9 May 2023

WHOEVER YOU ARE
   In mid-December we were on the road late at night heading for Chem19 Studio near Glasgow, where we were to begin mixing the Songs Of Don Everly album that Rab Noakes and I recorded shortly before his passing. My cunning plan was to drive as far as the Scotch Corner Travelodge, sleep a few hours, and drive the rest of the way in the morning.
   It was slow going because of the fog. And the ice. And the road works. And the road closures. It was the wee hours when we finally arrived at the hotel. Our sights were set on a couple hours sleep, so we only got the essentials out of the car.
   When I say I don't remember my head hitting the pillow I mean it, we were that knackered. At 5am - bloody body clock! -  I had that half-sleep, half-awake inventory moment where you get your bearings in a strange place. Window. Check. Door, Check. Bed. Check. Guitar. ??? Guitar. ??? I sat bolt upright and put on the light - sorry Jo! - and to my horror I didn't see my guitar anywhere.
   I pulled on my jeans and stepped into my boots and was out in the corridor to see if I'd left it there. No. Or at reception. No. In the car. No.
   As I stand in the early morning cold a hazy memory is knocking on my conscious mind. Like watching a film, I see myself in the dark of the night before taking the guitar out of the car and putting it on the ground next to the car while I get other stuff out.
   With leaden feet and sunken heart, I go back inside the Travelodge. There is someone at the front desk now. Can I help you? Yes, I left something valuable in the car park when we arrived late last night. She reached behind the partition. Oh, you mean this, she asked, with my guitar case in her hands? Yes, I said, exactly that. Some good and honest soul, arriving even later than us had apparently brought my beloved guitar into reception guessing correctly that it belonged to someone staying at the hotel. Who was that good and honest soul? I shall probably never know. Still, I say thank you. Whoever you are. My guitar is now chained to my wrist.


SUMMER'S SO BRIGHT WE GOTTA WEAR SHADES
(photo by Ecki)













MAY 2023
10th Baldock Folk Club, Baldock, Herfordshire (SOLO)
11th Crail Folk Club, Fife (with Dan Walsh)
13th Manley Village Hall, Cheshire (with Dan Walsh)
18th Black Swan York, (with Dan Walsh)
19th Village Hall Eaton Constantine (with Dan Walsh)
21st The Cricket Pavilion, Hitchin, Hertfordshire (with Dan Walsh)
27th Lawn & Tennis Club, Cambridge (SOLO)
June 2023
4th Village Hall, Nettleham, Lincoln (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
8th Barry Arts Festival, Barry, Wales (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
16th Milverton Music Club, Victoria Rooms, Milverton, Somerset  (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
30th The Bent Arms, Lindfield, West Sussex (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
July 2023
1st Folk In A Field Festival, Bradmoor Woods, West Acre (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
17th Ellis Theatre, Marlborough (Brooks & Aaron Catlow!)
27th Otterton Mill, Otterton, Devon (Brooks & Aaron Catlow) 
August 2023
5th Down Home Festival, Ilam, Derbyshire (SOLO)
13th The Brasenose Fringe Festival, Cropredy (SOLO)
27th Private Event, Barton on Humber (SOLO)


BROOKS & AARON CONCERT REVIEW
AmericanaUK reviewed our April show at Cumberland Arms in Newcastle. You can read it HERE.

 


BONUS FREE DOWNLOAD
I was thinking of songs about borders and this one popped into my head. It's Al Stewart's "On The Border" which I probably first heard on FM radio in the USA when I was a young 'un. If I were to do a border theme, what might be next? Poncho And Lefty? Dave Alvin's Border Radio? John Hiatt's Across The Borderline? What else? Get your free mp3 using the download code at the bottom of this email.


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