’ and then became the “in demand” player and Ultimate Guitarist to the stars, building an extraordinary reputation that has endured to this day. In the early nineties Andy joined Eric Clapton’s band with which he stayed until 2003 touring and recording the ‘Unplugged’, ‘From the Cradle’ and ‘Riding with the King’ albums with him. But perhaps it was inevitable that one day Fairweather Low would be tempted to return to the studio in his own right. Twenty-six years was a long wait but his album ‘Sweet Soulful Music’ signaled a welcome return for one of the UK’s most distinctive artists, as heartily endorsed by many of the world’s greatest talents. The current band – The Low Riders - is also a who’s who of the best players on the rock scene, joining Andy on drums is Paul Beavis, Richard Dunn on keyboards and on bass, long standing associate Dave Bronze. On 2nd June 2008, Andy will release 'The Very Best Of Andy Fairweather Low - The Low Rider' on Proper Records. This new album is a compilation of re-records of all his greatest hits and other handpicked tracks. Make sure you get your hands on a copy.

Martin Simpson

Martin Simpson's guitar playing is unsurpassed; he is one of the finest finger pickers and slide pickers of our time and was recently named one of the top artists of the decade by Acoustic Guitar Magazine. Winner of 5 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards - 2 of them in 2008 for Best Original Song and Best Album - an Indie Award for his album Cool & Unusual, and the 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Ards Guitar Festival, he is a superb interpreter of traditional music and song from both sides of the Atlantic. Growing up in Lincolnshire he was inspired by the likes of Martin Carthy, Davey Graham and Richard Thompson during the folk revival of the 60s. He was also hugely influenced by the recordings of Big Joe Williams, Rev Gary Davis, Blind Willie Johnson and Doc Watson, which has led to an eclectic style of playing and repertoire that is all his own. He has worked with the likes of Jackson Browne, David Lindley, June Tabor, Martin Carthy, Martin Taylor and Eric Bibb. Both spell-binding, and highly entertaining, he is a master of his craft.

Michael Chapman

Michael Chapman first became known on the Cornish Folk Circuit in 1967. Playing a blend of atmospheric and autobiographical material he established a reputation for intensity and innovation. Signed to EMI's Harvest label he recorded a quartet of classic albums. LPs like 'Rainmaker' and the influential album 'Fully Qualified Survivor', which was John Peel's favourite album of 1970. In response to public demand Michael recorded a solo album 'Almost Alone' presenting the relaxed eclectic mix that was a Chapman club gig. And it featured a tribute to John Fahey – “Fahey’s Flag”. “This white blues guy from Yorkshire must be one of the most under-rated guitar heroes of our time.”

Kevin Brown

Kevin Brown is a highly respected guitarist and performer of over 30 years standing. Born in Lancashire, the son of a signwriter and schoolteacher Kevin has been inspired from an early age by the blues and its related genres. With eight solo albums to his credit and countless international live performances from the Main stage at Glastonbury to the many beer joints of Texas where he once lived, Kevin has managed to keep a fresh approach to his craft whilst paying his respect to the blues masters of the past. “Kevin offers so much more than your average slide player” Mark Knopfler “He’s a living legend, white soul blues at its very best” Mojo Magazine “One voice, one slide, one guitar, he leaves other slide merchants standing in his dust” Guitar Magazine

Rachel Harrington with Zak Borden

Rachel grew up in a small town in Oregon with a deep Pentecostal upbringing, from families of Danish dairymen and Irish lumberjacks. As a child, her only exposure to music was gospel - that and her father's secret Stax/Motown collection he'd amassed since his return from Vietnam. She especially loved the black gospel groups as well as Otis Redding and Sam Cooke. Later, Rachel fell under the spell of Hank Williams, George Jones and Loretta Lynn, thanks to the influence a horse-riding teacher whilst staying with relatives in Montana. Then she moved to Texas. From the crossroads of country, folk and bluegrass, Rachel's 2007 debut album, The Bootlegger's Daughter, featured some of the Northwest's finest musicians, and became a top-shelf spin on Bob Harris's renowned BBC program. Rachel is touring with duo partner and multi-instrumentalist Zak Borden on vocals, mandolin and guitar. MOJO: FOUR STARS! "This self-assured debut is a primer in Americana" "An absolutely brilliant debut... already a contender for Album of the Year in my opinion!" ~Bob Harris, BBC Radio

