Root'n Toot'n News


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LATEST NEWS
SEPTEMBER 2008
New CD - Work on our new CD "Making Hay" is coming to a close and we hope to have them available sometime in October 2008. We have added some of the popular songs from our shows including: "Lord It's Hard To Be Humble", "Your Cheating Heart", "Deep In The Heart Of Texas" and also several songs we have not yet performed live, including a self penned song "The Words Of Love". The CD will be available at any of our gigs or via our website. The Lariat, Sacriston - At the end of quite a gruelling 4 days on the road clocking up over 1000 miles, it was great to be "back home". What a welcome we received at this club, it's true what they say, Northern folk are really friendly. This club is ace, great venue and a great atmosphere and what more could you want than to have Davy Crockett as your host, dancing on his barrel. Great fun Whitecliffe Bay, Isle Of Wight - Following our trek to the finishing night of the week long festival at this holiday park, we were more than slightly dissapointed with the lack of atmosphere. Even the DJ seemed to have had enough as he couldn't wait to get away. Faraday CMC, Slough - Brilliant, brilliant night! This was our second visit to this club and we can't wait for the next one. Everyone was so friendly and our host Roy was great company. Even the new Toffee Tin Guitar made a debut appearance courtesy of Tom Hayes.
JUNE 2008
Chew Valley CMC, Saddleworth - First impressions of the room at this club were perfect, great size, great sound and nice stage. From the moment we were greeted by Lynne & Trevor, we knew we were in for a good night, they were so friendly. All the people we met were friendly too, some we had seen before and some were new faces to us. We had a great night in this lovely club and then the moment we had been waiting for............. THE BEEF BUTTIES!!!!!!!! they were out of this world!!!!!! Well done to Lynne and Trevor for running this great club, we hope you go on from strength to strength. Rawhide CMC, Tilbury - Another brilliant night in the Southern end of the UK, it's makes the 5 1/2 hour drive seem a little less daunting when you receive a friendly welcome like we did at this club. It was great to see people turn out in happy mood and it helped create a great atmosphere from the start. It's a pity some of the line dancing folk are put off from coming along by an act even without even seeing them, because as we proved, the dance floor was chokka most of the night. When the was no dancing, everyone was joining in with our show, just fantastic. Thanks again to everyone at Rawhide we hope to see you again soon.
MAY 2008
Joe's finger - Following the removal of the bandage from Joe's finger on Thursday 29th May, things are starting to look better for him. Although still in a lot of pain, Joe is breaking in his finger gently and looking to return to gigging towards the end of June. Meanwhile we have 2 Steve's holding the fort throughout June in Joe's absence. We'll keep you posted as we get more information on Joe recovery. Hitchin Rail, South Shields - It was great to see a good turn out at The Hitchin Rail where plenty of people had turned out in their hillbilly gear. We had great fun with the folks who joined us on stage with tambourines and home made washtub bass. There were also quite a few birthdays so it was a busy old night. We like to thank Heather and all the gang for their hospitality and for making us feel so welcome yet again. We look forward to seeing you all again in November. Joe comes a cropper! - No he wasn't kidding when he said he was in agony whilst playing guitar at Geordie Outlaws in Hebburn and The Double B in Darlington. What started off as a little metal splinter in Joe's left index finger has ended in him needing an operation to lance a sceptic swelling and requiring further reconstructive surgery to replace part of his finger Joe will be out of action until at least early June if all goes to plan, we wish him well in his recovery. We are happy to announce that Steve Falkus has offered to stand in for our gig at The Hitchin Rail in South Shields on Thursday 15th May and we have also managed to cover our other gigs throughout May. Steve has also offered to cover for our first gig in June at Coquet Creek Festival.
