Xmas / End of Year Mix

https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-xmas-and-holiday-mix/

Emily Smith - Little Road to Bethlehem
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - Good King Wenceslas
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - 500 Miles
Denny Laine - Blackbird
Jake Shimabukuro - While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Peter, Paul and Mary - Puff The Magic Dragon
Manic Street Preachers - Last Christmas
Manic Street Preachers - Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head
Indigo Girls - Mrs Robinson
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - Jingle Bells
Big Country - Peace in our Time 
Gigspanner - Sitting on Top of the World
Sonny Terry - Skip to my Lou
Blind Boys of Alabama - Amazing Grace
Fleetwood Mac - Man of the World
Ted Hawkins - Peace and Happiness
James J Turner - This Christmas
Jethro Tull - Christmas Song
Emily Smith - Merry Christmas to all and Goodnight

Ginger Feather show 15 December

A look back at albums released in 2019. No Ginger Feather broadcast this Sunday but you can hear the show on Mixcloud

Howard Haigh - Darktown
Claire Hastings - Jack The Sailor
Megson - I Drew my Ship into the Harbour
Lau - I Don't Want To Die Here
Mikey Kenney - The Golden Castle / The Broken Pledge
Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening - Hushabye Birdie / Hexham Lasses
Ralph McTell - Close Shave
Rihannon Giddens & Francesco Turrissi - Gonna Write Me A Letter
Trio Dhoore - Haven
Blanche Rowan & Mike Gulston - Spirit of the Trees
Songs of Our Native Daughters - Blood and Bones
The Steve Howe Trio - The Changing Same
Dog Daisies - Eagletism

Ginger Feather show 8 December

As we approach the General Election our tech guru \ producer guy Citizen K suggested I put together a show of protest songs and include a few tracks by local musicians so here is the resulting playlist. Hope you can tune in this Sunday at 6pm.

The Bad Shepherds - London Calling\Manchester Calling\The Monaghan Jug
Mhairi Lockett - Get The Tories Out
Rory McLeod - Wrong Side of the Wall
Angie Palmer - Premonition Blues
Dick Gaughan - No Gods and Precious Few Heroes
The Unthanks - The Testimony of Patience Kershaw
Jez Lowe and the Bad Pennies - The Judas Bus
Miranda Sykes & Rex Preston - Do Not Surrender
Billy Bragg - All You Fascists Bound To Lose
Hugh Cornwell - Stuck in Daily Mail Land
Roving Crows - Refugee
Duncan McCrone - I Ain't Marchin' Anymore
The Low Countries - We're All on the Verge of Something
Idiot Johnson - Northern Rain

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM

6pm on Sundays

Listen via the listen2myradio app

Or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Recommended Albums of 2019

My annual look back at the year has shown that I have bought relatively few folk albums in 2019. I have been enjoying the freedom of being away from a radio station where I was regularly sent cds and free downloads so that I can now dip back into the many albums I've been sent over the last ten or so years as well as play the occasional new track. 

I have also been buying and listening to more jazz on both cd and vinyl which I guess is part of a trend among music lovers who are tired of just streaming music or paying for digital downloads and want to have an actually disc in their hands. I must admit most of my purchases have been old releases from the 50s and 60s but I have bought new releases by The Steve Howe Trio - The New Frontier and Abdullah Ibrahim - The Balance. 

As my radio shows are still mainly covering folk and acoustic music here it is, in vaguely alphabetical order, my...

Recommended Albums of 2019 

Claire Hastings - Those Who Roam
Howard Haigh - State of Play 
Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening - Hollowbone
Lau - Midnight and Closedown
Megson - Contradicshun 
Mikey Kenney - The Reverie Road 
Ralph McTell - Hill of Beans
Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi - There is No Other
Rory McLeod - Gusto!
Trio Dhoore - August

Listen to Off The Beaten Tracks
On Ginger Feather FM
Every Sunday at 6pm
Catch up with old shows on Mixcloud 

Ginger Feather show 1 December

This Sunday's playlist. You can listen to the show on Mixcloud 

Kathryn Tickell - O-U-T Spells Out
Thea Gilmour - London
Gilmore & Roberts - Things You Left Behind
Dick Gaughan - Geronimo's Cadillac
Cara - The Elfin Knight
Annie Raitt & Bridget Forsyth - Armchair Charlie
Scott Wood Band - Mr Sloan
Bert Jansch - A Woman Like You
Nancy Kerr & James Fagan - Sweet Peace
Donald MacNeill & Roberto Diana - Home is Where The Dog Is
Nick Keir - Midnight Singer
Chris & Kellie While - Van Diemen's Land
Hannah Saunders & Ben Savage - Reynardine
Haddo - Old Tom of Oxford

