Yellow Boat, Yellow Taxi

Another week at Havering Folk Club, my last before the refurbishment at The Golden Lion. Will it be the same when we come back in February?

I played Yellow Boat (My own song) and Joni Mitchell's Big Yellow Taxi







After the break there was time for one more and I sang Loudon Wainwright's "I Am The Way"

John Lennon Day at Havering Folk Club

John Lennon Day at Havering Folk Club




Loudon Wainwright’s “Not John” followed by “Working Class Hero” written by John Lennon performed at Havering Folk Club on December 8th 2010 by Andy Roberts.

Later there was time for one more and I played "Bird On A Wire" by Leonard Cohen.

Shifting Sands, Wrecked Again, Dead Skunk

On Wednesday April 14th 2010 at Havering Folk Club:

Shifting Sands - Andy Roberts music and lyrics

Wrecked Again - Mike Chapman

Dead Skunk in the middle of the road

Dead Skunk by Loudon Wainwright

The House Is An Allegory For The Mind

Here's a song called "The House Is An Allegory For The Mind" which is explained in the video to some extent. This was Wednesday 10th February, an open night at Havering Folk Club, and the second song is Down Drinking at the Bar by Loudon Wainwright.



There was even a spot left in the second half so I played Leadbelly's Goodnight Irene

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

"Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder" is the title of the song by Loudon Wainwright which I sang at Havering Folk Club on Wednesday 20th as part of a new series featuring tributes to recently deceased musicians. Loudon Wainwright is still alive (at the time of writing), this was in memory of Kate McGarrigle



On the video clip, there's also the main part of another song, "Waiting" which is an old Andy Roberts song.

Thankyou Mr Hubble - Loudon Wainwright - Andy Roberts

Thankyou Mr Hubble - Loudon Wainwright - Andy Roberts

Havering Folk Club Halloween Night

Havering Folk Club likes to celebrate Halloween Night on the nearest Wednesday so this year it was on October 28th 2009. Some people dress up, most probably, but Linda and I were neither prepared nor really in the mood for costumes so we came as ourselves :-)



Last year's Halloween Night event was choreographed by the Hillbilly Express and this year was similar but even more chaotic, with Simon and Pep dual MCing.

Music and Poetry....


Having already rehearsed The Rowan Tree at the beginning of the month without video capture I was prepared to have another go especially for Halloween night and this was after my version of Loudon Wainwright's Be Careful There's a Baby in The House.

Be careful there's a baby in the house

Lyrics to Be careful there's a baby in the house by Loudon Wainwright


Be careful there's a baby in the house,
And a baby will not be fooled
It will think and do what it wants to
until you get it schooled.

Be careful there's a baby in the house,
And a baby will play it for real
if your I love you is an IOU don't expect to get a good deal

look out momma, look out dad
your bundle of joy will not be had
if the blanket is blue if the blanket is pink
you'd best watch what you do you'd best watch what you think

Be careful there's a baby in the house,
And a baby can spot your schtick
all the coochy coochy coo is a lot of poo poo when you spread it on that thick

Be careful there's a baby in the house,
And a baby is better than smart
it can waddle through all the stuff you do never mind your big head start

Thankyou Mister Hubble - Loudon Wainwright

Thankyou Mister Hubble by Loudon Wainwright

unrecorded

Am................................Dm..............Dm7
Thankyou Mister Hubble, for your telescope
E............................................................Am.....................
We learned there's more than double now , the amount of rope
Am...................................................F....................................
We have with which to hang ourselves, things are so much worse
E..........................................................Am..........................E
There's so much more that's out there,I'm talking universes.

Thankyou Mister Hubble, for your telescope
Why go to the trouble now to push the envelope?
We're just so insignificant what the hells the point?
We're not handfuls but specks of dust in this gigantic joint

C..............................G.................C...................G......
We used to thing that jupiter and mars were pretty large
E............................Am...................E...........................Am......
and though our little world was small somehow we were in charge

The milky way so miniscule despite what we pretend
It's hardly worth looking at through your giant lenses

Thankyou Mister Hubble, for your telescope
I hate to burst the bubble but god there's not much hope
or faith that such a thing exists what is religion worth?
What in god's name would waste six days to make this puny earth?

Drinking Song by Loudon Wainwright

Drunk men stagger, drunk men fall,
Drunk men swear and that's not all,
Quite often they will urinate outdoors.
Like widowed women, drunk men weep,
Like children curled up, drunk men sleep,
Like a dog, a drunk will crawl around on all fours.

Be he broke bum or rich rake, his dinner be it bread or cake
His beverage be the worse of whiskey, finest wine.
Puke it stinks and so it seems that drunkards go to great extremes
But there has yet to be a perfectly straight line

Drunks talk strong when drunks are weak,
It's easy for a drunk to speak -- straight from the heart
Yeah, drunks will fight they're not afraid
To kiss the mistress, make the maid
It's a manly art.

Oh but the drink a toll will take, blood vessels in the nose will break
Bags beneath the eyes another sign

Drunks get ugly, so it seems that drunkards go to great extremes
But there has yet to be a perfectly straight line.

Drunks are friendly when they're drunk and
Drunks are hostile when they're drunk
Which drunk it is, it all depends upon.
When drunks aren't drunk, they thirst for drink,
Elephants are grey not pink
When the drink evaporates the man is gone, gone , gone, gone

Back to the yachts and the subway cars
The hip-flasks and fruit jars
Flat on the face and flat on the behind

Oh, drunks get drunk and so it seems that drunkards go to great extremes
There has yet to be a perfectly straight line.