APRIL 2008
Tamar Valley Westerners, Plymouth - As the time fast approached 7.30pm, we started to get a little worried about the distinct lack of people at this club. There were no flags, no music and apart from the few folk dressed up, you might have thought we'd turned up at the wrong place. But then .................. what's that noise??????????, sounds like a beer lorry says Mandy?????????? Off outside to take a look and there in all it's glory, a 52 seater coach with Tamar Valley Westerners written all over it! WOW!! This lot have their own personal coach to take them to and from the club, now that's class! Within minutes the place was buzzing, everybody mucked in to transform the place into the western club as it has done for the last 25 years, what a brill place. These Tamar Valley Westerners are a real friendly bunch and made us feel so welcome, even had there own Smoggy! Good owld Tony! How's your terkee Tony??? And your perpel werk shert??? We'll definitely see you lot again in August 2009 and maybe before. Watch this space. Golden Garters CMC, Treviscoe - This was a real special night, not only was it Hillbilly night but also a birthday bash for club secretary Marianne and what a party we all had. Everybody was in high spirits turned out brilliantly in all their finery (see photos) and joined in with the Hoedown and many other dances, it was great fun. We felt at ease from the start of the night as everyone was so friendly, the place was packed by 7pm. Thanks to Mike, Marianne, Gordon and all the friendly folk of Cornwall and surrounding areas for their fantastic support and for joining in with our show, we look forward to seeing you all again in August 2009.
MARCH 2008
Spirit Of The South, Ashford - We would like to thank Justine and the gang at Spirit of The South in Ashford for making us feel so very welcome at their club and for their friendly interaction with our show. We were a little apprehensive before we arrived at the club, as we know it is a big line dance venue, but we had no need to worry. From the moment we opened the show, we could tell these folks had come with the right spirit and were out to really enjoy themselves. They even went to the trouble to learn dances for our songs, but they danced to every one of our songs with ease anyway. There was a bunch of fellas who were having a whale of a time on the dance floor, where do they get the energy from, it was a real pleasure to perform for them. This is one of the busiest clubs we have come across and the numbers were down because of the closure on the M20 so it must be really bouncing when everyone turns up! We hope to play there again real soon and hopefully when there's no strike action on the ferries! We will post photos from this gig very soon. Thanks again everybody.
FEBRUARY 2008
Indian Traders, Irvine - Great night was had by all at the Volunteer Rooms in Irvine, Scotland. It was great to see Andy and all his crowd and plenty of Rockin' folk come along to support us and make it a crackin' night. Also great to see our friends from Bucks Place. We'd like to thank everyone who joined in with the fun and to those who come up onto stage. Thanks also to our host Gordon for inviting us to perform at this wonderful venue. See you again north of the border on March 15th at Ardeer Community Centre.
JANUARY 2008
"Root'n Toot'n Twosome" perform 1st gig - Mandy & Col would like to thank everybody at Northern Renegades in Burton-on-Trent and our friends from Arizona Drifters for making our first duo gig a resounding success. Our 3 sets of 45mins were well received with plenty of folk joining in and many dancers on the floor. Mandy took the microphone for a great version of Ernest Tubb's "Have You Ever Been Lonely" which had everybody singing along. Richy from Arizona Drifters also guested on our wash tubb bass for one song, what a class act, he even managed to tape up the wrong fingers!! On a sadder note we were sorry to hear that Shiela was not feeling well enough to attend the club, we wish her a full and speedy recovery.
Steve Falkus - The Lazy C CMC in Bowburn and Pat Garretts in Boldon were the first of many gigs for us with guitarist Steve Falkus. Not content with only playing guitar, Steve also makes sweet music with his Mandolin and Banjo. Adorning his dungarees and straw stetson and backing vocals, Steve makes a complimentary contribution to our Hillbilly style. Keep an eye for this guy, he's greeeeeeeeeat!!!
Joe Guillan - Mandy & Col would like to thank Joe Guillan for wonderful performances in his first couple of Root'n Toot'n gigs. He adds that little bit extra with his backing vocals, his banter and his baritone guitar (ask him to play Doctor Who!!!!). We will be seeing a lot more of Joe.
Johnny Vee Quits - Following recent complaints over guitar volume from promoters and members of the audience, whom without we would not even be performing, we had to have discussions with Johnny Vee. After the points were raised on a number of occasions, he decided that this scene was not for him and he would be pursuing his career elsewhere. Johnny abruptly left without notice and a full diary of gigs, which with Steve and Joe we have comfortably managed to fulfill.
