February marks the first anniversary of the Liverpool Acoustic Live event (see below) and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than by launching our new-look website and brand new logo. Fab, isn’t it? The graphics have all been created for us by James Wafer from Bluewhistle Creative, and what a splendid job he’s done too!
Moving on to the reason we’re here… and there’s lots going on this month. Liverpool’s classical guitar virtuoso Neil Campbell has two concerts taking place at The Unity (4th & 5th), and the following day sees The Family Folk-up (6th) restart after a New Year break, having moved to the Black-E while roof repairs are carried out at St Brides. One particularly busy week sees the launch of Joe Topping’s new album at the Pacific Road Arts Centre (20th), the visit of David Ford to the View Two Gallery (24th), the launch of the Woody Guthrie Folk Club (25th), and Liverpool Acoustic Live’s first birthday (26th). I think we’ll need most of March just to recover!
February also sees visits to Merseyside by a plethora of acoustic and folk musicians, including Kathryn Tickell, Tom Paxton, Martin Simpson, the Phil Beer Band, Miles Hunt and Erica Nockalls, Eduardo Niebla, Ashley Hutchings and Ken Nicol, Judy Collins, and Moishe’s Bagel. Some of the highlights from February’s calendar can be found in the Diary Selection Box below.
LIVERPOOL ACOUSTIC LIVE
January’s Liverpool Acoustic Live was jam-packed, and a highly appreciative audience enjoyed music from Andy Chandler, Vinny T Spen, Suzanne Jones, and Sparkwood & 21. A huge thank you to the artists who donated their time for free – this meant that the door money and some very generous extra donations raised a total of £240 for the DEC Haiti appeal.
This month Liverpool Acoustic Live takes place on Friday 26th February and features the return of Stephen Langstaff. Since playing at the very first Liverpool Acoustic Live last year Stephen has gone on to become the first unsigned act ever to headline at the Liverpool 02 Academy main stage. This was followed by a support slot for The Lightning Seeds at The Phil, and a support slot for Deacon Blue at Liverpool Arena! However, Stephen hasn’t forgotten his unplugged roots and is looking forward to debuting a number of brand new songs in a rare solo acoustic outing.
Stephen is joined on the bill by the return of local musician, and organiser of the Acoustic Live Lounge, Barry Briercliffe. Also on playing for us on the night is LIPA graduate Ashley Théberge showing off her French-Canadian roots with her refreshing sound. The final spot is taken by London-based musician Nigel of Bermondsey, former bassist with 1990s Britpop band Gay Dad.
This is due to be a very popular night and those wishing to attend are advised to buy their tickets in advance. There are only 50 tickets available for this intimate gig, and once they’re gone, they’re gone. Entrance is £4 on the door (if there are any tickets left!) or £3 in advance from wegottickets.com
Doors open at 8.00pm with music starting at 8.30pm sharp. The night finishes at 11.15pm
The facebook event is here.
DIARY NEWS
- There’s a new folk club opening on Thursday 25th February. Called the Woody Guthrie Folk Club it meets in the upstairs room at the Ship and Mitre on Dale Street on the last Thursday every month. Full details can be found on the facebook event page, and we’ll be plugging it here closer to the time.
- Three regular events are returning after an extended break: they are Homegrown (4th), the Family Folk-up (6th) and T-J & Murphy’s Studio Two residency (19th).
- The Liverpool Guitar Society is a brand new group set up for anyone interested in classical guitar. They are looking to run monthly meetings, and once the dates are confirmed we’ll post them here.
FEBRUARY DIARY SELECTION BOX
Here’s a selection of some of the acoustic events taking place in February. Click on the event in the diary for full details and links. If you’d like your event to get a special mention in a future newsletter then let us know.
