Category: General folk music

News of a more general nature that should be interesting to Furness Tradition followers.

Floor spots for performers available

Andy Frame Leave a comment

Fancy performing your own Cumbrian song, story, poem or anything else?  This forthcoming show will have up to 4 open floor spots for you to perform.

7.30 pm Friday 17th February

Cumbria Songs and Stories

The Forum, Barrow-in-Furness

Steve Wharton, Annie Kendall & Ryan Wood

1½ hours

Tickets £8

Floor spots for performers available!

 

Check out the guidelines below and contact Steve to be considered.

​* Maximum length 3 minutes

* Song, story, poem, jokes, dancing, memories, ANYTHING!

* Must be about Cumbria, ideally a specific place in it but county wide material will be considered.

* Can be your own work or something traditional. Please check with the author if you’re doing something by someone still alive.  

 

You can contact Steve:

Mobile: 07871 415 164

Email: stevewhartonmusic@gmail.com

Facebook: Cumbrian Songs and Stories

Facebook: Steve Wharton Music

Twitter: @Wharton_Steve

Bruce Wilson

Andy Frame Leave a comment

We are very sad to learn of the passing of Bruce Wilson at the age of 91. Our sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.

Bruce has been a good friend and supporter to all of us at Furness Tradition for many years. He was a founder member of both Furness Morris (along with Stuart Lawrence) in 1963 and also Furness Clog Dancers.

Born in 1924 he danced regularly with Furness Morris until the early years of the 21st century when he underwent knee surgery.
He was also a regular supporter of local shepherds meets and was, we believe, in a senior position in the Herdwick Sheep Society.
He was a long-time member of the Cumberland Dialect Society & performed a number of monologues & local songs in dialect.
 
Bruce also learned local Clog Dancing steps from Norman Robinson, the well-known local dancer. He taught these steps to a group of local women, many of them wives of the Morris Men, who eventually danced publicly as the original Furness Clog Dancers.
 

After dance practise Furness Morris would go to The Beehive at Three Bridges for a little refreshment and a singaround. Some of these nights are still talked about. Bruce was a mainstay of these sessions, entertaining everyone with his extensive range of local songs. He was also very active in encouraging others to sing.  

A number of his collected songs, and a book of lyrics and music “M’Appen I May”, were produced by Haystacks Records and are available from Furness Tradition.

 

The Funeral Service is to be held at Thorncliffe Crematorium on Thursday, November 24 at 10am where Furness Morris will be paying tribute to him. Donations, if so desired to The British Legion. All enquiries to The Co-operative Funeralcare Tel. 01229 582167.

Angus Grant

Andy Frame Leave a comment

Furness Tradition are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Angus Grant. He was the fiddler and frontman for Edinburgh-based band Shooglenifty, and before that performed with Swamptrash.
With Shooglenifty he helped to create a genre of music called acid croft, described as “a blend of Celtic traditional music and dance grooves”.
The band, which has posted a tribute to Grant on its website, said Grant died on Sunday after a short illness.
Grant grew up in Lochaber and was the son of well-known left-handed fiddle player Aonghas Grant.
He also wrote music, including the tunes Two Fifty to Vigo, She’s In The Attic, Nordal Rhumba, Glenfinnan Dawn and Fitzroy Crossing.
In the eloquent tribute on Shooglenifty’s website, the musician was described as having “lived without ties and responsibility, but was devoted to his music, his family and his fellow musicians”.

Angus was described as ‘making fiddle playing cool again’ and having a ‘rock and roll swagger’. Although hailing from the Highlands, son of the renowned fiddle player Aonghas Grant from Lochaber, Edinburgh became Angus’ adopted home and where he played in many sessions and gigs.

We send our condolences to his family and loved ones. It is a loss that is felt deeply far beyond Scotland.