An amazing guitar video

Fantastic spirit evident in this guy's music.  Gotta love it.

J

A game whose time has come!

An idea inspired by a friends Wii console...

A great way to introduce a new generation to their diddly-dee destiny.

Folk On!!!

The Genius of Les Barker

Just noticed this one on the web while doing some updating of the site.

On the last night of our cloudstreet gigs at Shrewsbury Folk Festival this year, Nic lost her voice.  This presented some significant issues for us.  Out of the hat came a song that we'd recorded for Les Barker a few months before, his parody of many ballads, Mrs Groves.  It being a feature of modern life that everything you do will be filmed by somebody, this rare solo performance (with words being read off sheets held up by five people in the front row, hence John's erratic movements) found its way to Youtube.  

It would be wrong not to share...

enjoy.

(with thanks to Ken.)

The circles in which cloudstreet fans move

Our great mate Sarah, was on a "Walk to Work Day" today and took the opportunity to not only ensmall her carbon footprint for the day, but she also wore her favourite cloudstreet t-shirt for the occasion.

Not content to mingle with the crowd, proud Sarah strode forth with her husband and best friend Mark, grabbed the nearest Premier of Queensland (Ms Anna Bligh) and had her photo taken to prove to us that powerful movers and shakers look even better standing next to our shirts

Sales are expected to leap upwards, contrary to all the market trends.

Does my old heart good.

Now, what colour would suit Sarah Palin?

See you down the road,

John

Back home and loving it

After a long tour, with lots of side-trips, driving, gigs and lovely people, we made it home safe and sound.  In the first two weeks back, John was straight back to work, joining up with some of the guys from Tulca Mor to do schools workshops organised by the Australian organisation Musica Viva.  25 gigs in the first two weeks, then a week off, beginning with the marvellous (and relatively new) Neurum Creek Music Festival.

After a blustery summer packed with music, it was a delicious culture shock to be back at the style of festival we grew up with.  Relatively small, lots and lots of familiar faces, one stage amongst the trees, and a sunny weekend to enjoy it all camped under the mountain.

 We talk a lot about the community of musicians in Australia and being at this festival, so close to our returning to Australia, really revitalised this sense of belonging.  As much as we enjoy touring, home is home, and Neurum Creek was home to us.

After the weekend at Neurum, it was time for the beach and we set up camp by the water at Mooloolooba, about half an hour from where we live up at Maleny.  The weather was clear, the water was beautiful and we did some serious kicking back for a few days.  

Then it was back up the mountain and the long journey to the surface of the desk began.  We've got a lot of recuperating to do, a lot of paperwork to sort and a lot of music to play.

Lots of love from 

John (the one on the right)

Dinner Music

 Waking in a cold sweat, I remember the music that was playing in the restaurant in Brunei as I ate dinner.  (They played it again over breakfast).

 

This track may well have the magical power to assist digestion.  Then again, it may not.

The decision is yours.

(in advance, I apologise for how catchy this track is.  I hope by sharing that I can stop thinking about it for a while).

enjoy,

J

Home at Last

Shrewsbury was a fabulous way to finish the tour, and we even got to see the Ukelele Orchestra of Great Britain and the New Rope String Band all in one night.  Loved it!  All this after 4 gigs on our final day.  By then end, our voices were a little ragged, but we had fun and made it to the finish line.  The the sleepfest began.

A drive to Essex the next day.

Dropping Nic at the Heathrow hotel and then returning the hire car to Yorkshire the next day, followed by the megabus to London and the tube to Heathrow and the bus to the hotel.  Sleep came readily.

The morning saw us head to Heathrow, check in and fly to Brunei via Dubai.

And then......

Bliss.  Due to a change of flights, we had a 24-hour stopover in Brunei.  A hotel and we just crashed onto the beds.  6 hours later we staggered off to dinner.  Nic went back to bed, and I (with a touch of gloating in my tone) went to the gym at the hotel.  Then I slept too.

We arose, refreshed and revitalised.  Bright and cheery, the hotel shuttle took us to Brunei International and the last flight home.