OCTOBER 2007
Tombstone CMC, Neston - Thanks to Geoff, Terry and all of the team at Tombstone CMC for a great warm welcome. We had a brilliant night at this great venue. Thanks also to the folks who helped make the shakers which added to the atmosphere and to everyone who joined in with the fun. We saw some great outfits, it was good to see everyone getting into the spirit of the fun night. We hope to see you all again soon.
SEPTEMBER 2007
Simply The West Festival, Stillington - Cracking night at this well run festival. Everyone was in high spirits and the flasks were certainly flowing. The party atmosphere continued throughout the night and maybe into the morning!
AUGUST 2007
Tombstone Festival, Wirral - After a batch of rain soaked festivals this year, it was a relief to take part in a sun baked one and what a festival it turned out to be! This was only the 2nd festival organised by Terry, Geoff and the rest of the gang from Tombstone CMC. Last year there was a total of 10 caravans booked into the festival, this year there was 170! What an increase. Everybody was so friendly and welcoming. This festival is sure to go from strength to strength, the organisation was superb. Oh and the flowers at the foot of the stage was a nice little touch too! Keep it up gang.
JULY 2007
Americana Festival, Newark - WOW!!!! What a time we had at the 2007 Americana, not only were we grateful to be booked back for a 2nd year, but to play 3 times, it was just AWESOME! We met some really great people and many of our friends too. Despite fears about the weather, everything worked out just fine once the last of the rain left us on Thursday. Great music, Great people, Great atmosphere!! Make sure you're booked for 2008!
JUNE 2007
Skjak Country Music Festival, Norway - Our first international gig and what a great start. Norway is such a brilliant setting and this festival which was created by Alf Hosaroeygard nestles in front of a backdrop of snow covered mountains, the countryside is amazing and the fact that it didn't get dark at night was an added bonus for the late drinkers. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed that we might be included in Alf's future plans.
MAY 2007
Pat Garretts Round Up, East Boldon - This place is gonna be a smash, it's a great barn venue with a lot of hard work going on behind the scenes to make this a success. All drinks a quid!! �30 for weekend, cracking line-up, heated indoor venue, friendly organisers and staff, what more could you want, you don't even need nice weather! Well, we were over the moon to be included in the latest event at Blue House Farm and what a night we had. Fun and games even before the sound checks! Thanks Kenny. We were amongst great company on stage with the fantastic vocal talents of Michael Kenny and a great Compere/DJ/Sound Engineer/Stage Manager/Backstage Security/Event Host he is too, a real all rounder. It was great to see some of our friends in the audience especially those who came laden with gifts, thanks Kirsty! We had great fun in our 2 sets for the evening with plenty of folk joining us on stage, even the livestock got a look in! Halfway through the 2nd set we were joined onstage by a trio of piglets and half a dozen hens, one of which enjoyed nibbling away at Mandy's leg whilst she was playing. A massive thank you from us to "The Geordie Outlaws" who made this a very memorable evening, they created a fantastic fun atmosphere joining in with their tamborines, rattles, beer trays and whatever else they were shaking. We really hope to play at this festival again in the future and would recommend this as a must addition to everyone's festival planner.
Double A CMC, Melton Mowbray - Thanks to John, Margaret & Teresa for inviting us to play at this immaculately well run venue, we had a great time. It wqs good to see many of our friends from Greetham and Grantham whom we would like to thank for their support. Plenty of fun throughout the evening with birthday and anniversary celebrations and what about the beauty in the grass skirt! We sure do hope to be invited back again in the near future. ps: The grub was lovely x
MARCH 2007
Ponderosa C&W Club, Edinburgh What an absolute cracker of a night!. From the minute we arrived at the Masonic Lodge in Mount Veron Road, Edinburgh, we knew were in for a good night. The poster on the door read "SOLD OUT" and we were greeted by Aileen & Alan who made us feel most welcome from the start. We were shown around the club and into the function room which was kitted out superbly in western fashion, a perfect set up for a band like us who like to encourage people to join in with the show. All the organizers deserve a pat on the back to have such a successful club after only 2 years. We would like to thank Brian for making the initial approach to us at last years Berwick festival and all the folk who made our show a night to remember. There were lots of highlights throughout the night, but the most suprising being when Johnny Vee was bundled into the back of a car by a drunken ex-farmer (Chuck P'Ting!) and taken to a place 30 miles south of the club for an accordian lesson???? He arrived safely back the next morning just in time for Bacon & Sausage sarnies (where there's food, there's Johnny Vee!). A special thanks also to Lynn, Keith and the rest of the gang from The Spiders Web who turned up to show their support, further proof that Scottish folk are amongst the friendliest there is. See you all again soon.