Monday 1st – Come Strut Your Stuff @ The Egg Cafe. Open floor poetry and acoustic music takes place once a month in Liverpool’s best vegetarian bistro. The event starts at 8pm but if you want to perform you’ll need to be there before 7.30pm to get your name on the list. comestrutyourstuff.co.uk
Tuesday 2nd – Out of the bedroom @ Leaf Tea Shop & Bar. Open mic hosted by Johnny Sands. 8pm start
Wednesday 3rd – Kathryn Tickell @ Pacific Road Arts Centre. 8pm start, and tickets £16
Thursday 4th – Homegrown @ 3345 Parr Street. Returns after a break with music from Martin Harley, Naomi Mather, Laney Murphy, and Christopher Wood. 8pm free entry.
Thursday 4th/ Friday 5th – Neil Campbell in concert @ The Unity. With special guests Thomas Lang, Sense of Sound’s Perri Alleyne-Hughes, cellist Nicole Collarbone, and soprano Anne Taft. 8pm start, tickets £8 (£6 conc)
Friday 5th – Tom Paxton @ The Phil – The legendary folk singer Tom Paxton visits Liverpool. 7.30pm start, tickets £20 & £25
Friday 5th – Friday Night Acoustic @ upstairs at The Zanzibar. 1st and 3rd Friday every month.
Saturday 6th – Family Folk-up @ The Black-E. Music from Table, The Random Family, Temple Fire, and Jukebox Gypsy. Doors 7.30, admission £5. Bring your own drink.
Saturday 6th – Martin Simpson @ Pacific Road Arts Centre
Saturday 6th – Phil Beer Band @ The Citadel, St Helens
Saturday 6th – Miles Hunt and Erica Nockalls @ The Rodewarld Suite (The Phil)
Friday 12th – Eduardo Niebla @ The Rodewald Suite (The Phil). Formidable flamenco-jazz guitar virtuoso, Eduardo Niebla is technically superb and breathtakingly versatile. 8.30pm, £12
Tuesday 16th – Ashley Hutchings and Ken Nicol @ The Brindley. Ashley Hutchings was the founder of Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band. Ken Nicol was a member of the Albion Band and Steeleye Span, and currently co-hosts Folkcast. 8.00pm start, tickets £12 (£10 conc)
Friday 19th – T-J & Murphy @ Studio 2, Parr Street. The acoustic guitar duo return for their regular showcase, playing the first set as a duo and the second set with their band. 9pm – free entry.
Saturday 20th – Joe Topping album launch @ Pacific Road Arts Centre, with special guests Elbow Jane, and the Tom Topping Band. 7.45pm, £10
Saturday 20th – The Songbook Sessions @ The Zanzibar. Laura James, Ian Dunn, Gavin Mckew, Kaya, Dan Wilson, Rachael Wright, and Hannah Atkins. 7.45pm start.
Wednesday 24th – David Ford @ The View Two Gallery. A Mellowtone gig, with support from Ragz. Doors 8pm. STOP PRESS – this event is now SOLD OUT.
Thursday 25th – Woody Guthrie Folk Club @ The Ship & Mitre. Where better than upstairs at one of Liverpool’s best real ale pubs to launch a brand new folk club dedicated to the memory and spirit of Woody? 7.30pm doors, 8.00pm start, 10.30pm finish. £3 entry, or free to singers.
Friday 26th – Liverpool Acoustic Live @ The View Two Gallery. Our first birthday bash features Stephen Langstaff, Barry Briercliffe, Ashley Thebérge, and Nigel of Bermondsey. 8pm doors, music 8.30pm to 11.15pm. Tickets £3 in advance, £4 on the door.
AND FINALLY…
Would you like to try your hand at writing a gig or event review for the News and Reviews page? There are always more gigs than the current team can ever hope to attend, so if you’d like to review one for us that would be great. As an official journo you’ll get into many ticketed gigs for free and we might even print you an official Liverpool Acoustic press pass! If you’re interested then drop us a line using the Contact Us form or by emailing contact[at]liverpoolacoustic.co.uk
While you’re on the new-look Liverpool Acoustic website why not leave a message in our Guestbook? Tell us what you think of the redesign, and let us know if you think we could add anything else to the site to make it even better.
Graham, on behalf of the Liverpool Acoustic Team