It was joyful and wonderful to fly into Brisbane, be greeted by a close friend and then (while Nic stayed in Brisbane to visit a recently (and temporarily)  invalided aunt, and prepare her part in a photo and poetry exhibition for next week.  I drove up to Maleny.

I loved coming home to this beautiful house in the hills.  

And so the next day I had a rehearsal for the schools concerts that start on Monday.  Another rehearsal today and an early start tomorrow.

What, and give up showbiz?

Living the life, creatively and with love,

John

Zooming

Nicole Murray and the Wallace Monument (now there's a name for a band)

We left Denmark.

We drove to Kent and played. We drove to Hampshire and played. We drove to Yorkshire and slept. We drove to Lancashire and played and an origami koala watched us the whole night.  cloudstreet under a marsupial spotlight (bet you weren't expecting that expression)

Next day we were off to Scotland and cloudstreet once again appeared in front of the finest backdrop on the contemporary acoustic music scene - the Stirling Folk Club.

Brace yourselves......

We did spend a considerable time on wardrobe choices.

A week's holiday followed on after that mad week of racing up the country.  The rest was much-needed and joyful, the photos are legion.  I'll report back on that lot soonish.

In the meantime, we're off to Shrewsbury today, madly packing for home and wondering if the whole thing wasn't just a dream..........

Love from the road,

John

A Recipe From Denmark

Touring with cloudstreet isn't just about music.  Food is also important.

This recipe is provided with our thanks to Gertrude Romme

Chicken with Ginger, Lemon and Garlic

Cut a chicken in 6-8 pieces, add salt and pepper.

Make a marinade of 50g fresh ginger, 4 cloves of garlic and 50ml of lemon juice (blend in a food processer but not too runny!).

Spread the marinade on the chicken and bake 40 mins at 180C.  Add 100 ml water (pour over the chicken) after 20 minutes.

When cooked, pour the juice from the chicken into a pot with 100ml cream and boil well.  Thicken with flour if needed.  Add salt & pepper and serve with new potatoes, salad and vegetables of the season

(our favourite local salad was a combination of watermelon, fetta, mint, balsamic vinegar and sprinkles of chilli.  Fantastic!)

More music in Denmark

This year's cloudstreet tour has been a long and winding adventure and the journey across to Denmark has been a most wonderful inclusion.

After a great time on Fanø we were on the road across country again, this time to the home of the other founding member of Færd, Eskil Romme. But first, we needed to be up early to catch the ferry back to the mainland. Here's a snap from the docks.


We hit the road and zoomed through the beautiful Danish countryside, eventually arriving at the venue for the second of our three gigs, Halkær Kro, a cafe and concert venue near the Western Danish coast. A lovely relaxed afternoon gig as part of the venue's Sunday afternoon music programme over the Summer. Then it was back to Eskil's farm for a meal, some chatting and then an early night.

Eskil has an organic farm in the North that he's been running for the past twenty years or so, as well as managing to tour the globe with varying numbers of bands, most especially the trio Færd.
He and Gertrude have been wonderful hosts over the last couple of days, introducing us to some of the fabulous local food and welcoming us into their home.

On our first night, Eskil mentioned that a replica of a Viking longship, the Havhingsten (Sea Stallion) would be sailing nearby and he wondered if we might like a look. Would we ever!! The ship is on its way back from a trip to Ireland and was passing along the coast only a few miles away from the house. It was a little too far away on the first night, but the next day we set off in the rain to have a look. We arrived at a bridge a few minutes to late and only caught a glimpse of this beauty under tow by a coastguard vessel. Undeterred, we bounced across a few fields and caught sight of the sail at the edge of the fields. Here's the best of my shots, followed by a slightly more spectacular view from the Havhingsten website:




Today the sun is shining again and we've had a look around Nibe before settling in for a night of good food, good music and new friends. Another drive tomorrow and more music to follow.

There's nothing like an adventure to make life interesting!


Love

John

cloudstreet go to Denmark

After an early start (4.30am, then off to the airport) we arrived in Denmark, picked up our hire car and headed across the country to the island of Fano and then to the Southernmost town of Sonderho, and the home of Peter Uhrbrand, the fiddle player from Faerd.

