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Friday
8th September 8pm
The UK's
finest SALSA charanga band!
CHARANGA DEL
NORTE
Yes, join
Leeds' finest, most spirited, energetic ten-piece Salsa band
with a line-up led by violins and flutes rather than the
more usual brass - hence 'charanga' - together with classic
piano, double bass, timbales, congo and guiro. Cracking
Cuban music form Yorkshire! Just sit back and enjoy the
music or get up and strut your stuff showing off all those
fancy moves you learnt on holiday!
'Slick and
funky....Muy sabroso!' Lubi OJC, Casa Latina
Tickets
£8.50 Concessions £7.50 Members
£6
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Saturday
9th September 8pm
THE PHIL BEER
BAND
Multi-instrumentalist
half of England's top - top, as in selling out the Albert
Hall sort of top - acoustic duo, 'Show of Hands', Mr Phil
Beer. Back on the road with a band who's collective sound
has been labelled, not 'folk rock',but 'folk 'n' roll', and
The Guardian described their music as 'Steve Earle and
Richard Thompson collide'. Well, we here at Tower A&E
just hope nobody gets hurt trying to illustrate what a band
sounds like for heaven's sake. It's just getting out of hand
now, talented musicians hurling themselves at each other in
order to prove a point. Seems to us the simplest and safest
way to get this sorted is for you to phone up and book a
ticket NOW and make up your own mind - or somebody's going
to get hurt. And you don't want that on your conscience do
you? Anyway, whatever - and I hope we can all calm down now
- you can't really go wrong with a band fronted by a man
who's musical wizardry has been apprehended by the likes of
The Rolling Stones, Mike Oldfield and Steve Harley, to
name-drop but a few. So forget categories, just think 'great
music' and you'll be just fine.
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
15th September 8pm
THE KEVIN COYNE
BAND
'Hmm, I
think I know what to call the book now', Albert Camus could
well have mused, had he and Kevin Coyne actually ever met.
But blind to the blandishments of Branson, spurning all the
earthly treasures and glory of mainstream rock 'n' roll
fame, our hero declined, uncompromising in his need to free
himself from the chains of commercial consideration.He did
manage to record a formidable eleven albums for Virgin
Records whist he was in harness though, included the
fabulous 'Marjory Razorblade' and 'Millionaires and
Teddybears' before deciding enough was enough. And out he
went. Possessor of one of those throaty, roaring
Cocker-Chapman type blues voices that can stall stampeding
buffalo or about face an advancing Mongol horde, in the
early eighties Kevin Coyne hit rock bottom, a complete
nervous breakdown, the price to be paid for years of rock
'n' roll living and touring. Happily, decamping to Germany
in the mid-eighties proved the right thing to do, and
another eleven albums later, now well established as not
only a singer of renown, but also as a writer of song and
book, exhibiting artist and occasional actor. This is only
one of five UK dates, so make sure you don't miss out!
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
16th September 8pm
From The
House of The Rising Sun to The Rock n' Roll Hall of
Fame!
AN EVENING WITH
ALAN PRICE
A true
legend of the British and International music scene, his
inspired keyboard playing turned The Animals' 'House Of The
Rising Sun' from an OK-to-good trad blues shout into a
monster Number One and all-time Classic. The Lucky Man,
Bafta Award winner and Oscar nominee who starred in a major
Lindsay Anderson movie and brought to musical life The Daily
Mirror's cloth-capped, snout-balancing curmudgeon Andy Capp,
starring Tom Courteney. The man who alone, as part of The
Alan Price Set and alongside Georgie Fame, achieved numerous
chart hits, including the wonderful 'Jarrow Song'. With many
great songs, plus stories about life on and off the music
scene, 'An Evening With' promises to be a truly memorable
occasion, a musical and anecdotal journey through the life
and times of Alan Price.
Tickets
£15 Concessions & Members £13
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Friday
22nd September 8pm
From
Zimbabwe!
BATANAI MARIMBA
GROUP presents MAMARIMBA!