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM

6pm on Sundays

Listen via the listen2myradio app

Or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather show 24 November

You can listen to Sunday's Off The Beaten Tracks show on Mixcloud 

Crosby, Stills & Nash - Helplessly Hoping
Simon & Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence
Edward Foster - Anacapri
KT Tunstall - Black Horse and the Cherry Tree
Martin Stephenson - Rain
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Sail Away
Janis Ian - At Seventeen
Fairport Convention - The Ballad of Easy Rider
Richard Thompson - From Galway to Graceland
Emily Smith - Waltzing's For Dreamers
Bellowhead - Frog's Legs and Dragon Teeth
Cara Dillon - Blackwater Side
Broom Bezzums - Way Over Yonder in a Minor Key
Yes - Onward
Steve Howe - Surface Tension

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM

6pm on Sundays

Listen via the listen2myradio app

Or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Listen to past shows and mixes on our Mixcloud page

Ginger Feather show 17 November

Here's tomorrow's playlist with a link to my Mixcloud page if you'd like to listen to the show before then.

Steeleye Span - Dark Eyed Sailor
Brad Agincourt - Luminous
Trio Dhoore - Haven
The Young 'Uns - Between The Wars
Steve Knightley - The Boys of Summer
The Unthanks - Living by the Water
Peter Knight's Gigspanner - King of the Fairies 
Anna ELizabeth Laube - Please Let It Rain In California Tonight
Bruce Cockburn - Cafe Society
Charlie Roth - The Ghost of Hobo Bill
Dana Immanuel - Devil's Money
Viper Central - The Mission
The Foghorn Stringband - Pretty Polly

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM
6pm on Sundays
Listen via the listen2myradio app
Or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather show 10 November

Back to doing a radio show after a couple of weeks of mixes. Sticking with the idea of linking one song title to the next here is Sunday's playlist. A couple of the links are using the album title the track is from. Hope you enjoyed it. If you missed the broadcast and would like to listen to the show it is on Mixcloud.

Fabian Holland - Welcome to the Magic Show
Maura Kennedy - She Worked Her Magic on Me
Lady Maisery - This Woman's Work 
The Incredible String Band - Womankind
Maeve MacKinnon - Kind Friends and Companions
Flook - Companion Star
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - Theme to Star Trek
Angelo Badalamenti - Twin Peaks Theme
Bella Hardy - Peak Rhapsody (from the album The Dark Peak and the White)
Fairport Convention - Darkside Wood
Jamie Smith's Mabon - Lady of the Woods
Seth Lakeman - Lady of the Sea
Birds of Chicago - The Wide Sea
Ross Ainslie - Beer (from the album Wide Open)

Off The Beaten Tracks
6pm on Sundays
Listen via the listen2myradio app
Or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Music Link mix 3 November

As you can see from the playlist, each song title shares a word or two with the following song title. I got the idea from a show on Diversity FM by a presenter called Janet though I think there was more to her show than this simple sort of link. If memory serves me right she would link up the first and last track on each show which was pretty impressive. But the good thing about this approach is that lets me select tracks which I might not have otherwise thought of and I can stray off the folk \ singer-songwriter genres that I normally feature. So this is perhaps more what a show called Off The Beaten Tracks should really be about. And it makes it more interesting for me as well!

Equation - Cross The River
Geoff Lakeman - A Wide, Wide River To Cross
The Bad Shepherds -  Whole Wide World/Hag With The Monkey
Karine Polwart - Women of the World
Cam Penner - Gypsy Women
The Coral - Talkin' Gypsy Market Blues
Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee - Back Home Blues
Richard & Linda Thompson - A Heart Needs A Home (live)
Kami Thompson - Why You Wanna Break My Heart
Blind Boys of Alabama - Just Wanna See His Face
Bert Jansch - First Time Ever I Saw You Face
Crosby, Stills & Nash - Might As Well Have a Good Time
Edgelarks - The Good Earth
Kate Bush - Hello Earth
Danny Schmidt - Soon The Earth Will Swallow

