FALL ON THE FLOOR LAUGHING
Here's one thing I've learned about the Muse: don't ignore her. If it's the middle of the night and a lyric is inhabiting your dreams, don't think you'll remember it in the morning. You won't. Wake up when it's banging round your bonce and type it in your phone or write in down. Nine times out of ten it will be rubbish. But that tenth time, oh my! Here's another thing I've learned about the Muse: whether or not you hear from her, work at creating everyday, because it is curious that the more one works, the more one hears the Muse. Jo and I are early risers. These hours are our favourite of the day. There's a clarity. A quiet. God, I sound like ex-smoker extolling the virtues of quitting! But it's true for us anyway. I especially like to quietly play over whatever music I was working on the day before. The new light has a way of revealing the rough edges. I think I can hear where it works and where it doesn't. Some people refer to the Muse as Cecilia, who is apparently the patron saint of musicians. In the words of Forest Gump, that's as much as I know about that. But I can say that in my experience Cecilia works in mysterious and unexpected ways. Recently, on a particularly hot and sunny day in late July, I met photographer Natalie Shaw to take a few new promotional photos. We're in the river-port town of St Ives and have schlepped down a brick-lined alleyway toward the water. Out comes the guitar and photos are taken. We move on and repeat the process a couple more times. Later, as we're packing up, Natalie gives me a quick look at what we've got. One photo stands out. That's the one, she says. I look closer and instead of seeing a photo in the viewfinder, I see the cover to my next recording. An LP, in fact. Plain as day. No lie. I shrug it off. Later, designer Leslie Lee works her creative magic on said photo and there it is again. So it begins. I wasn't planning on making a new recording right now, but Cecilia is whispering, look again, look again. Ever attentive to the Muse, I begin recording in Glasgow in a couple days. What the bloomin' heck! How many times have I done this over the decades? Maybe this time…? To mis-quote Paul Simon: “Cecilia, you're breaking my heart, you're shaking my confidence daily… Jubilation! She loves me again, I fall on the floor and I'm laughing.”
Photo Natalie Shaw
AUTUMN UK USA!
September in the UK
10th Old Riverport Jazz & Blues Festival 2026, St Ives, Cambridge (BROOKS AND AARON)
11th Blues On The Bay, Eaglescliffe, Stockton On Tees (BROOKS AND AARON)
27th Nettleham Live!, Lincoln (LAUREL CANYON ACOUSTIC)
October in the UK & USA
4th Barnoldswick Music & Arts Centre, Barnoldswick, Lancashire (SOLO)
5th The Lightship, Blyth Harbour, Northumberland (BROOKS AND AARON)
6th Warthog Live, Gunthorpe, Nottinghamshire (BROOKS AND AARON)
7th The Atkinson, Southport, Merseyside (BROOKS AND AARON)
8th The Kitchen Sings, Edinburgh, Scotland (BROOKS AND AARON)
11th Hunmanby Community Centre, Filey, East Yorkshire (BROOKS AND AARON)
12th The Bell Inn, Bath (BROOKS AND AARON)
13th Hoy at Anchor, Leigh on Sea, Essex (BROOKS AND AARON)
15th Furred Thursday Folk Club, Chantry Chapel, Buckingham (BROOKS AND AARON)
17th Rose Garden Coffeehouse, Mansfield, MA USA (SOLO)
18th Mapleton Music Project, Hughesville, PA USA (SOLO)
23rd Cantean, New Haven, CT USA (SOLO)
24th Stone Church, Bristol, RI USA (SOLO)
25th The Heritage Series (2pm), Southbury, CT USA (SOLO)
28th The Exchange Arts, Bloomsburg, PA USA (SOLO)
November in the UK
6th Brackenfield Village Hall, Brackenfield, Alfreton, Derbyshire (SOLO)
7th Birchmeadow Centre, Brosley, Shropshire (SOLO)
12th Loughton Folk Club, Loughton, Essex (SOLO)
14th The Liberal Club, Orpington, Bromley, Greater London (SOLO)
15th Talbot Hotel, Oundel, Northamptonshire (SOLO)
18th The Lamb Folk Club, Old Town, Eastbourne, East Sussex (SOLO)
20th Soundbox Live, Chester, Cheshire (SOLO)
21st Marlborough Folk-Roots, Marlborough, Wilshire (SOLO)
Photo Jo Hurwitz Williams
BROOKS AND AARON
Come see your favourite guitar-fiddle-singing-whistling duo on tour this Autumn. Playing ALL the hits and nothing but…It's a dog and cat show for sure and we can't wait to see you!
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Whatcha Gonna Do About It
Sleeping with the Dogs
The Ballad of Hendrix the Cat
Rising
Photo Ely Folk Festival
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