FEBRUARY 2007
Spiders Web, Edinburgh - Wow we love to play in Scotland and this club proves to us why. This is the longest running Rockin' Club in Scotland at the moment and has a huge following. If you haven't been to this venue before, it sure is worth the trip. It's like a cave, a little reminiscent of a well known joint in Merseyside!. Thanks to Lynn and the gang for inviting us up for this great gig and for all the very kind hospitality afforded to us. Check out their website for upcoming dates.
JANUARY 2007
Davy Crockett Club, Barrow-in-Furness - Great to be back at this friendly club, it was worth the wait to see Maureen in her 'Hillbilly Feet' again. Thanks to Big H and June for making the trip to see us and for taking the time to send us the photos. Nice to see folk up on stage with us and joining in with the atmosphere.
DECEMBER 2006
Rays Barn, North Rigton - What a crackin' finish to 2006 with a Hillbilly New Years eve at this brilliant place. We sure are at home in this old barn with all those once in a lifetime spirits to drink!@%$*** If you know anybody who goes there, they'll tell you what we mean. That Ray sure is the host with the most............ drinks that is!! See y'all in 2007
Lazy 'C', Crowtrees, Bowburn - We were really up for this one, a Christmas party with a Hillbilly theme along with the legendary Johnny Ringo. We managed to create a new club record by coaxing 43 people up onto stage (not all at once mind, the stage isn't that strong!) to join in with our show. Thanks to everyone who helped make this a great night and we look forward to same time next year!
Stockyards CMC, Rumworth Labour Club - Well what a brill night this was, the place was packed to the rafters. Great to see so many westerners out to enjoy themselves. "Hillbilly" Howell was our host for the evening and a great host he was too. Benny Hill was there to give a rendition of "Ernie" and his legendary chase around the room. Good to see a few familiar faces there and the odd celebrity or two. Good luck to the Stockyards CMC.
Double B, Darlington - Thanks to Curly & Liz for booking us for this gig 14 months in advance, it sure was worth the wait. Despite a gale force wind outside, the temperature sure was rising on the inside, absolutely chokka is the best way to describe the night. Great atmosphere with everyone in early Christmas mood. Hope it's not too long before we're back there.
NOVEMBER 2006
Stix Music Club, Greetham - Well done to Simon for organising this gig, it turned out to be a real beaut!. Around 160 people turned out to see "Junkyard" and us perform with the "Grantham 2" spinning the wax. Quite a bit of money went to the Community Centre Development fund which was most welcomed by the committee members. Great to see a lot of Rockin' folk supporting the night, which hopefully will stand it in good stead for future gig nights at this venue.
OCTOBER 2006
Hillbilly Hoedown, Aylesford - Crackin' night of Hillbilly music at the Aylesford Community Centre with "Moonshine Mama" providing the sounds. Well organised do by Moonshine Mal who is a terrific host. Best of luck for future gigs at the "Hillbilly Hoedown"
SEPTEMBER 2006
Arizona Drifters, Burton-upon-Trent - Great Hillbilly theme night, lots of fun and dressing up. Smashing club and a great audience. Looking forward to seeing everyone again November 2007
Western Mills Festival, Bishop Auckland - Thanks to Terry for inviting us to play this festival, it was a pleasure to be part of it. A brilliant night was had by all, thanks to those who joined in with our show we really appreciate it. We do hope to be included again at this festival sometime in the future.
Truckin' L Club, Huddersfield - We can honestly say that this was the smallest club we have ever played, but what a great atmosphere there was in that room. Judy Singleton took a great part in making sure everything ran smoothly which made this a great night. Let's hope the Truckin' L goes from strength to strength.
All Tore Up, Glasgow - A good mix of people at this lively little Rockabilly club made for an excellent atmosphere in the fabulous basement room. Lovely warm reception from the fun loving Scots, thanks.
