Categotry Archives: CD Launch Event

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!

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Categories: Announcements, BBC Radio Leeds, Blog Posts, CD Launch Event, Christmas, fRoots, The Mike Harding Folk Show, Video, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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It’s been a very enjoyably busy festive season for us and it’s no where near over yet! Firstly we’d like to remind you that the documentary we have been working on recently was broadcast on the 28th December 2014 and, if you didn’t manage to catch it first time around, it will be available on “Listen Again” for the next four weeks. The documentary is an hour long and details the life of Frank Kidson and the significant contribution that he made to the world of folk music. It also follows the process of researching and recording “The Search for Five Finger Frank” album that we released back in April 2014. You can find the full programme here:

The Search for Five Finger Frank BBC Leeds Radio Documentary

The Search for Five Finger Frank BBC Radio Leeds Documentary p02g1jrb

There is another chance to hear some of the highlights from our album launch concert that took place at Square Chapel Centre for the Arts in Halifax. This is also available on “Listen Again” on the BBC Radio Leeds website:

Highlights from “The Search for Five Finger Frank” CD Launch Concert

The Search for Five Finger Frank BBC Radio Leeds CD Launch Concert

We featured in the 2014 BBC Radio Leeds Christmas Service recorded at The Halifax Minster in December singing a couple of folk-y carols if you missed it this too is available on the BBC Leeds website:

“Carols from Halifax” BBC Leeds Radio Christmas Service

On Sunday 28th December The Mike Harding Folk Show podcast featured a selection of tracks from his top 20 albums of 2014. We were proper chuffed to find out that he played a track from The Search for Five Finger Frank CD! The podcast (#105) is available to listen to on his website.

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If you’re interested in finding out even more about Frank Kidson and our quest to celebrate and commemorate his incredible legacy then you can read the interview we did with the fabulous Tim Chipping of fRoots magazine. The article features in the latest issue Jan/Feb #379/380 and you can purchase your copy here or you can sign up and subscribe to future issues too!

Photo by Judith Burrows

Photo by Judith Burrows

And finally… We’ll be sweeping away the old year and bringing in the new one over the next week with The Long Company Mummers in various locations throughout Calderdale and the Ryburn Valley. Dates and locations (pubs) as follows:

2nd January The Hinchliffe Arms, Cragg Vale, HX7 5TA (01422 883256)

3rd January The Navigation, Sowerby Bridge, HX6 3LF (01422 316073)

5th January The Alma, Cottonstones, HX6 4NS (01422 823334)

6th January The Old Bridge Inn, Ripponden, HX6 4DF (01422 822595)

The performances start at 8pm prompt and we always begin with the singing of our Wassail Song inside the pub before the massed band then lead the audience outside to watch the mummers play. The whole night is then rounded off with a night of singing, playing and dancing in the pub. Hooray! Come and join us – it certainly is a sight to behold!!

In case you wanted a sneaky practise of The Wassail Song have a look at this…

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And in case you just wanted a laugh have a look at this…

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Live Show Preview

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Categories: Announcements, BBC Radio Leeds, Blog Posts, CD Launch Event, Video, Tags: , , , , ,

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Over the summer we will be presenting our new show “The Search for Five Finger Frank” a project that celebrates the legacy of the great Frank Kidson; a man once revered by his peers but now, sadly overlooked by the folk movement of today. The show features original arrangements of traditional ballads, broadsides and dance tunes from Leeds folk song collector Frank Kidson 1855-1926.

We have just released this preview of the live show featuring footage recorded at our CD Launch in April 2014. This concert was also recorded live by BBC Radio Leeds and will be aired on The D’Urberville’s Folk and Roots Show at 8pm on Sunday 10th August 2014.

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In August we will be performing “The Search for Five Finger Frank” at Sidmouth Folk Week 2014 as well as presenting a talk on our research into Frank Kidson’s collection and the contributing singers.

Our Sidmouth Folk Week 2014 schedule looks like this:

FULL SHOW - Sunday 3rd August in the Manor Pavillion at 8pm-10.30pm

TALK - Wednesday 6th August in the Arts Centre at 9.30am-11.00am

TUNES WORKSHOP - Thursday 7th August in the Rugby Club at 1.30pm-3.00pm
This workshop will feature tunes from Frank Kidson’s “Old English Country Dances” 1890.