Check out this and other shows and mixes at https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/ and 
https://www.mixcloud.com/GingerfeatherFM/

Tune in to Ginger Feather FM on Sundays from 4pm 
http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Lancaster Music Mix

A selection of bands, musicians and singer-songwriters either from Lancaster or with a connection to the town. To be broadcast on Ginger Feather FM this Sunday the 27th of October. Available to listen to now on Mixcloud

Iona Lane - Brown Eyes
The Low Countries - Sun Street
Moonlight Gazette - Dinaresade
Idiot Johnson - Good Things Never Last
Dog Daisies - Carehome
Dan Haywood - Suspicious Farms
The Broken-Hearted Few - I Don't Think I Love You
Jo Gillot - Traveling Raft
Paddy Garrigan & The Stroller Priests - Sea Monsters
Stuart Anthony & Larry Beckett - Exile and the Kingdom
Howard Haigh - Reflections
Mikey Kenney - The Path I Walk Upon
Nino's Blue Saloon - We're Leaving Tonight
David J Kelly - The High Road

Tune in online at https://www.internet-radio.com/station/gingerfeatherfm/

Ginger Feather show 20 October

Sunday playlist and you can listen to the show at 
https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-20-october-2019/

Sam Kelly and the Lost Boys - Greenland Whale
Blazin' Fiddles - Fiddle Cushion
The Willows - Gog Magog
Martin Carthy - Scarborough Fair
June Tabor - King of Rome
Ewan Robertson - Ride Away
The Alt - Going for a Soldier Jenny / The Chandelier
The Alt - The Green Gowned Lass / Danger Mouse / Dan Breen's
Miranda Sykes & Rex Preston - Sweet Pea / Mean To Me
Show of Hands - The Falmouth Packet / Haul Away Joe
Megson (featuring The Willows) - Songs to Soothe a Tired Heart
Alice Jones - Adieu To Old England

Live dates mentioned in the show - 

Blazin' Fiddles 

Wednesday 27 Nov The Platform, Morecambe

Thursday 28 Nov Coronation Hall, Ulverston

The Willows

Friday 8 Nov The Atkinson, Southport

Martin Carthy

Thursday 28 Nov Number 39 Hopstar Brewery Tap, Darwen

Off The Beaten Tracks

Sundays at 6pm on Ginger Feather FM

Listen on the app or at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather show and mix

Here are the playlists from last night's Off The Beaten Tracks show and the Indie/Rock mix I put together which also went out last night. 

Both will be uploaded this week to the Ginger Feather FM Mixcloud page and my show is on my page at https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/

The Levellers - What A Beautiful Day
The Deadly Winters - Lady Fayre
Howard Haigh - A Call To Peace
Graham Nash - Cold Rain
James J Turner - Kalahari Rain
The Grateful Dead - Candyman
Darwin Song Project - Trust in the Rolling Ocean
Angie Palmer - Postcard from Paris
Richard Thompson - You Can't Reach Me
Fairport Convention - Fotheringay
Howard Haigh - Salsita (Sept mix)
Patsy Matheson - The Hollies
The Levellers - Celebrate
Ralph McTell & Wizz Jones - Morning Blues
Nordic Fiddlers Bloc - Un-named Shetland Reel

Ginger Feather 60s rock show

A change from the folk and acoustic, this week it's a mainly rock and acoustic show.

The Who - Heaven and Hell
The Who - I Can't Explain
The Jimi Hendrix Experience - The Wind Cries Mary
Carole King - So Far Away
Quicksilver Messenger Service - Pride of Man
Led Zeppelin - Gallows Pole
The Byrds - Goin' Back
The Doors - Waiting For The Sun
Neil Young and Crazy Horse - Round and Round
CSN&Y - Ohio
Simon & Garfunkel - The Boxer
The Beatles - You Never Give Me Your Money
Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
George Harrison - Run of the Mill

Listen on Sundays from 4pm on the Android app or at...

http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Listen to previous shows on Mixcloud at...

https://www.mixcloud.com/GingerfeatherFM/

Ginger Feather FM Mixcloud page

My radio shows are now being uploaded to the Ginger Feather Mixcloud page so please use this link to listen to my shows - https://www.mixcloud.com/GingerfeatherFM/

Sunday's Off The Beaten Tracks had a few Hugh Cornwell tracks as it was his 70th birthday recently - 