Millport Festival, Isle of Cumbrae - This was our 1st gig "abroad" with a full 6 minute ferry journey to this lovely little island off the west of Scotland. The whole of the town takes part in the festival, even all the shops and pubs take on a western flavour. Great line up at this festival, pity we couldn't stick around long enough to see everything.
AUGUST 2006
Fort San Antone - Well this was an unexpected treat for us to clinch a last minute gig on Bank Holiday Monday, due to one of Doug Adkins band members falling ill, we hope he makes a speedy recovery. If you haven't had the chance to get to this venue yet, we would truly recommend you to give it a bash, it's absolutely fantastic. Great place, great music, great food and a great atmosphere. Why not try to come along on Saturday 23rd September and support us, we would love to see you there.
Haigh Hall Steam Rally, Wigan - This was our first gig ever outside of the Country Scene so we were slightly apprehensive about what to expect, but we certainly shouldn't have been. We met some real characters and a fantastically friendly bunch of people, we were made to feel very welcome from the start by Mick the organiser, who kindly let us stay a couple of days. We were even invited into some of the exhibits, thanks to you all. We hope to see you again next year and maybe at another rally somewhere soon.
Phoenix Rebels Festival, Leisure Lakes - It was lovely to be back at Leisure Lakes to see all the gang and good to see all of Cowboy Corner propping up the bar, good for profits! This year brought a new set up of the marquee and it was certainly a big one, you could probably fit half the M6 in there! It was huge. We would sincerely like to thank John & Neil from Saloon Drifters for allowing us to plug into their PA system, we would have been lost in there without them. Good to see lots of familiar faces too, hope to see you all around again soon.
Gunfighters, Jarrow - We liked this club as soon as we walked in. We were made to feel very welcome from the start by the organisers and folks who turned up early. It was a lovely surprise to find a little extra hospitality in our dressing room too, a lovely touch thank you very much. This club is perfectly formed to allow a really good sound and has a terrific atmosphere. We will really look forward to playing at the Gunfighters again soon.
Great North Country & Western Festival, Wolsingham - What a brilliant festival, so well organised it ran like clockwork. John Tallon and his team were fantastic and the legendary Johnny Ringo was on hand to make sure the show times were on schedule. Thanks to all the folks who helped make our set such as success, our friend Eddie on washboard dueting with Tommy Two Tins and the ever graceful Jean Berry on our hillbilly stick. roll on next years GNCWF.
Malleable Social Club, Stockton-on-Tees - Great to see a lot of people took time to dress up in hillbilly gear, it was a fun night with plenty of people taking part. Cracking turn out at this spacious club.
JULY 2006
Up Country Magazine - In the August issue of this fabulous looking magazine, we were fortunate enough to have a two page article all about us in glorious colour. Thanks to Alan Perkins who conducted a wonderful interview and to Marilyn Davis who was kind enough to publish the article. Special thanks to Bill Mee for the photos.
New Queens Club, Barton on Humber - Despite lacking in numbers we had a great night at this very smart club. We were made to feel very welcome by a crowd who had not seen us before and who didn't know what to expect. Everybody joined in with our show including a few guests on stage, we were overwhelmed by the very positive comments from the folk and look forward to a swift return.
Press Reviews We have now created a page for our Press reviews please take a peek!
Americana, Newark - Mandy, Col & Johnny would like to thank everybody who made our gig at The Americana on Friday night so special. We were overwhelmed by the warm response and very positive comments from people throughout the weekend. We're just so happy that everyone had a great time and it was lovely seeing so many friends who took time to come over and say hello. Thanks to Eddie for his superb wash board playing and Davy Crockett for his lively tambourine playing. Many thanks to Chris & Bev Jackson for giving us the opportunity to perform at this world class festival. Please check out our website for pictures and forthcoming gigs.
JUNE 2006
Website update - The photos page is now in the process of being changed to slide shows, please let us know your thoughts if better or worse, or just leave a message in our Guestbook anyway!
Roosters, Stamford - This was a first for us to be booked for a Rockabilly All Dayer and what a great day. Excellent friendly venue and so well organised by Phil & co. Nice to see so many people who like the old style. Hope you will support us at another gig soon.