We will also be performing at Sidmouth Folk Week both as a duo and solo on the following days:

Friday 1st August in the Bedford Hotel 8pm-10.30pm

Saturday 2nd August Diamond Geezers Concert at the Manor Pavillion 8pm-10.30pm (Pete solo)

Monday 4th August Lunchtime Concert at the Ham Marquee 12-1.30pm

Tuesday 5th August Traditional Night Out  at the Woodlands Hotel 8pm-10.30pm (Alice solo)

Wednesday 6th August Strings and Things Workshop at the Rugby Club 1.30pm-3pm (Pete)

Thursday 7th August In Concert at Carinas 8pm-10pm

Friday 8th August
Ballads, Broadsides & Bawling Hawkers Workshop at the Woodlands Hotel 11.15am-12.45pm (Pete)
Squeezing and Singing Workshop at the Lower Methodist Church Hall 2.45pm-4.15pm (Pete)

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Charles Lolley and The Lolley Family

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Categories: Blog Posts, CD Launch Event, Charles Lolley, Source Singers, Tags: , , , ,

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Whilst reseraching the material for “The Search For Five Finger Frank” Album and Show we have drawn extensively on contributions from one of Frank Kidson’s key collaborators: Mr Charles Lolley. He first established contact in response to a series of articles by Kidson in the Leeds Mercury 1886-87 entitled “Notes on Old Tunes”.  They began to correspond regularly on the subject of folk song and folk song collecting.

Charles and Jane Lolley

Charles and Jane Lolley

Charles Lolley 1857-1935 was born in Hemingbrough, East Yorkshire. He was a fine fiddle player and a bricklayer by trade, later becaming a Builder’s Foreman for a building company in Leeds. Like Kidson, Charles Lolley also took inspiration from his own mother’s singing and collected a number of songs from her. Indeed, the sheer quantity of material submitted by Charles Lolley strongly indicates that he too, was a folk song collector in his own right. It appears that they struck up a firm friendship and there are many fine songs and tunes from Charles Lolley contained within the Kidson collection.

We feature many songs collected from Charles Lolley in our CD and Show: “The Search For Five Finger Frank”. Many of these songs still hold a prominent place in the folk repertoire of today: “Young Banker”, “Outward Bound” and “The Sprig of Thyme” are all examples of this. However, a number of the songs contributed by Charles Lolley also offer most unusual versions of popular classics, sometimes differing substantially from what later became the more commonly established melodies. “The Bonny Bunch of Roses”, “Captain Glen” and “My True Love Once He Courted Me” are all distinctive for their haunting melodic twists and turns.

At our CD Launch event on Sunday 13th April 2014, we were very honoured to have descendants of Charles Lolley in the audience;

Jessie Hall (Lolley’s grand-daughter), Ruth Trousdale (Jessie’s daughter and Lolley’s great grand-daughter) and Edna Lolley (Lolley’s grand-daughter)

From L to R: Pete Coe, Jessie Hall, Ruth Trowsdale, Edna Lolley, Alice Jones

From L to R: Pete Coe, Jessie Hall, Ruth Trousdale, Edna Lolley, Alice Jones

It was an absolute privilage to sing the songs that Frank Kidson collected from Charles Lolley to members of his own family. We would like to say a huge thank-you to them for coming and also to genealogist Gill Baldwin for all her time and energy spent on tracing Charles Lolley’s relations and for researching Frank Kidson and the other contributors to his collection.

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The Search For Five Finger Frank CD Available Now!

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Categories: Announcements, Buy Online, CD Launch Event, Video, Tags: , , , , ,

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We are delighted to announce that our new CD “The Search For Five Finger Frank” is now available to purchase online!

Cover Art by John Crane

Cover Art by John Crane

We had a fabulous night at Square Chapel on Sunday to celebrate the release and we’d like to say a huge thank-you to everyone that came along to the CD Launch and made it such an enjoyable evening.

If you’d like to sample a track from the album “The Search For Five Finger Frank” take a look at our new YouTube video

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The Search for Five Finger Frank CD Launch Event

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Categories: Announcements, BBC Radio Leeds, CD Launch Event, Tags: , , , ,

There are only 4 days to go until the release of the new double album:

“The Search for Five Finger Frank” by Pete Coe and Alice Jones!

THE SEARCH FOR FIVE FINGER FRANK

illustration by John Crane

illustration by John Crane

CD & SHOW

There will be a full performance of the show and official CD launch held at Square Chapel Centre for the Arts in Halifax, on the 13th April 2014. Tickets are still available at £13 (£11 concs).

The CD Launch event at Square Chapel will be recorded by BBC Radio Leeds.

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Brand New Website!!

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Categories: Announcements, CD Launch Event, Tags: , ,

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WELCOME TO OUR BRAND NEW WEBSITE:

THE SEARCH FOR FIVE FINGER FRANK

“The Search for Five Finger Frank” is a brand new, double disc album and stage show by Pete Coe and Alice Jones. It showcases ballads, broadsides and dance tunes from the collection of Frank Kidson 1855-1926, a folk song collector from Leeds.

Discover what the Show and CD are all about. Find out about Frank Kidson and his collection. Check the Live Show Dates for performances in your area.

Keep checking the website for regular blog posts:

“Notes on Old Tunes” – information about the songs from the CD and show including; info about the source singers, full lyrics, tune notation, research into origins of the song.

Watch out for the early release of a couple of tracks from the album on our YouTube channel and you can follow us on Twitter @Fivefingerfrank.

Don’t forget to book your tickets for “The Search for Five Finger Frank” CD Launch and show performance at Square Chapel Centre for the Arts in Halifax on the 13th April 2014.

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