'Batani' is
a Shona word meaning 'Unite!', and Batanai Marimba travel
the world doing just that, uniting South African melody with
Zimbabwean 'jiti'-style rhythms to create the powerful
polyrhythmic sound, rich with the percussive drive of
traditional marimbas (big wooden xylophones). Fronted by
Marimba queens Lindi and Nkosi, and graced with the resonant
dub poetry of Zimbabwean Digo Vusi. South African culture at
it's joyful best.
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5
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Saturday
23rd September 8pm
MAN
One of the
'progressive' groups to develop out of the psychedelic era,
Man evolved from a Swansea outfit, The Bystanders, who had
outgrown their pop-harmony beginnings. Despite their Welsh
origins, like many other groups of their kind, they based
themselves on the Continent in the late sixties, touring
extensively through Germany, Belgium and Holland. During
this period, they enjoyed only a very small following in
England. The seventies saw the group gradually rise through
the ranks of the progressive movement to the top of league
division two Gigging almost permanently and releasing at
least one album every year the band finally succumbed in
1976 to internal pressures and external indifference fuelled
by the emergence of punk. The farewell gig of this phase was
at the Fulcrum Theatre in Slough, on December 16th 1976.
A seven year
hiatus was ended on April 1st 1983, when their performance
at London's Hope and Anchor heralded the beginning of Man's
second phase. Reformed as a four-piece, the eighties and
nineties have proved to be both stable and productive.
Albums have been few and far between, with only six releases
since 1983 (plus of course the legendary lost album) but in
concert the progression was underway again. The group have
always been a much-loved live act, and their gigging
schedule has kept them touring smaller venues throughout the
U.K and continental Europe. Alongside the frequent touring
the group's complete back catalogue has now been released on
CD, and a number of previously unavailable recordings from
the seventies lineups have also made it into the public
domain.
As the first
few months of the new millennium are reached the band find
themselves looking at a resurgance of interest in their
music. They have signed a recording deal with Andrew
Lauder's new label, Evangeline Recorded Sounds, and a new
studio album is due to be released in the summer. Two video
performances recorded during the triumphant show at the Coal
Exchange in Cardiff are also expected, one featuring
familiar material, and one showcasing the new album,
'Endangered Species'. Further releases, this time featuring
archive live material recorded during Man's 1970's tours of
the United States are also anticipated.
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £6
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Thursday
28th September 8pm
'Brel rarely
offers solutions but states the confusion brilliantly' Scott
Walker.
'NE ME QUITTE PAS':
A CELEBRATION OF JACQUES BREL
Jacques
Brel's most famous chanson 'If You Go Away' ('Ne Me Quitte
Pas') became a cabaret standard for musical giants such as
Frank Sinatra, Nina Simone, Ray Charles, Tony Bennett, Dusty
Springfield......and more. Enormous as his fame was, and is,
within French language frontiers Brel managed to conquer
Anglo-Saxon regions via a huge cult following of fellow
wordsmiths and performers such as Rod McKuen, Ray Davies,
Leonard Cohen, Marc Almond and his most celebrated and
public mouthpiece, Scott Walker. Many will only know of
Brel's work through Terry Jacks' (horrible) million selling
'Seasons In The Sun', The Sensational Alex Harvey Band's
(brilliant) take on 'Next' and Bowie with (made to measure)
'Amsterdam' and 'My Death'. Brel's influence continues to
this day in the work of Tom Robinson, Julian Cope, Howard
Devoto and Jarvis Cocker and tonight six performers,
established artists in their own right, pay homage to that
true figurehead and eminence grise of twentieth century
songwriting, Jacques Brel. They include poet/musician Attila
The Stockbroker, author and sometime leader of the legendary
Clayson and the Argonauts, Alan Clayson and Robb Johnson,
'Britain's finest songwriter since Richard Thompson'
(Venue)
Tickets
£8.50 Concessions £7.50 Members