Hugh Cornwell - Nice n Sleazy
Patti Smith - Midnight Rider
Pete Townshend & Raphael Rudd - A Little is Enough
Bruise - Don't Make Me Wait
Kim Edgar - Withheld
Hugh Cornwell - Ships That Pass in the Night
The Stranglers - N'emmenes Pas Harry
Yves Lambert Trio - Les Diables
Mad Pudding - Le Beaujolais Nouveaux
Yes - Mood For A Day
April Maybe May - The Girl Next Door
The Low Countries - Summer Doesn't Know Me
Moonlight Gazette - Highfields
Raphael Rudd - Magic Grace
Hugh Cornwell - 2000 Lights

https://www.mixcloud.com/GingerfeatherFM/colin-bertrams-offf/

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM

Every Sunday at 6pm

http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather and Gone Mad mix 25 August

As well as my usual folk n acoustic music show on Ginger Feather FM I've also done a Gone Mad mix as Philip Cowles is taking a break from doing his show this week. Both playlists include tracks from the Save The LMC! and the Breathingspace Freeman's Wood compilations.

If you want to listen to these tomorrow tune in between 6 and 8pm on the listen2myradio app or click on the link above.

Off The Beaten Tracks show 6pm

Neil Young - Heart of Gold
Jenny Lascelles - -347
Martha Wainwright - Comin' Tonight
Montana Wildhack - Doolally
Sarah McQuaid - If We Dig Any Deeper It Could Get Dangerous
Charlotte - Salt & Pepper
Johnny Flynn - Bottom of the Sea Blues
Balkanics - Syrtos
Leonard Cohen - Dance Me To The End Of Love
Heidi Talbot and John McCusker - Love's Sweet Old Song
Simon and Garfunkel - Mrs Robinson
Neil Young - Four Strong Winds
The Broken-Hearted Few - Maiden Fair
Turnstone - Grey Bird

CB Gone Mad mix 7pm

Manic Street Preachers - Slash N' Burn

All About Eve - In The Clouds

TV FACE - Phone Phreaks

Glass Poppies - Oh So Lonely

Idiot Johnson - Bedhead Sally

The Costello Show - Indoor Fireworks

Hugh Cornwell - Strange Little Girl

Johnny Marr - Hi Hello

Paddy Garrigan & The Stroller Priests - Me and the Universe

3D Tanx - I Am Go

Icepops for Breakfast - Oh Darling Boy

Toy Dolls - Florence is Deaf

Stiff Little Fingers - Nobody's Hero

Love and Rockets - Bound For Hell

Manic Street Preachers - Damn Dog

The Damned - Under The Floor Again

https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-25-august-2019/

Ginger Feather + Jazz Mix playlists 18 August

This Sunday's show on Ginger Feather FM has a Scottish line-up with two tracks from Karine Polwart's new album of cover versions called Karine Polwart's Scottish Songbook. I've also put together another jazz mix.

Off The Beaten Tracks radio show 6pm

Roddy Frame - Small World
Karine Polwart - Chance
The Proclaimers - The Joyful Kilmarnock Blues
Hamish Napier - The Dance
Siobhan Miller - What You Do With What You've Got
Dick Gaughan - Ruby Tuesday
Kat Flint  - Anticlimax
King Creosote - Harper's Dough
Maeve MacKinnon - Sugar Town
Karine Polwart - Swim Until You Can't See Land
Wire and Wool - Drunken Sailor
The Incredible String Band - How Happy I Am
Ewan McLennan - Rattlin' Roarin' Willie
Kim Edgar - Anchor in the Sky
Peatbog Faeries - The Naughty Step

Jazz Mix later on Sunday evening

Dave Brubeck & Paul Desmond - Alice In Wonderland
Dick Hyman Group - It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)
Martin Taylor - Czardas
Antonio Carlos Jobim - Favela
Stan Getz - The Girl From Ipanema
Colin Steele Quintet - Lament For Miles
Miles Davis - Blue 'n' Boogie
Kenny Burrell - Scotch Blues
Horace Silver - Calcutta Cutie
Abdullah Ibrahim - Just A Song

Tune in every Sunday from 4pm 

http://gingerfeatherfm.radiostream123.com

Ginger Feather show plus jazz mix

In addition to my folk and acoustic music show I've put together a jazz mix which will be broadcast at some point this evening. Check the Ginger Feather FM Twitter page or Facegroup group for more info about today's schedule. 

