Calamity Emily.....

Hello folks

Spring is definitely in the air which sure does cheer up the soul!
How are you all out there? Since I wrote my last blog I've had a horrible cold, lost my voice for 5 days and been taken to hospital in agony with what was diagnosed as a sprained neck muscle....I wish I had a really impressive story to tell about how I got my injury but it was from simply turning to see what time it was in bed!

Thankfully I think I'm on the mend now and today have been able to have a bit of a sing in preparation for the duo tour Jamie and I have in England from Wed 20th - Fri 29th Feb. We're looking forward to getting out and about and hope to see some of you along the way. (as always tour details are on my page).

Before that though we are involved in something entirely different to our usual musical roles -
For the past few months we have been busy rehearsing to be part of a cabaret show to raise money for charity. Our 10 minute spot is part of a three night event in Dumfries where a total of 9 groups each perform a cabaret show and the audience vote for their favourite act. Jamie and I are part of a team of five people made up of friends and neighbours and we're raising funds for Save The Children.



Our act is called 'Generation Groove' which sees us perform an 'all singing all dancing' programme of songs from the 50s to the 00s...all in just 10 minutes.

At last night's dress rehearsal we had a paying audience (so it didn't really feel like a dress rehearsal) and there I was dancing away with my big neck brace on...vanity went out the window!
We were voted second overall beaten by a group who performed an amazing Michael Jackson tribute act.

Fingers crossed we'll stay in the ranks for the next few nights.
You never know, some footage of our performance might find it's way onto You Tube.
Keep well, and be careful when turning over in bed....
Ex

USA Tour Dates and Folk Awards

Good evening folks.

I have finally found the time to add a few more dates to my page which include 6 shows in the USA this spring. Myself and the guys are really looking forward to returning to the land of breakfast pancakes, commercial radio stations and (hopefully?) sunshine. Joking aside we're heading into new territory this time starting off in Florida and ending up in Virginia. Previous tours have been mostly New England based so it's been interesting planning how we're going to get from A to B this time!



This week began with a glitzy (well as glitzy as folk music can be) night out in London at the Radio 2 folk awards. Jamie and I were lucky enough to get guest tickets for the night which we thoroughly enjoyed. Congratulations to all the award winners but especially to the lovely Julie Fowlis who won Folk Singer of The Year and the fantastic Lau who were named Best Group. 



Performances from these winners were real highlights of the night for me (Martin Green had me grinning from ear to ear throughout Lau's set). I also really enjoyed the Imagined Village's 'Cold Haily Rainy Night' though I was nearly blown away by the volume of the drummer at the start...serves me right for having a front row seat. Actually it was fantastic to sit so near the front and soak up the atmosphere in the room. I got to see the shaky hands of those making acceptance speeches and was quite amazed by the number of award presenters wearing cowboy boots! 


Anyway, it's back to auld claithes and porridge now...
Ex