£6
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Saturday
30th September 8pm
THE GLIDERS +
FILLUP SHACK
The Gliders
are a three-piece... a swamp-driven collision of Dr. John,
The Doors and Morphine. The sound of Interstate travel -
bars, cars and snake-handling. These boys drink strychnine
for breakfast, you could say they’ve had a leg-up,
genetically speaking. Their awesome power and skill derives
from the fact that as individuals, they’ve achieved
more musically than most bands do in a lifetime. As The
Gilders they’re only one album old. Try this CV on for
size...As lead vocalist with The Jazz Devils, Andy Taylor
wrote and produced two albums for Virgin. After leaving the
band he spent the next couple of years travelling through
the deep South, sitting in with bar bands and amassing a
great collection of rare blues and cajun recordings. As a
harmonica player Andy has recently worked with Neil Finn,
playing on his version of “I Can See Clearly Now”,
featured in the film Antz. Returning to England after one
too many scrapes (including being caught up in a bank siege
in San Antonio) he met Sean with whom he instantly struck up
a deep musical rapport. Sean Lyons has played guitar with
such diverse artists as George Clinton, Robyn Hitchcock and
Brian Kennedy, and he even played banjo on
“5-6-7-8” by Steps (a career high?). He has
collaborated with Stewart Copeland on work included in
Rumblefish and David Bowie recorded one of his first songs
“Criminal World” on the “Let’s
Dance” album. Morris Windsor is a founder member of The
Soft Boys and The Egyptians, writing and playing on over 20
albums and extensively touring both the UK and USA where the
band became darlings of college radio. Michael Stipe of REM
said of Morris: “I have never heard a more musical
drummer. He can define a song using no words and no
melody.” So there you have it - a band that could fit
into the boot of a Trabant and yet still have the power of a
V8.
21
year-old Alabama born Fillup (that’s Phillip said
quickly to you and me) Shack has just released
‘Hipoilt’, his first LP. Listening to it is like
listening to a train whistling past whose passengers include
Messers Dylan, Cohen, and Buckner... you keep thinking
you’ve heard something you recognise but by then
it’s already moved on. Stark acoustic guitar, harmonica
and a voice almost too authentic to be true mark him down
the real deal. His lyrics wander from the dark to the
hopeful and back again via Lonesome Street and Death
Mountain. This is his first visit to these shores,
he’ll bring the songs, we’ll supply the
tumbleweed.
Tickets £7
Concessions £6 Members £5
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Friday
6th October 8pm
BERT
JANSCH
With a new
biography published by Bloomsbury, a new CD and a Channel 4
biopic out in June 2000, one of the most influential and
unique musical figures on the British folk scene receives a
shamefully belated media makeover. To those of us who've
been paying attention, Bert has always been right up there;
in the Pantheon of Folk Heros to be sure, but in a very
special place, set apart even from fellow musical giants.
Oh, and any evidence you might require as to why Bert Jansch
was dubbed 'Britain's answer to Bob Dylan' can be readily
found at The Tower tonight.
Tickets
£8.50 Concessions £7 Members
£6
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Sunday
15th October 8pm
HUW & TONY
WILLIAMS
An
anniversary tour as the Dynamic Duo celebrate eighteen years
since the recording of their first album. It's been a while
since their last visit to The Tower, but it's been put back
'cos Huw and Tony wanted to include Winchester as part of
the Celebrations so, just like Sloopy, we've had to hang on.
But join us now as we give thanks for surely one of the most
likeable, consistent, funny, quality purveyors of music and
good humour on the circuit.
'The
audience reacted with laughter and within minutes were
hushed by the beauty of a song' Ralph McTell
'Well
crafted songs, prepared with humour and verve...They are the
best live act in the country' Western Mail
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
20th October 8pm
THE JON STRONG BAND
& JOHN COOPER CLARKE
Jon Strong
toured as a solo performer in the late 80's with the likes
of Robert Palmer, Ry Cooder, Van Morrison and Talk Talk.
1990 saw the birth of the Jon Strong Band and their album
debuted to critical acclaim ('mind blowing acoustic guitar
work driven by a solid classy rhythm section') The band are
in constant demand, touring the UK and Europe, a brilliant
live act, difficult to pigeon-hole but a joy to experience -
there really isn't another band like them. A Must See. Oh.,
and the long awaited follow up to Follow Me will be
available is promised for this gig - and we know this to be
true, 'cos we've actually got a copy! Support tonight needs
little introduction to Tower regulars- in a class and a
league of his own, his Chelsea boots are pointed, you won't
be disappointed, it has to be good 'ol Johnnie Clarke!
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
27th October 8pm
THE
MACHINE
'Dark Side
Of The Moon', 'Wish You Were Here', 'The Wall' and 'The
Division Bell' surely rank high in any Best Ever British
Albums and Pink Floyd a major musical force spanning
decades. The Machine play the music of Floyd, complete with
special effects and kaleidoscopic lighting, faithfully
recreating the sound and atmosphere of a Floyd stadium gig
right here in The Tower. Not just another brick in the
Warhol... whatever that may mean.
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Saturday
28th October 8pm
BACK TO
BACK - A NIGHT OF BOOGIE WOOGIE PIANO
with DANIEL
SMITH
Perhaps best
known to Tower audiences as dynamite Ivory Tickler with
Sonny Black & The Dukes, erstwhile Duke Daniel Smith's
blistering barrelhouse boogie woogie piano is now let loose,
live, solo and back to back with piano prodigy Matthew
Empson, an eighteen year old whose fingers at no time leave
the ends of his arms, despite what you might think can be
the only reasonable physical explanation for the sounds you
are hearing! Described by Radio 2's Paul Jones as a
'prodigious talent', he also sings and plays harmonica and
on stage, alongside, alone or in back of Daniel Smith, a man
who can 'squeeze more into three minutes than most manage in
a lifetime' (Blues On Stage) we can look forward to a
serious attack of one of those top Tower Live Music
nights!
'the best
boogie piano in a long time....jazzy vocals, this guy is
seriously talented' Blues Review, USA
'We want
Barrabas' The People of Israel
Plus!
Boogie On Down Yourself! If you've reached Grade 3 piano and
want to try on some boogie or jazz piano for size, now's
your chance as Daniel will be running one on one from 11am
thru' to 6.30pm during the day.
Concert
tickets £7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members £5.50
Boogie Piano
classes: £10 per 45 minute session. Limited places,
early booking advised.
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Friday
10th November 8pm
RORY
McLEOD
Back after
far too long away, a self-taught, one-man world music
phenomenon, who's travelled across five continents during
the last 12 years sustained by a natural troubadour's talent
for weaving magical, musical, storytelling spells
accompanied by his own bizzare solo orchestra of spoons,
finger cymbals, bandorea, djeme drums, brilliant harmonica,
guitar, trombone and tap dance. Rory's style of music has
been described as 'intimate, revealing, political and
powerful'. NEEDS WORK
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £6
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Sunday
12th November 8pm
CARLOS BONELL
Born in
London of Spanish parents, Carlos Bonell studied at the
Royal College of Music with John Williams. Appointed the
youngest ever Professor there in 1972, this guitar virtuoso
has since toured with his own Ensemble, appeared with all
the major British orchestras, at many International
Festivals, and in concert with fellow guitarists Paco Pena,
Juan Martin and Martin Taylor and violinists and singers,
including Salvatore Accardo, Pinchas Zuckerman, Cleo Laine
and Philip Langridge.
'Supple
rhythm and passionately lyrical phrasing.....a masterclass
in magic'. BBC Music Magazine
'Peerless
performance.....magically atmospheric playing' The West
Australian
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £6
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Thursday
16th November 8pm
LONG JOHN BALDRY
TRIO
This ain't
no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't foolin' around -
make no mistake, we are in the presence of a British Blues
Legend. Last witnessed at The Tower in June '97 (ill health
prevented a return in October '98), aficionados reckoned it
their best ever Tower gig, if not best gig ever, with LJB
strutting his stuff, behatted and resplendently suited, in
fine form and fantastic voice. This is the man who's
credited with suggesting Clapton, E, pick up a guitar, that
the Yardbirds get it together as a band and one Reginald
Kenneth Dwight counted himself so damned lucky to have been
his piano player he took the name John as his new surname in
tribute. The Stones, Sonny Boy Williamson, The Beatles,
Chuck Berry - you name 'em, LJB's mojo's been workin'
somewhere in the vicinity.
