Arts Diary: Saturday

Moment of panic during Grannys Attic set. They tell a story of how someone reviewed another group (“the Dovetail Trio”j and referred to the band as “the guitarist”, “the lady” and “the other musician”. It sounds terribly like the kind of thing I would have done, but, so far as I can tell. It wasn’t. But perhaps my pose as someone who liked music very much but does not really understand it could be retired.

Possibly attempted to overdo Day 2 of festival. I try yo balance famous bands I like, bands I have not heard of but think I might like, with the folk club traddy singers (who are very often my favourite thing.)

11,15 - An Hour With Grannys Attic. The “an hour or so” format allows you to hear longer, more relaxed sets from the the acts you have heard in concerts. Grannys Attic remained stellar in the cellar (good) and kept the running gag about Steve going,

13.30 - An hour with Nic Dow. Nick is one of those older folkies who has been around forever, and has personally collected songs from Source asingerd. (He describes knocking on a cottage doors with a tape recorded and introducing himself as s harmless lunatic. That’s a very rude song? Did you learn it from your grandfather. No, it was on the Benny Hill show last night.) He personally discovered the song about the two farmers quarreling over a cow, and a new version of Foggy Dew. Cyril Tourney introduced him to his wife.

3pm - A Cellar Full of Folk - Daily showcase for newish acts. Sairi are a rather ethereal dual, doing some traditional songs and some traditional sounding originals. I think the one about the man who goes looking for flowers and is tempted into a fairy hill is n the latter category. Bird In Belly have more gloom and existential angst. (I would type Emo if I was sure what that meant.)

5pm - Ballads in Woodlands Hotel. Three different versions of Lord Randall, including an American one called Jimmy Randall. A very long narrative Patrick Spens. (The moral is “use quick acting poison” apparently.) Lord Owlett, definitely my favorite song about a man being torn between wild horses. A very full performance of the Floating Cloud, a moral tale about slavery and piracy.

7pm Wasn’t exactly sure where go in the evening, triggering heaps of angst snd Fear Of Missing Out. (There were three or four things I would Quite Like To Hear, but nothing I Couldn’t Possibly Miss.) Ended up at another clubby concert at the arts center. There was an African American version of the Outlandish Knight and a very silly music hall number about a lady who cries in the movies.

Mem to self: It is a Good Plan to put your , towel and washing stuff, and your programme, phone and raincoat in a single and recharger in a single bag. This saves an hour on the tent-shower-coffee-music cycle. But it is a Bad Idea to leave the lid off your show gel and drench everything in pungent peppermint Original