Off The Beaten Tracks - Sundays at 4pm

The Beatles - Across The Universe (WWF version)
Dr Faustus - Grey Mare
Battlefield Band - Lovers and Friends
Michael Hedges - Bensusan
Pierre Bensusan - So Long Michael
Kelly Oliver - The Bramble Briar
Sara Jarosz - Green Lights
Christy Moore - America You Are Not The World
Elephant Sessions - Tyagarah
Flook - The Crystal Year & Foxes' Rock
Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi - Wayfaring Stranger
Jenna - Wish You Were Here
Show of Hands - Cousin Jack
The Handsome Family - Eleanor Rigby

Ginger Feather Jazz Mix - 4th August

Dave Brubeck - Take Five
Colin Steele - Kirsten's Jig
Miles Davis - Blue in Green
Humphrey Lyttelton & His Band - Sad, Sweet Song
Louis Armstrong - Blueberry Hill
Stan Getz - Samba De Uma Nota Só (One Note Samba)
Bebel Gilberto - Bananeira
Dave Milligan Trio - Gadgemo
Abdullah Ibrahim - Tintinyana
Dave Brubeck - Tonight
Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - The Witch Doctor

http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather playlist 28 July

Yesterday's playlist which included a selection of bands and musicians with connections to the Lancaster area. Sadly Chas Ambler passed away in 2015 but, to coin a much-used phrase, his music lives on and you can listen to it at https://soundcloud.com/chas-amblerr

Mary Dillon - Army Dreamers
The Bunch - When Will I Be Loved
Dan Haywood - Dapple
The Broken-Hearted Few - Leo's Song
Kate Rusby - Village Green Preservation Society
Kris Drever - Sweet honey in the Rock
Lau - Dear Prudence
Chas Ambler - Bees (Honey Will Be The Death of Us)
Mikey Kenney - Napoli
Cardboard Fox - Empty Skies
Liza Mulholland - Took My Breath Away
Martin Simpson - Never Any Good
Ralph McTell - Streets of London
Turnstone - Rolling Tide
Greenheart - Garai Pano

Tune in to Off The Beaten Tracks

Every Sunday at 6pm

On Ginger Feather FM

Ginger Feather playlist 21 July / Rosie

I had to re-record some of this Sunday's show as my wife and I had the unpleasant task of taking our cat to the vet last night and were told that her heart was so weak that there wasn't much more they could do for her. So if there's a cat heaven, she's there now with all the other tabby cats and free from pain. Her name was Rosie and she was named partly after the Fairport Convention song and partly after a silent character in the BBC Radio 4 soap The Archers. Rest in peace little one. Thanks for your companionship over the last 12 or so years.

Tune in to Ginger Feather FM on Sunday at 6pm to hear...

Fairport Convention - Rosie
Patti Smith - Within You Without You
June Tabor - Shipbuilding
Jenny Sturgeon - Running Free
Sarah-Jane Summers & Juhani Silvola - Sister Donna Kelly
Skipinnish - Walking on the Waves
Sandy Denny - Whispering Grass
Jesca Hoop - Simon Says
Neil Young - Helpless (live)
Stephen Stills - Judy
Sam Baker - Ditch
Roger Roger - Think of Me
J Shogren & Shanghai'd - (unlisted bonus track)
Hayseed Dixie - Have A Drink on Me
Blind Boys of Alabama - Dimming of the Day

Ginger Feather playlist 14 July

Assuming the gremlins at Ginger Feather FM have been dealt with my show will be broadcast at 6pm this evening. If not, you can listen on Mixcloud 

Barbara Dickson & Rab Noakes - Do Right Woman
Nick Drake - Which Will
Kitty MacFarlane - Namer of Clouds
Fabian Holland - Welcome to the Magic Show
Michael Chapman - The Mallard (live)
Cara Dillon - Bright Morning Star
Damien O'Kane - All Among The Barley
The Deadly Winters - Rum Runners
King Creosote & Jon Hopkins - Bats in the Attic
KT Tunstall - Gone to the Dogs
Jez Lowe - Bother at the Hoppins
Rory McLeod - No Use for a Gun
John Renbourn & Wizz Jones - Blues Run The Game

https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-14-july-2019/

Ginger Feather playlist 7 July

Coming up at 6pm today on http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Indigo Girls - Mrs Robinson
Ollie King - Santa Fe Trail
Davy Graham - Don't Think Twice It's Alright
Fairport Convention - The Game Pieces
Chris Leslie - Believe Me, If All Those Endearing Young Charms
Chris Bradley - To My Ears
Martin Stephenson - Little Red Bottle
Gilmore & Roberts - Fleetwood Fair (live)
Billy Bragg - The World Turned Upside Down
The Be Good Tanyas - House of the Rising Sun
Danny Schmidt - Cry on the Flowers
Suzy Thompson - In The Pines (live)
Tumbling Bones - I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby
Syd Straw & Evan Dando - For Shame of Doing Wrong