Gladstone Club, Northwich - Brill night! That sums it all up. It was great to see familiar faces from our previous visit to the Gladstone Club, our host Geoff with his Mexican suntan and Rick O'Shay donned in his hillbilly gear and to many others who contributed to a brilliant night!
Fort San Antone, Warton - This was our 2nd visit to this wonderful place and what a glorious day and night we had. The sun shone all day and some of the folks were right in the mood for a good time. We had a great sound thanks to Wayne with his input on the house PA system and met some smashing people and some friends we have made along the way. Looking forward to our next visit in September this year. See you all there!
HotDisc Update - Please check out the current HotDisc chart, we are now up to No11, thanks to everyone for your support.
Netherley British Legion, Liverpool - Great to be back at this lovely club. This time around there was twice as many people and they really made us feel welcome. Lots of friendly people who remembered us from last year. This is a great listening club full of folk who like to join in and sing along, even joining us on stage with our now legendary Hillbilly Stick!
MAY 2006
HotDisc - This month sees the inclusion of our version of "Cry Cry Cry" on the HotDisc Compilation No90 which is distributed to DJ's and promoters around the world. We were pleased to enter the HotDisc charts at No 25 after the 1st week then jump up to No 19 after week 2. Let's hope we gain further positive feedback from all those DJ's and media people to help maintain our position in the charts. This track is available on our CD "Raw and Uncut"
APRIL 2006
Crowtrees WMC, Bowburn - This was our 1st visit to Crowtrees WMC, Bowburn and we were made to feel immediately at ease by the calming words of the legendary "Johnny Ringo". It was a bit of a quiet night at the start, but then the first of the volunteers began to join in and it just went from strength to strength. At the last song we had 13 people on stage, marvellous. We would like to thank again everyone who joined in with us, it was great fun. Thanks to Joyce & Dave who let us tuck into some of their grub, very nice it was too (no wonder a lot of artists stay at their place!). Thanks also to the people who bought a copy of our cd, hope you all enjoy listening to it (no they're not for putting your cuppa on!!). Thanks again for all you lovely comments, please tell your friends about us.
Pickering C&W Festival, Pickering - Thanks to Kaz, Roger & Mary for booking us for the 1st Pickering Festival, we had a great time. It was nice to put faces to so many names and seeing a lot of our friends. Thanks also to all the sound and stage people who helped make our show go without a hitch, you lot do a cracking job.
Hitchin Rail, Top Club, South Shields - What a brill club! (once we got over climbing the stairs that is!!). From the start to the finish we had a great time and everybody made us feel so welcome. Thanks to all the dancers that kept the dance floor full all night. Thanks also to our friends from Rays Barn and to The Lonestars who showed up to give us support, we really appreciate it.
Sedgefield Acoustic Club, Sedgefield - Thanks to Joan & John for booking us for this brilliant venue, its great to be able to perform to an audience where everybody actually listens and takes notice of what we do. Thanks also to everybody who took the time to talk to us after our show. Hope to see you all again soon.
MARCH 2006
Excelsior Club, Westerhope, Newcastle upon Tyne - Despite there being a section of the crowd missing due to Primrose Valley, we still managed to have plenty of interaction with the other regulars who made us feel most welcome. We were also joined by a great bunch of lads from "Settlers Creek" and Joyce who was their guide for the evening, which they obviously needed. Flat Eric also made an appearance and as always had the women clamouring after him. Thanks to the line dancers for filling the dance floor with some of their fantastic footwork. All in all a great club with a great atmosphere, despite the blooming stairs!!
Billingham Cons Club, Billingham - Great turn out at this lovely club and our host the legendary Johnny Ringo really made us really feel at home. Thanks to all the folks who found our Dance Sheets of use and maintained a full dance floor for most of the night. Photos from the night are now available for viewing on our Photos Page where we have evidence of who got up on stage with us. Thanks again to everyone who joined in, we hope to see you again soon.
Club Hastings, Hebburn, Tyne & Wear - Thanks to all of the folks who turned up to support us despite a lot of regulars moseying on down to Croft, we had a great night. It was good to meet Boozed up Brenda and some of our Westerner friends who supported us at our recent visit to Ray's Barn. Thanks to Sheila for helping to keep the dance floor full for almost every song we performed!! (see Line Dance suggestions) even the fast ones....phew! Johnny Vee & Col even had a go at the fast draw! but of course Col let Johnny win, lol. Hope to see some of you folks at another gig soon.