Peter and his family made us very welcome in this amazing village. The photo above of Peter's place gives you an idea of the thatched house architecture of the village. The houses have been preserved in this style since the middle of the 19th century. And cultural preservation is high on the list for this beautiful place. New houses must be built in the old style, and renovations must be in keeping with the village's existing pattern.

We played in a local cafe "Cafe Nanas Stue" to an appreciative crowd, followed by Peter and two of his friends, Olle and Sonig, playing traditional music from the island, with local couples dancing local dances to the music.

A wonderful night but by the end we were exhausted. Crawled to bed and slept until noon.

Our first day in Denmark was a delight, full of music and new friends.

More to follow.

Love and song,

John

(the video is a little dark, but so was the room)

See Morris Dance

It was inevitable that the authorities would be alerted.  Follow this link for the story.

cloudstreet in the sun

We headed South after that run of gigs, keen to sleep.  The long haul of the tour was starting to make itself felt.  Two nights in Dursley thanks to the wonderful Jarrad and then South to Dorset and the Sunray Folk Club in Broadmayne.  This is a newish club but Bob and the gang have done a terrific job.  There's a real community feel, the audiences are substantial and enthusiastic and everyone seems keen to join in and make a success of the club.  They were a lovely crowd.

Next day it was time to head back to Eden, with a short detour via the Cerne Abbas Giant.  While the sign said that they'd been a bit lax with the application of sheep in recent months (to clear the grass away from the chalk outline), I'm glad we made the detour.  (One theory is that he marks the site of the death of a Danish giant who led an invasion of the area.  His head was cut off while he slept and the villagers drew a chalk outline around him - presumably "crime scene" tape was unavailable.  This theory does not explain the need to create an anatomically correct representation of the slain foe.  I mean, 30 feet!!!!  And why the nipples?)

But we only had a little time to linger at this ancient crime scene.  We were off to Eden.  I'd met one of the directors of the Eden Project, Caroline Digby, in 2007 when she took part in the Great Debate at the Woodford Folk Festival.  She showed us around the Eden site in Cornwall on our last trip and had invited us to join her for another look around and to catch the final night of the Eden Sessions, a series of concerts held on a purpose-built stage in the middle of the project.  (For those who've just come in, the Eden Project is a vast educational and environmental display centre, built in an abandoned quarry in Cornwall.  Vast domes, or biomes have been constructed there, containing controlled environments, such as the Tropical Biome to show visitors biodiversity up close.  There are huge gardens and displays and everywhere you turn there is creativity, education and delight.  We loved it.  They know how to party in Cornwall - 

KT Tunstall was the act on for the final night.  The sound was perfect, the venue was gorgeous, but the music let us down a bit.  A few too many 4/4 pop songs for my liking, but still a fun show.  I was happy to be there, but by the end, we were all keen to get away and head to bed.  I'm sure it comes down to personal taste, but I had much more fun catching the Eden Choir performing with Audible (a local beat-boxer) in the Mediterranean Biome.  Here's a snatch:

We woke up at Caroline's house in the seaside village of Pentewan, with the sun shining and the beach awaiting our previously boot-clad toes.  Fantastic!  We had three days of blissful lying about, visiting the beach, John saw The Dark Knight Returns (Heath Ledger - Wow!!!!!!), there was music, food and more lying about.  Just what was needed.

After the delights of Cornwall and a day at St Ives, we spent a solid day driving East to Essex.  Once again, Jonny and Vicki opened their house to us (thanks guys) and now we are preparing for the flight to Denmark tomorrow.

A joyful time.

More to follow.  Love from the road,

John, Nic and Bec

Pure whimsy

Recycled telephones turned into wool-producers.

(With thanks to Eveanne Kelly)

A week of being back at school

We've just finished a week of wacky instruments, enquiring minds, screaming, shouting, singing and joyfully jumping up and down.  3 schools in 3 days in Yorkshire.  Today has been a day of lying about as the rains come down and the temperature's dropped.  