Guy Buttery with Nibs Van Der Spuy

Born in November 1983, guitarist and composer Guy Buttery was raised in a small coastal town along the South African coast against the Indian Ocean. His mother played the piano and his older brothers played guitar, and the sounds of The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Dylan and Bob Marley made their way into the teenager’s songbook. Practicing hours every day on his older brothers ‘hand me down’ Sae Han guitar, these icons opened doorways and became the impetus to pursue a wider range of styles. During these formative years, he got an understanding of rock and folk harmonies, almost serving an apprenticeship for greater things to come. At the age of 13, Buttery was introduced to classical harmony through his first guitar teacher, Leandros Stavrou. The quest for new musical boundaries was inevitable, and through friend, guitar teacher and present collaborator, Nibs van der Spuy, Guy was introduced to fingerstylist extraordinaire, Michael Hedges. Guy then went on to study Jazz at the Kwa-Zulu Natal Technikon and later on, at the Durban School of Music to reunite with Leandros Stavrou, to further his classical training.

Michael Gray

This is more a one-man show than a talk. The author of "Song & Dance Man III: The Art Of Bob Dylan" - the definitive study of Dylan’s 40-year body of work - uses a surprising selection of great records to show how hugely Dylan has been inspired by the blues and how much of its poetry has been smuggled inside Dylan’s own work.HAND ME MY TRAVELIN’ SHOES: IN SEARCH OF BLIND WILLIE McTELL .Blind Willie McTell was the greatest blues singer Georgia had ever produced. He had made records for several major labels in the 1920s and 30s, but by the 1950s had sunk into drunken obscurity. Following a chance encounter with a music shop owner from Atlanta, McTell makes a last recording in 1956 that is discovered by a Blues researcher three years later. The Last Sessions, which includes McTell’s ‘Statesboro Blues’, is released and kicks off the blues revival that will become a shaping force within the Greenwich Village folk phenomenon, part of the whole burgeoning scene that encompasses the New Left, the civil rights movement, the rise of Bob Dylan and more. Nevertheless McTell dies poor, neglected, and forgotten. This book tells the extraordinary story of McTell, as well as the story of the journey and research that Michael undertook. “Michael Gray is a witty, effusive, self-deprecating speaker. A wonderful eye-opener of an evening.” Cork, Ireland, Oct. 2002

Steve Hicks

Steve Hicks is a British acoustic guitarist who expresses his artistry through a rich and ever broadening repertoire.Steve Hicks is an acoustic guitarist and singer (and luthier) with an eclectic approach, reflecting his interest in music of different cultures and times. With songs and instrumentals ranging from ragtime, story songs of past times and present to South American virtuoso guitar pieces, dance tunes, songs of personal experience, melodies from the timeless Celtic Tradition and sophisticated contemporary composition. In performance he displays confident technique, flair and occasional dry humour. He is experienced in folk club, concert, festival, workshop and radio performance in the British Isles and North America. And the good news – he lives in Leicester!

The Hula Bluebirds

The Hula Bluebirds consist of fretboard wizard Martin Wheatley on steel guitar, yodelling supremo Jake Rodrigues on guitar and lead vocals and magician David Crofts on ukulele. For the past decade they have been creating the sounds of hot Hawaiian music from the 30's and 40's whilst injecting it with their own charm and personality, a classic Hawaiian trio with an authentic sound. They have played at numerous jazz and guitar festivals around the country and beyond. In 2002 they teamed up with Lei Aloha, the UK's most authentic Polynesian dancers, now making the Hula Bluebirds' show a truly visual experience. Martin Wheatley (guitar ,steel guitar ,banjo, ukulele) specialises in musical styles of the 20s, 30s & 40s - jazz, blues and Hawaiian. His first musical influences were country blues artists such as Skip James and Furry Lewis. This developed into an interest in jazz via the New York School of Eddie Lang, Joe Venuti and Bix Beiderbecke