Iona Social Club, Hebburn, Tyne & Wear - Gee they turn up early to this one, the club was half full before we brought in the first speaker. Thanks to everyone that showed up to see us and joined in with our show it sure was a packed house. Dennis alias "Young'un" turned up with his girlfriend and even stayed until the final song which we really appreciated. We were also graced with the presence of the legendary Phil from" Sunset Trio" who stopped off on his way to a slap up meal, thanks Phil. Thanks again to all the friendly regulars who complimented us on our show. We look forward to seeing you all again soon.
Phoenix Rebels, Western Frontier, Tarleton - We were greeted at this very friendly venue by our ever smiling hosts Fred & Julie Jorden, a gang of Westerners & regulars and of course legendary "DJ Alan". The fire was ablaze as usual which was very welcome as it was belting down with snow outside. Luckily we managed to get extra gas on site for the "Max & Paddy" to keep us warm. Great gig and a friendly atmosphere, can't wait for the festival. The highlight of our visit had to be the Sunday Dinner cooked by the lovely Chris which topped off a fabulous weekend. If you're ever over Preston way you must stop off at The Western Frontier, Leisure Lakes, Tarleton, it's one hell of a place!
Sacriston WMC, Sacriston, Co Durham - What a disastrous start to the night, not only was it chucking it down with rain which got us all soaked whilst packing the "Max & Paddy" but it started to snow heavily on the way, which made it a miracle that we made the club in decent time, the massive blow was when we realised we had left the bag with all the leads and mic's behind. To us it's like having a body with limbs and organs but no veins! The crowd was fantastic though, they were very supportive even though we missed the first set and sent out a big cheer when the bag of tricks finally arrived. very friendly club and a great atmosphere.
JANUARY 2006
Davy Crockett Club, Barrow-in-Furness - A great turn out for this Hillbilly theme charity night with everybody making the effort to dress up in their hillbilly gear. Our hosts Maureen & Ted pulled all the stops out for this one even organizing crazy games where folks competed for prizes. There was loads of fun and lots of money raising going on throughout the night. Once again we had loads of people joining in with our sets, playing along on washboard, tambourines and even a Jew's Harp! Another great night.
DECEMBER 2005
Houlihans CWC, Birkenhead - This was Christmas Party night at Houlihans and we were lucky enough to be booked for this gig. It was our first time at this venue at we were well impressed. The acoustics in this fantastic old building were brilliant for us. The stage was an ideal size and the place was chokka. We had people joining in with us on nearly every song, the atmosphere was great. Graham & Sandy made us feel very welcome from the start as did everyone who came up to chat to us. All the photos we took on this night have now been posted on out photos page, so make sure you check them out. We wish all of you a very Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year and look forward to seeing you in 2006.
Northern Renegades CMC, Burton-on-Trent - This was our 2nd visit to Shobnall Sports & Social Club thanks to Sheila and all the crew. We managed to get there early this time (2 hours early!!) but we were taking no chances after last time. Things went smoothly apart from Col forgetting some of the words in the last set (... was it that Burton Beer????). It was good to see a few of The Arizona Drifters there, maybe checking us out before we perform at their club in September 2006 Anyway we had a great night and yet again everybody was very friendly. Hope to see you all again soon.
Netherley British Legion. Liverpool - Wow! what a smart club, did they make all this effort just for us?? I doubt it. This is a lovely club with a perfect little stage and what friendly people those scousers are. We were blown away by the response we got from them, we were even promised a re-booking just from our sound check! We had some great characters join in with the fun, playing along on tambourines and our Hillbilly stick and once Norman had sampled the limelight he was well away with the rhythm of it all. One great guy who is 94 lapped it up so it just goes show that good old country music really does appeal to all ages. Overall, yet another brilliant night.
Gladstone Club, Northwich - We were met by Geoff, our ever smiling host and what a great bloke he is. He made us feel very welcome and put us at ease from the start. He told us a little about the club and what sort of audience we could expect and he was right on, obviously a man who knows his club very well. He told us to "enjoy ourselves" and we sure did. We played 3 sets and we were greatly received. It was nice that people took an interest in the songs we actually performed and asked us information about the more obscure songs. This club has a great layout and enabled us to get a nice sound from our modest pa system. We would like to thank all the people who turned up to see us perform, maybe out of curiosity and hope they will make the effort again in the future to support us.
