Photo Blog: Penarth Acoustic Club

Hello Lovelies,

I am just starting to feel more human after a break in the tour schedule (catching up with the day job, press and events and award ceremonies for the excellent authors I work with including Alys Conran who scored a hat trick at Wales Book of the Year yesterday, winning the People's Prize, the fiction category and the overall award for her debut novel Pigeon).

Today you find me at my desk, overlooking the dwindling foliage of the cherry tree, most carpeting the path and lawn. My cat, Hooper, sharing the desk space with me, hoping for more blackbird sightings. Since the last update I have four more gigs, so I'll tell you a little bit about the first of those now...

So, after a splendid friendly literary house party at the Diana Rooms on the Tuesday, I popped on a train to Penarth to read poems at a packed Penarth Acoustic Club on the Friday.

Continuing her tour from Germany, Australian blues and folk singer songwriter and multi-instrumentalinst Chris O kicked off the evening with her toe-tapping covers of the songs of a bygone era and her own contemporary roots originals. Chris tours Europe annually, and in 2016 was New South Wales Solo Blues Artist of the Year representing Sydney Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge, and the National Women in Blues Showcase in Memphis, Tennessee.

Then yours truly got up and read some poems from Better Houses to a lovely reception (I even got bought drinks) before the interval.

I kicked off the second half with some more poems to a hushed and respectful audience before the act they'd all been waiting for, the wonderful Canadian singer Sarah-Jane Scouten and her 4-piece band took to the stage. She is, according to Folk Radio UK, "A sterling example of the top grade Americana coming out of Canada." With flavours of Lucinda Williams, Nanci Griffiths and Iris Dement, and a wealth of early country music, the two-time Canadian Folk Music Award nominee and recent Western Canadian Music Award nominee's songs are faithful to a long-standing folk music tradition.

Here are some phone snaps:

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