Well we've been back a few weeks now and it's been a busy time amongst families, day jobs and paying the bills, so things like website updating and blogging haven't been on the top of the 'to do' list. So here goes, at long last.We've made a few changes to the website lately, (maybe nothing hugely noticeable to anyone but us!), and one thing we hope to be more on top of is our mailing list and a new tour blog, with tales, pics and videos from on the road.
Day 1 - Sunday 1st March
Our second trip of 2009 to the US saw us land headlong in a wintry storm-ridden east coast. We made our first run out to Cape Cod, the other side of Buzzards Bay from where we were last summer at New Bedford Summerfest. However, we didn't see it at its best, in fact miles away from the idyllic vacation destination of the Kennedys and such like. I don't think the big 'Cape Cod' sign as you arrive is meant to be white with snow.
But we had a great first night hosted by the Woods Hole Folk Music Society, reuniting us with Clyde Tyndale who'd done sound for us at the Old Songs festival back in summer 08 in New York state. Mike and I sayed with Jan Elliott and Tim Radford, and Tim and I soon got lost in folklorists heaven, swapping yarns about various folksong collectors and the like, with Tim telling me about a great project he's working on with the songs of a singer from his home area. Songs from Home?!
What a hardy bunch of navvies all! I should point out, Dave is merely holding a shovel, myself and Mike (complete with very non-waterproof slip-on shoes) were the ones exercising the elbow grease the most ;-)Day 2 - Monday 2 March
Jan herself is an accomplished concertina player amongst other things, and during breakfast conversation Mike confessed to not knowing what a crumhorn is, so we had our first ever crumhorn tour breakfast serenade!
Jan had been out in the morning already 'digging the car out'. This was no exaggeration. We went to meet the rest of the gang at the place they were staying, and alas their British Isles snow instincts - or lack of any?! - meant that they hadn't thought about moving the car which was now in a good 8 inches of snow. We were due to leave shortly, so before they had even grasped what was going on, Mike and I grabbed shovels and got busy. That's teamwork guys eh? Thankfully after about 15 minutes digging and maneouvering, things were looking up.
We were due to travel up to Maine to see Phill McIntyre who runs Skye Theatre in South Carthage. Now there's another snow story....
[to be continued...]