Follow Ginger Feather FM on Twitter at FmGinger

Listen to Philip Cowles' shows at www.mixcloud.com/PCGoneMad/ 

Ginger Feather playlist 23 June

Here's the playlist for Off The Beaten Tracks this Sunday the 23rd of June at 6pm

Tim O'Brien - Tombstone Blues
Indigo Girls - Closer to Fine
Blind Willies - Prey
Flying Burrito Brothers - Dark End of the Street
Alison Krauss - Down To The River To Pray
John Mellencamp - Teardrops Will Fall
Bonnie Raitt - Burning Down The House
Rosanne Cash - Three Steps Down
Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi - Little Margaret
The Dylan Project - I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
Martin Harley & Daniel Kimbro - Postcard from Hamburg
Alison Krauss & Union Station - I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow
The Bean Pickers Union - Sometimes I Just Sits
Manassas - Johnny's Garden
Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues

http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/


https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-23-june-2019/

Ginger Feather playlist 16 June

Through the wonders of technology you can listen to tomorrow's show today or on other day that takes your fancy. Time, as they say, is an illusion. 

https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/off-the-beaten-tracks-16-june-2019/

Steve Knightley - Raining Again
Richard Thompson - Tempted
Le Vent du Nord - Le Rosier
Annlaug - Suril Luril
Chamberlain & Haywood - Hungarian Dance No 2 in D Minor
Bryony Holden - Gypsy Davey
Daimh - Harris Dance
Richard Thompson - Walking The Long Miles Home
The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - Dancing Barefoot
Damien O'Kane & Ron Block - Phoebe's / The Banjo Strikes Back
Equation - Wild Card
Pentangle - Sally Go Round The Roses
Ralph McTell - Anji & Lullaby of Birdland
Paddy Garrigan & The Stroller Priests - What You Want And What You Get

Or wait until Sunday at 6pm and goto http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather playlist 9 June

Here's tonight's playlist on http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Neil Young - Old Man
The Stray Birds - The Bridge
Anna Laube - Chocolate Chip Banana Cupcakes
Kris Drever - Shipwrecked
Fairport Convention - Sir Patrick Spens
Swarb's Lazarus - Grey Funnel Line
Kate Rusby - Underneath the Stars
Elaine Palmer - Blackened Heart
Ray Cooper - Drunk on Summer
Neil Young (with CSN) - Through My Sails
The Stray Birds - Long Table
Bob Dylan - Mr Tambourine Man
Joni Mitchell - I Don't Know Where I Stand
Graham MacKenzie - Cape Breton Set

Ginger Feather playlist 2 June

Here's tonight's playlist. Ginger Feather FM is now on Twitter. Follow us at @FmGinger

Steeleye Span - All Around My Hat
Turnstone - Copper Canyon
Luke Jackson - Fumes and Faith
The Proclaimers - King of the Road
Rita Hosking - Sierra Bound
Dolly Parton - Seven Bridges Road
Rose's Pawn Shop - Pine Box
Martha Wainwright - When The Day Is Short
Reg Meuross - My Name is London Town
Dick Gaughan - Now Westlin Winds
Clype - Down With May
The Proclaimers - Hate My Love
The Imagined Village - Cum On Feel The Noize
Afro Celt Sound System - Amber

http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Ginger Feather playlist 26 May

Here's the playlist from this evening's show on Ginger Feather FM

Bert Jansch - Strolling Down The Highway
The Rails - Breakneck Speed
The Young Uns - Be The Man
Sarah Jarosz - Comin' Undone
I'm With Her - Close It Down
Gilmore & Roberts - Billy Green
The Willows - Honest Man
Paul McCartney - Every Night
John Lennon - Oh Yoko
Dog Daisies - Auk
Dog Daisies - It's All Gone
Mr Ben and the Bens - Birth at Sea
Patsy Matheson - If You Ask Me
Angie Palmer - Little By Little
The Slambovian Circus of Dreams - Sunday in the Rain
Big Country - Chance

Tune in every Sunday at 6pm at http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

Shows are uploaded to https://www.mixcloud.com/cmbertram/ 

King Creosote, Fence Collective & Crail Folk Club

I first came across Kenny Anderson, aka King Creosote, back in the mid-90s when he was a regular on the St Andrews’ music scene either playing at pubs like Aikmans* on Bell Street or playing in bands such as Khartoum Heroes and the Skoubhie Dubh Orchestra. Rumour had it that the latter of those two bands was forced to change their name due to it sounding too much like a certain cartoon character for the lawyers representing its American studio. How much truth there was in that I have no idea but it did give Kenny and co some publicity. I saw both those bands in 1995, the Heroes in Crail at the Community Hall and the Orchestra at the Victory Memorial Hall in St Andrews. I have no memory of the Crail gig though do remember seeing the likes of Tom Paxton and Salsa Celtica play that converted church venue some years later, gigs organised by the Crail Folk Club. But I do remember being at the Memorial Hall which was across the road from the student association building.

Crail was just down the road from the village of Kingsbarns, where I was living in those days, and I started going along to the folk club more out of curiosity than anything else. I certainly wasn’t much of a folk music fan back then but there was always a friendly welcome from Jill who ran the club and they were happy to see any musicians who were willing to sing a song regardless of what genre it was. I can still recall my first visit to the Golf Hotel for a singers’ night. I was sitting at a table quietly minding my own business when Jill approached me and asked if I could sing. Yes, I replied, a bit. Her next question was, do you play any instruments? I replied that I played the guitar and her third question threw me a bit as she asked, if I find you a guitar will you give us a song? Shortly after that I was sitting in front of the audience playing a rather hurried version of The Beatles’ song I’m Only Sleeping. When I had finished I went and sat down. There was a couple sitting next to me and the chap told me that was one of his favourite Beatles songs, but he’d never heard it played so fast. That must’ve been the adrenalin kicking in - nature's amphetamine!

But back to King Creosote. By the late 90s Kenny, along with various pals in Anstruther in the East Neuk of Fife, had formed the Fence Collective. They all adopted nicknames such as The Pictish Trail, Uncle Beesly and HMS Ginafore and their gigs were usually fairly laid-back affairs with each of them taking turns on the sound desk and sitting in with each other on stage. I saw them a number of times around the East Neuk in places like Anstruther, Pittenweem and Elie and a memorable night when they came along en masse from Anstruther to the Crail Folk Club. There was a great sense of camaraderie among the Collective and I was quite envious of how much fun they always seemed to have playing their music. The folk club was all well and good, and I did meet some people there who became close friends, but the Fence Collective had something special going on there. My final Fence gig before leaving Fife was at the St Andrews Scout Hut, an unlikely venue for a gig but it suited them down to the ground. There were quite a few students in the audience which was unusual. I'd been to a couple of poorly attended gigs at the student association but word must have got around that the Fence Collective were worth seeing.

I should mention one other gig from those times which took place at the  Association - it wasn't called a student union as St Andrews wasn’t affiliated to the NUS. In May 2004 King Creosote played support to the American indie pop duo Joy Zipper. I hadn’t heard of them but my mate Joe was interested in the gig so I went along too. Kenny took to the stage and for some reason there was a spinning top on the floor next to his chair. He made no mention of it and it sat there until the end of one of his songs when he pumped it up and as the music faded, he set it spinning. A slightly surreal moment but in a way it perfectly summed up his music and the Fence Collective vibe.

Since moving to Lancaster in 2005 I have seen Kenny a couple of times here along with a very good headlining spot with his own band at the Cloudspotting festival in 2016. His Fence friend The Pictish Trail has made it here too along with James Yorkston who was a member of the Fence Collective back in its early days before he went on to pursue a solo career.

I’d be interested in Kenny’s thoughts on those days but at his recent gig at The Hall in Lancaster he told us that he always has the internet turned off. He seems happy though, living as he is in Crail and playing his accordion. Good to see you again KC. As those of us from north of the border might say, lang may yer lum reek.

*I’m sure Aikmans was known by another name but I can’t for the life of me remember what it was. If your memory is better than mine, do let me know what it was called. Cheers.

Off The Beaten Tracks on Ginger Feather FM

My first show on Ginger Feather internet radio is being broadcast today and will be repeated on Sunday at 6pm which will be my regular slot. 

Tune in on  http://gingerfeatherfm.listen2myshow.com/

You'll need to install the Listen 2 My Radio app to listen on smart phones and tablets. 

Will Pound - The Liberty Bell March
Richard Thompson - Wall of Death
Jez Lowe - The Wrong Bus
Megson - Voice of the Nation
Stuart Anthony - Song to the Siren (live)
Turnstone - Second Chance
Karine Polwart - Cornerstone
Lau - Toy Tigers
Gilmore & Roberts - Just A Piece of Wood
Davy Lees - I Ain't Got No Home
Hannah Saunders & Ben Savage - Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key
Mikey Kenney - Montagna Di Menta
Moonlight Gazette - Souk
You Are Wolf - Witch of the Westmerlands
Peter Knight & John Spiers - Waiting for the Federals
John Renbourne - Sad News
Salt House - Lay Your Dark Low
Flossie Mallavialle - Girls' Night Out
Mike Vass feat Mariearad Green - Teen
Skerryvore - Rocket to the Moon
The Tillers - 500 Miles

The Nature of My Mental Illness

You know how it is – you get up, have breakfast, have a shower, get dressed and are making plans for the rest of the day. Okay, it’s raining just now but it might brighten up later. There are so many possibilities. Yes, there are chores to do like shopping, as you’re nearly out of washing up liquid, and you really need to get a haircut but maybe you could go swimming today.

Then it happens. Some part of your brain says, “Stop. You aren’t going anywhere.” A wave of anxiety floods your mind and you feel almost paralysed. You feel like crying. The tears well up in your eyes but even the act of crying seems too much. Another part of your brain is saying, “Come on, don’t give in to this. This is bullshit.” But it feels so real. All your plans go out the window. You just want to stay indoors. No, you need to stay indoors. You look out the window and see one of your neighbours going out. To her, this is just another day of coping with the kids and going to work. She gets in her car and off she goes.

You try and remember what it was like, being able to do all these things that other people take for granted and you know that when you’re having a good day you too can do these things. You sit at your computer and feel that at least you can do stuff online. You order a new ink cartridge for you printer. Hey, I’ve done something. You post on social media. Someone likes your post and you don’t feel quite so alone.

You make a coffee. Drink it down and make another. Towards the end of this one you add a slug of whisky. You hear that voice in your head telling you, you shouldn’t do this but it tastes nice and you relax a bit. You make another hot drink and add a bit more alcohol. You know you have your pills upstairs but they often don’t seem to make much difference.

Whatever happened to Valium? You remember that bit in Trainspotting where Renton, as part of his preparation to come off smack, nicks some of his mum’s pills? He describes her as being, in her own way, a junkie as well but her drugs were on prescription. But these days such medication is out of fashion. It’s all anti-depressants and beta blockers. No wonder so many people self-medicate with alcohol and smoke weed to alleviate their symptoms.

There’s so much shit to cope with. Is it any wonder we are facing an epidemic of mental illness, self-harming, alcohol and drug abuse, gambling addiction, domestic violence, increasing levels of racism, antisemitism and God knows what else? The planet is burning, there are dire warnings about our very survival and don’t get me started on Brexit.

But there is hope. There has to be. We need to cling on to the belief that things will work out for the best. It’s hard, often very hard to stay positive but for the sake of our loved ones and future generations we mustn’t give in to the fear-mongers. Those in the tabloid press who make money from spreading their own brand of fake, or at least distorted, news to enrage their readers. These poor sods who then consciously or unconsciously become more extreme in their views blaming immigrants, remainers, the liberal elite or whoever for all the troubles apparently afflicting our society.

But fuck it. Whether you think that Winston Churchill was a hero or a villain, he did come up with the acronym KBO which stood for Keep Buggering On. At the end of the day that’s all we can keep doing. I heard something on a play on the radio the other day where a character was going to throw herself into the sea but was persuaded not to and was told that we just have to keep going, even if it’s just out of habit, until things get better.

Me, I have music that has so often pulled me back from the edge. Today it’s been UK band Bruise followed by Buffalo Springfield and now The Black Crowes that is keeping me here. And the rain has stopped and the sun is out. I might get to the swimming pool tomorrow.