	Newsletter 7 June 2009		Contact details Tel. 01342 716975 or email: info_at_acousticsussex_dot_org_dot_uk
TONIGHT Show of Hands on BBC One Countryfile Show of Hands (Steve Knightley and Phil Beer) will be appearing on BBC-TV’s Countryfile tonight (Sunday 7 June, 7-8pm). They will be interviewed about their music and life in Devon and will be seen, together with Miranda Sykes, playing one of their best known songs – appropriately, Country Life. The song has been used as a soundtrack for two films by the Commission for Rural Communities and received widespread airplay across BBC Radio. The programme can also be watched later on BBC iPlayer			Show of Hands
Review Of GRYPHON At The Southbank After 30 years away, the 70s progressive folk/rock band, Gryphon (featuring Acoustic Sussex soundman Dave Oberle on drums) made a triumphant return last night at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall. “Thirty-two years on from their last gig, Gryphon returned to the stage in London eschewing the prog rock excesses that marked their demise and returning to their acoustic medieval roots….” For photos and to read the full review, click here (courtesy of the Folk Corporation’s Talkawhile board)”			Dave Oberle
Magnet review of KARINE POLWART at The Ravenswood There’s a great review of our recent Karine Polwart show, in this month’s Magnet magazine – available free in most newsagents or click here to read the review online.
TOMMORROW Monday 8 June DICK GAUGHAN + special guest RUTH NOTMAN			Click to listen to sample tracks of upcoming shows on our MySpace jukebox NOW PLAYING: Dick Gaughan Ruth Notman Show of Hands Christine Collister Alex Hall
Monday 8 June Dick Gaughan at The Ravenswood Sharpthorne www.theravenswood.co.uk Special guest: Ruth Notman PLEASE BOOK BEFORE MIDDAY DAY OF SHOW FOR ADVANCE TICKET PRICE: £10 (£13 door) 8.00pm Tel. 01342 714810 or buy online via Acoustic Sussex website Tickets are also available at Hobgoblin in Crawley and Bullfrog in East Grinstead BACK TO TOP		Scottish singer and guitarist Dick Gaughan is just as strong and inspirational as when he started out, over 30 years ago. He grew up steeped in the music of the Gaels with his Scottish and Irish ancestry. Both parents were musicians - his mother a singer and his father a fiddle player - and he started playing an instrument when he was seven years old. His first solo album won him a Folk Album of the Year award, and almost twenty years later in 1989, Folk Roots Magazine voted his album, A Handful of Earth, Album of the Decade. In 2005, Gaughan was nominated for the BBC Radio 2 Folk Singer of the Year Award. Restlessly imaginative, passionate in his beliefs, Gaughan remains a commanding presence on the musical scene. You go home from a Dick Gaughan session feeling exhilarated, not just at the wonderful skills of the most potent singer ever to emerge from the Scottish folk-music revival, not just at the astonishingly fluent and explosively eloquent guitar playing, but by the sense of the stark exposition of wrong and the tremulously argued legitimacy of right. "There are very few singers who can inspire audiences with the commitment, passion, emotion and downright understanding that Gaughan has consistently achieved over the last 30 years or so. A truly masterful performer." Folk Roots "Commitment. Passion. Honesty. You'll rarely find a review of a Dick Gaughan recording or concert that doesn't come up with one of these terms" Living Tradition Special guest for this show is Ruth Notman, who was a finalist in the 2006 BBC Young Folk Awards. She started out on the live circuit at just 13 years old, performing at folk clubs and venues in the Midlands and soon began securing slots at leading Festivals. Her debut album, Threads achieved much critical acclaim with top reviews in The Guardian, Mojo, The Independent, BBC Radio 2 and fRoots, among others. Ruth's pure and powerful voice conveys stories of love, loss, adventure and heartache, weaving through simple stripped down ballads and soaring above complex arrangements. "One of the most assured, varied and impressive debut albums of the year." The Guardian “An 18 year old with such a spark in her voice it's hard to see how she can fail" **** Mojo "A great new talent." John Tams “A new voice in British folk” The Independent – ALBUM OF THE WEEK	Dick Gaughan Ruth Notman
REMINDER GRYPHON – 6 June - Queen Elizabeth Hall Back in the mid 70s, a South-East based outfit called Gryphon were one of the most interesting and unusual progressive bands on the music scene. The band has reformed for a reunion concert, taking place at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall on Saturday 6th June. Why are we telling you this? Well, a well-kept secret is that the band’s drummer, Dave Oberlé, is these days part of the team that stages the Acoustic Sussex programme of events (he does the sound engineering for many of their shows). “It’s been over two years in the planning, but we’re delighted it’s happening at last.” said Oberlé, who is the band’s spokesman. “It’s over 30 years since the band last gave a public performance – we were rather knocked sideways like many bands at the time by the punk rock movement. Before that, we were used to playing big venues such as Houston Astrodome and Madison Square Gardens in New York. Back in 1974, we supported bands like Yes and Steeleye Span on their UK tours. For the reunion concert, all of the original band members will be there to play an acoustic concert of material from our first two albums, ‘Gryphon’ and ‘Midnight Mushrumps’.”			Click for Press Release Click for Southbank tickets
Don’t forget that as well as our own shows, the Acoustic Sussex website has a Regional Gig Guide and links to venues and clubs in the South East that offer folk, roots and acoustic music – and our MySpace site contains over 500 links to a variety of other MySpace ‘friends’ sites, including musicians, venues, magazines and lots more.			Regional Gig Guide
*For* *your future diaries...* BACK TO TOP		Future 2009 dates in the Acoustic Sussex programme include: Ø 19 June – Show of Hands with Miranda Sykes (SOLD OUT) Ø 26-28 June – Crawley Folk Festival (or click here for PDF flyer) Ø 6 July – Christine Collister + Alex Hall Ø 20 July - Iain Matthews + Mary Leay Ø 3 September – Claire Martin Ø 7 September – Sam Baker (band) + The Haley Sisters Ø 21 September – Corinne West + Tinderbox Ø 12 October – Uiscedwr + Luke Sital Singh Ø 9 November – Chris & Kellie While + Joseph Topping Ø 23 November – Jez Lowe and the Bad Pennies + Lucy Ward Ø 11 December – The Unthanks (formerly known as Rachel Unthank & The Winterset) More information on all up-and-coming artists can be found on our website: www.acousticsussex.org.uk. You can also find us on MySpace (with samples from some of the artists appearing) at: www.myspace.com/acoustic_sussex. If you know anyone who you think may enjoy our events, please forward this email to them.	*UNSUBSCRIBE* If you do not wish to be on this mailing list, please reply to this email, ensuring you include your name in the email and the word 'unsubscribe' in the heading. Thank you.