Working with kids has been at turns fulfilling, hilarious (like the small boy who commented when we brought out the lagerphone -"Look what they've done to Jesus!"), and scary (they were thirteen and they were prepared to be very hard to impress - until we told them to pretend to be seven-year-olds). Very different work to concert performances, and challenging in a very different way.  We've been surprised at how tiring a full-day of this work can be.  Concentrating hard all day will do that!

This weekend is the Birdsedge Village Festival (Jacey's local village) and we're performing with the kids from the local school as well as a concert spot on Sunday.  Today has been a day of concentrated lying about, catching up on the inbox and watching Torchwood)

Next week we'll be back into grown-up gigs!

Love from all of us.

John

Busman's Holiday

Hello again,

Yesterday we headed just down the road to Saul and Folk on the Water (part of the Saul Canal Festival).  It seems like ages since I had the chance to sit in a concert and watch people play, just enjoying the music, and kicking back with no expectation that any second we'd need to leap into action ourselves.

Soon after arrival, we had front-row seats for Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer.  A fantastic set.  The nyckelharpa is really fitting in well (Vicki is also adept on flutes, whistles and double-bass.)  We hope to have these guys performing in Australia in a couple of years' time.  Well worth a look at www.smallpiper.co.uk.

After the show, we were dazzled and amazed by the boat procession, John bought himself some hobbit-clothes and then we sheltered from the wind and saw a fabulous set by Nancy Kerr and James

 Fagan, in their new line-up with Rob Harbron on concertina, guitar and vocals.  Top-notch music.  I just love Nancy's vocals.  Effortless and entrancing.  Hopefully we'll see the three of them in Oz later this year.  (here's their site - well worth a look).

After a day at the show, we headed back to Dursley, and warm beds for the night.  Today is a tidying of minds and possessions day.

Much love

John

Moulding young minds

More schools work the next day in Bideford.  The kids were great and asked a huge number of questions about Australian animals.  Here's John being informative and fun.

We stopped off in Glastonbury on the way North the next day, with a delicious vegan lunch at the Shekinashram (where we stayed a couple of years ago).  A climb up the Tor and now a day or two in Dursley before journeying North.

We seem to managing a combination of work and play on this trip that we haven't always had in the past.  Can only be a good thing.

Love from the road,

John

A little late for Dancing Up The Sun, but....

Ian Redpath has just sent us this gorgeous clip of Dancing Up The Sun on May Day in Brisbane.  He's set the whole thing to our song, Dance Up The Sun and we just love the result.

We missed the dancing this year, but the clip really brought home for us how special it can be.

Wishing you all dancing and merriment,

John

A day at the beach

A day at Appledore today:  art, sunshine and the discovery of the Famous Hockings Oyster - local ice-cream, lamington-dipped wafers and marshmallow.  Tastes great and it's good for you.

And on the way home, we stopped at Westward-Ho! (the only town in the British Isles to have an exclamation mark as part of its name).  Here's how the beach looked this afternoon (note the life-guards).  If you just can't get enough, check out the live web-cam of the beach.

We were missing Peregian.

Back on the mainland.

Hi all,

After a wonderful time in Dublin, taking advantage of the tunes and the occasional burst of sunshine, we flew back into Liverpool and headed back to Yorkshire in the early hours of the morning, marvelling as the sun refused to completely disappear over the horizon.  The sound of heads crashing onto pillows followed.

A couple of days of rest ensued, with John joining Jacey and Hilary at the movies enjoying a retelling of the well-known folk-tale, The Incredible Hulk.   It should perhaps be renamed, The Moderately Interesting Hulk (or even Hulk II: Revenge of the Plot).  Perhaps Marvel comics are better in the original print/imagination versions.

We played in Darlington and then Bedford - both lovely gigs, very well-received, and then the long drive to Devon.  Jerry and Hilary Bix had invited us back to Bideford for a few days of workshops and concerts.

Sunday saw us with a harmony singing workshop group, that night we had a concert in a local theatre and Monday was a day with kids from two of the Bideford schools.  Here they are trying to work out what a lagerphone is: