We may not be at the Joiners but the virus won’t stop the music.
OK gang: this is the place for you to post links to videos on YouTube for example, either performances you’ve enjoyed or your own performances. You can post links to SoundCloud if you use that. John B will be posting a regular folk dance tune for you to play along to. Quite happy for you to post general chit-chat too.
I’ve given myself the job of moderating this; so please email links and enquiries to bidefolk@gmail.com
Cheers, John P.
I’ve moved the guidance on how to prepare and send your contributions to a new page as this one was getting a bit crowded. Virtual Folk Club – Help
Do please leave comments – they are at the bottom. In a virtual Folk Club performers can’t hear your applause! Comments are moderated so don’t expect to see them straight away. You have to leave your name and email, your email will not be published – I’ll see it (but I probably know it anyway).
From 30th March new material will go on Virtual Folk Club Page 2 and from 17th April Page 3 comments will stay on this page
17th March
Just to kick things off – here’s an old one of mine on YouTube and another on SoundCloud
18th March
Alison liked this: Sharon Shannon Blackbird
Our old friend Andy A enjoyed Crossing the Bar and this tune Theme Vannetaise
19th March
Pete B sent this video – made me laugh. The Twins
FolkLife SW just emailed me – no print magazine in May for obvious reasons, they will publish on their website https://www.folklife.uk/
Likewise just heard from Mike Dibble; West Somerset Folk Festival cancelled.
Many of you will know Rupert Kirby, here’s a couple of items from him: Waltz for a Princess and Lorry Driver’s Lunch
Here’s something new from me (John P) Still I Ride
John W sent us this video of Gregory Jolivet at Sidmouth
Here’s one from Danny Bleak North Wall
Danny and Andy D both liked this Steve Knightly song You’ll Get By
Lorraine T recorded I Once Loved a Laddie for us.
20th March
Thanks to Ian C for this Fun Folk Quiz We’ll post the anwers here on Saturday 4th April. No cheating with Google!
21st March
John B has been busy playing two sets of tunes for us, If you want to record yourself playing along and then post that here that would be great. John’s Tunes 1 John’s Tunes 2 (waltzes)
Me (John P) again. Here’s my attempt at Jelly Roll Morton’s Winin’ Boy Blues (Yes it is spelled that way).
Just had a little chat on facebook with Bruce Watson from Australia who was a guest at Bideford last year. He said help yourself to any of my videos so I did. Here he is singing Pauline
23rd March
Here’s Danny with The Rigs of Rye
24th March
Ian C’s first attempt at recording for YouTube. Sounds good to me. Alex & Marion’s Garden
25th March
Here’s one that I’ve been doing for a while but it usually gets a laugh Breakfast Blues
26th March
Another song from Danny New York Gals
Carole liked this Mrs Beamish
27th March
John P again. I don’t do Irish songs and this is one of them Sweet 16
Carole sent this Simon & Garfunkle parody
28th March
Some lovely classical guitar from Pete B
As previously it’s on Facebook, if that causes problems let me know.
Al loved this video from Fascinating Aida,
One from our old mate Steve R Green Fields of France
Here’s Dave C with a Richie Havens cover Sharing
Dave has been recording a series on playing the spoons – you will need a facebook account to see it. Spoons
29th March
Pete B has recorded a classical guitar piece for us Romance
John B enjoyed this Stay at Home
(Slightly parental advisory!)
John P again. No folk from me today but I got the jazz guitar out to do a couple for a friends Facebook page and I thought “Why should they be the only ones to suffer?” so here’s A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square and Sunny Side of the Street
There’s a whole raft of “Covid 19 Blues” out there, here’s a selection courtesy of Carole
Talking Covid-19 Blues
Talkin’ Covid19 Blues
And again!
Coronavirus Blues
One of my favourites from Mike J Sullivan’s Farewell
bidefordfolkclub 
Test post
LikeLike
Just want to point out that Gregory Jolivet was not even playing his own gurdy. It was pressed into his hands to’try out’. I thinks it’s the Swan beer garden. Wish I’d been there. Loving the VFC.
Thanks JP
LikeLiked by 1 person
BFC Virtual Folk Club is great for me. While here in Yorkshire I can enjoy and take part in BFC music; GREAT! What a joy, follow the link, listen and watch. Thank you, I love it. Andy A.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such a good idea to have a virtual folk club. I especially enjoyed the Rupert Kirby tunes. Is he a local musician as I see a lot of the tunes refer to places on Exmoor?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes Julia. Rupert has taught music locally and is a former member of Hearts of Oak.
LikeLike
Bit more on the Australian for those who don’t do Facebook. I looked at today’s stats for the website and we’d had 56 page views from the UK and one from Australia – I posted that on FB and tagged Bruce Watson as he’s a recent Australian visitor. He replied that it wasn’t him and now we’d have two as he liked the idea of the VFC
Just checked (10 pm) and we now have five hits in Australia and one in Latvia! Well it is the World Wide Web.
John P
LikeLike
Great stuff – good to see & hear you all from here in lock-down Brittany!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for including me above- There’s a collection of folk songs and shanties on my Soundcloud too ( https://soundcloud.com/mr-kirby ).
Thought you might like the story behind the Lorry Driver’s Lunch! (Nearly 180 tunew and counting!)
Tunes for fiddle written in my lunch break (using a recorder). (descant)
In my work as a lorry driver delivering building materials I am required by law to have a proper lunch break, which often means parking the lorry in an available layby and waiting for the tachometer to tick over! Some of these tunes are therefore named after locations or destinations associated with that work. For others as you can see I just couldn’t think of anything! I’ve not marked any bowings or exact tempi, as I’m not at all the best person to dictate how they would sound best if you played them, I place them before you as a series of pegs on which to hang your own musicality. Some would go at the pace you think a reel or a jig should go, others might ask for a different approach, and some might make sense in different speeds played in different styles on different occasions. Who knows? Likewise the chords suggested seemed the best to me at the time, but if you’ve got other ideas, use them! I recorded many of them in little iPhone videos and shared them in different pages and groups on Facebook and on my @rupert654 Instagram page. As Instagram only lets me have a minute of video at a time this has influenced some of the performances. Look for the hashtag #Lorrydriverslunchseries! Here’s hoping you’ll enjoy them, at the least it’s a month’s worth of sight reading! If you want to perform them go ahead, permission granted!
LikeLike
Hi Rupert
I enjoyed the tunes and the photos on the posted link, thanks for that. I don’t do Facebook or # so will have to miss out there. I couldn’t begin to work out the time signature of many of the tunes, but lovely tunes so I’ll learn one or two in my own style.
On you tube I found your goat photos and tunes too. Any new kids in the Valley of Rocks yet? Pam
LikeLike
Pete B, thank you for posting Romance, great. Andy A.
LikeLike
Love the fiddle playing from Mr Kirby. I’ll have to keep practicing 🤭🎻
Alison B
LikeLiked by 1 person
John P, Great work keeping this Virtual Folk Club and the Thursday evenings, both of which are much appreciated for keeping us together as a club. Enjoying everyone’s contributions on this page and seeing familiar faces on Thursdays. Pam
LikeLiked by 1 person