OCTOBER 2005
Drovers Arms, Knutsford - Halloween night was an absolute scream. We had a great time at the Drovers yet again and hope to return soon. We were made to feel very welcome by all the folks who joined in the fun as always. Great atmosphere, great pub, great night.
Northern Renegades CMC, Burton-on-Trent - Following a last minute cancellation by The Saddletramps we were kindly asked to perform at this great little venue by Sheila, the club organiser and what a start to the day we had! Everything started off as normal, all equipment packed and ready, Mandy's double bass strapped on the roof rack covered in tarpaulin in case of rain???? and rain it did all the way for 3 hours. On the M1 in all the rain,the tarpaulin decided to start off on it's own journey which caused us to make an impromptu stop by the side of the motorway to re-adjust things. Still with plenty of time we took the turn off for the A38 as planned only to get caught up in a traffic jam right behind an accident, so there we were for another hour. Finally getting into Burton all of our map reading skills seemed to go out of the window and it took us another 30 minutes to find the club. When we finally arrived at 8.30pm there appeared to be a few relieved faces, so we got cracking unpacking all the equipment, set up and went straight into our first set despite not checking the sound, but it went fine. Everyone we spoke to were very friendly and complimentary and we went on to perform 2 further sets. We were even lucky enough to win a prize on the raffle! (and no, it wasn't a fix!!!!). So to finish off we had a great night only to be faced with a 3 hour journey back to Darlington, but that's the fun of it all. Hope to see you all again at The Northern Renegades CMC real soon.
Bidds, Langton, Stoke on Trent - Our forthcoming gig at Bidds in Langton on 1st October has had to be rescheduled due to the venue being booked by a wedding party on the same day. This was an oversight By Dave Walton, the owner of Bidds, who sincerely apologises to anyone who had planned to attend the gig. Our gig at Bidds will now take place on Saturday 21st October 2006.
AUGUST 2005
Drovers Arms, Knutsford - What a great night we had down in Knutsford with a very warm and responsive audience. We were joined by Natalie's birthday party of guests who were more than willing to join us on stage with our washboard & hillbilly stick. This was following the tremendous display of rhythmic talents of our host, Arthur (who showed us his giant pussy - even bigger than Mandy's!). We look forward to seeing you all at the Drovers Arms again in the near future.
Yorkshire Dales C&W Festival, Skipton - Thanks to all who supported us at such short notice, it was great seeing everybody enjoying our show. Special thanks go out to the folks who joined us up on stage who were full of enthusiasm, they really got the crowd behind them. For those of you who cannot come up onstage, please give us a shout at future gigs, we will be more than happy to bring percussion instruments down to you. We fully appreciate people wanting to join in but who have difficulty and will help them to enjoy the show as much as possible. We look forward to seeing you all again at Skipton next year but don't forget to check out the photo page of this years festival.
SPECIAL THANKS
We would like to say a big thank you to 2 special people who have helped us immensely with getting our band and ideas off the ground. Bill Mee (dad) for all his help with the making of our washtub bass (orders being taken!) and hillbilly stick and to Val Mee (mam) for obtaining a washboard for us. Also for their support from the start even though they were slightly unsure about our whacky ideas. THANK YOU xx
HOWDY PARDNERS!
We're sure looking forward to seeing all you folks out there at some of our forthcoming gigs and would like to invite some of the more adventurous to take part in our show. We will at some time during our performances invite 1 or 2 of you to join in and play along with 1 of our hillbilly percussion instruments. However, we will only pick on those of you who are dressed in Hillbilly or Cowboy gear unless you convince us otherwise (we may provide necessary accessories!). Before our performances we will cast out our beady eyes on the lookout for suitable candidates. The percussion instruments we will using during the performances will consist of: WASHBOARD, HILLBILLY STICK etc For the quieter ones amongst you all, there's no escape!! In 1 or 2 of our songs there are special choruses where you can join in wherever you may be.
� Root'n Toot'n 2008