Busy again at Havering Folk Club

After a quieter period recently, Havering Folk Club was back to its usual lively self again last night with the return of some regulars who hadn't been seen for a while for one reason or another. Steve O'Kane and Fiona paid a visit for example, and will be doing a members guest spot in February next year.

I played Mondura Dam, not for the first time but it's a song I've found myself returning to in recent days. Jojo aked me where Mondura Dam is - it's actually Monduran Dam in Queensland Australia.







Then I did Whatever Happened to Us by Loudon Wainwright. I've been meaning to sing that one for some time but this is the first time I got around to it.

Old Paint at Havering Folk Club and Cajun Music Cajun Food

Well I missed a week last week due to illness and I had a busy day on Wednesday in central London for the afternoon but it was good to be back at Havering Folk Club for the evening entertainment. Quite a fun night as it turned out with Bert compering in a hilarious style.

I suddenly decided to play an old country cowboy song, Old Paint which I learned originally from the second Loudon Wainright LP. It's a traditional song

I ride an old paint, I lead an old Dan
I'm going to Montana for to throw the hoolian
They feed in the coulees, they water in the draw
Their tails are all matted, and their backs are all raw
Ride around little dogies, ride around slow
For the Firey and Snuffy are a rarin' to go

Old Bill Jones had a daughter and a son
One went to college and the other went wrong
His wife she died in a pool-room fight
And still he keeps singing from morning 'til night
Ride around little dogies, ride around slow
For the Firey and Snuffy are a rarin' to go

When I die take my saddle from the wall
Lead me down to my pony, take him out of his stall
Put my bones on his back, point our faces to the west
And we'll ride the prairie, that we love the best
Ride around little dogies, ride around slow
For the Firey and Snuffy are a rarin' to go

Then one of my own songs, a request as I had the 12string guitar with me:

Cajun music, Cajun food

This is a man who knows his onions

Allons Danser

( I added a verse in cajun french that day )

This is the video from the April 1st gig.

Setlist 1st April Andy Roberts Night - Havering Folk Club

Here's the final setlist of songs that ended up included in the performance last night at Havering Folk Club:

Setlist Part One

All songs by Andy Roberts

1) Time for the music
2) Shifting Sands
3) Cormorants / London Bridge
4) The Wreckers Prayer
5) Sitting On Top Of The World
6) Onions
7) Blue
8) Gernika

Break.

Setlist Part Two

1) Memphis Tennessee - Chuck Berry
2) Down Drinking at the Bar - Loudon Wainwright
3) The Same Old Rock - Roy Harper
4) Mondura Dam - Andy Roberts
5) Wrecked Again - Michael Chapman
6) Captain Coulston - Trad arr Steeleye Span, Andy Roberts
7 Goodnight Irene - Trad, Leadbelly

Chinese Lute at Havering Folk Club

I took my Chinese Lute or Ruan along to Havering Folk club this week for a change, as you may have guessed from yesterday's post about it. I had some trouble fitting it into the guitar bag, but managed to improvise with the zip.

I thought it as a particularly good night last night. There were some new performers to me, and I also noticed that several of the regulars had noticeably come on in and demonstrated considerable improvement. It must be the accumulated effect of weekly providing an attentive audience for each other. All levels are appreciated, but I think the overall level had gone up a notch or two. Well that's how it seemed to me anyway.

I played a tune that I always play on the chinese lute and now it has a name "Yangtse Gorges". There's a video of me playing it in the back garden a few years ago somewhere, I'll have to root around on various old computers.

Then I did Dead Skunk by Loudon Wainwright, an old singalong favourite recently mentioned by Karyn. Linda was sitting near the front so we have an instant video take:


Andy Roberts plays Dead Skunk at Havering Folk Club

Last Night at Havering Folk Club

It was my last night at Havering Folk Club of 2008 since I'll be missing the xmas party next week.

I started the first half with Not John from Loudon Wainwright since it was Remember John Lennon day on Monday, then Steeleye Span's version of Captain Coulston - well my version really.

In the second half I got the chance to do Sitting on the Bank, one of my own songs from very long ago.

8/12/1980 RIP John Lennon

It was 28 years ago today John Lennon got shot.

This tribute song is by Loudon Wainwright III

NOT JOHN

The limousine was waiting outside the studio
In stepped poor John Lennon and his wife Yoko
Oh no, not John

On up 44th Street, left at 8th Avenue
Up to the Dakota; a man waits there for you
Oh no, yes John

The man's name it is Chapman, come from Honolulu
He really loved your music, John, got a Japanese wife, too
Oh no, poor Sean

Five bullets in your body, that's what the experts say
They say you signed an autograph for him on that very day
Oh no, not John

There was a vigil at the Roosevelt, at the Dakota too
Silence in Central Park, they had a riot in Liverpool

Now Chapman's in the jailhouse - what's he doing there?
He went and he shot John Lennon. All you heroes best beware
Oh no, not John

The limousine was waiting outside the studio
In stepped poor John Lennon and his wife Yoko
Oh no, not John

Four songs

Back from my Dad's funeral in Cornwall.

With a few regulars absent at Havering Folk Club this week, we still had a fun evening. John had heard me practicing "Hesitation Blues" so I started with that as a sort of request, then decided to sing "Samson and the Warden", a Loudon Wainwright song.

Samson And The Warden




In the second half I did an unusual thing for me, I decided irt was time for a traditional singalong and introduced the Essex audience to "Going up Camborne Hill coming down" accompanied by a pint of beer. Then I picked up the guitar and played "See Emily Play" the Pink Floyd classic.

So no Andy Roberts songs this week then.