Tickets
£11 Concessions £9 Members £7
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Friday
17th November 8pm
SONNY BLACK &
THE DUKES
Perhaps best
known as a bluesman, Sonny is no mean jazz noodler, and we
here at The Tower Academy of Sound have long thought that
even on a rockin' Sonny Bee & The Dees blues night there
is a distinct jazzy feel to the whole excellent affray. So
tonight, it's blues, it's jazz, it's great music, so it just
has to be....Sonny Black and The Dukes.
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £6
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Sunday
19th November 8pm
THE ANDY SHEPPARD
TRIO
Recipient of
a Young Jazz Musician award way back in the early 80's with
the group Sphere (who actually played The Tower one Friday
night!), Andy Sheppard has maintained a position as one of
this country's leading soloists on the International stage,
performing tonight with long-time associate Lodder on piano
and on bass, Chris Lawrence. It don't get much better.
Tickets
£10 Concessions £9 Members £8
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Saturday
25th November 8pm
THE PETE BEST
BAND
Yes! A real
Beatle playing live at The Tower! AND this is the only UK
date, touring as the band is throughout the year to
Australia, Italy, Germany, Finland, Australia, Canada and
the USA! In concert, The Pete Best Band will be playing
authentic rock 'n' roll standards, original early Beatle
material plus later Beatle classics! Also included are live
versions of the famed Decca recordings and the whole evening
is a sort of A to Z of Rock 'n' Roll, featuring ex Rod
Stewart, Elton John and George Michael guitarist, Martin
Hay. Your chance to experience first hand the authentic
power of rock 'n' roll and the driving percussion that
proved a major force in lifting The Beatles above the rest
of the herd of Liverpool Beat groups, up and away onto that
long, winding road to World Domination.
Tickets
£9 Concessions £8 Members £6
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Sunday
26th November 8pm
THE SILVER
BEATLES
As fine a
reproduction of the Fab Four in all it's manifestations as
you'll get and thankfully no strangers to The Tower Live
Music programme. This time the lads will be performing all
the hits from 1962 - 1970, including a special unplugged
session showcasing classic acoustic Beatle songs.
Tickets
£7 Concessions £6 Members £5
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Friday
30th November 8pm
THE BRUCE KATZ
BAND
Take New
Orleans rhythm 'n' blues, gospel style roots, get-on-down
'n' dirty boogie woogie and then kneed, meld and mould with
the traditional -and the adventurous- deep soul of the blues
and the startling, fresh musical gumbo you've cooked up just
has to be The Bruce Katz Band. Ex Ronnie Earl and the
Broadcasters, Bruce Katz pumps piano like the demon love
chile of Jerry Lee Lewis and Albert Ammonds, accompanied all
the way and then some, and then some more, by a top draw
band of hard core blues and jazz players. It's a long, hard
spell Massachusetts, but that's where tonight's band hail
from, bringing classy, quality, authentic, rhythm 'n' boogie
blues direct to The Tower all the way from the Yew Ess of A!
Not to be missed.
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
1st December 8pm
JULIE
FELIX
'Masters' of
War', 'El Condor Pasa' and erm 'Going to The Zoo'......hits
for Britain's answer to Bobby's ex-squeeze, Joan Baez. Julie
Felix is an international artist of great distinction, still
out there writing the songs and singing them with a voice
that can send shivers down the spine of even the staunchest
anti-Folkie. Her work reflects the experience of a lifetime
committed to music, and an evening spent in her company is a
truly memorable experience.
Tickets
£7.50 Concessions £6.50 Members
£5.50
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Friday
8th December 8pm
BILL BRUFORDS'
EARTHWORKS
Original,
mould-breaking drummer with Yes and King Crimson, the man
who's name is a byword in the world of rock and jazz for
exceptional musicianship and good-time music, Mr Bill
Bruford. All you need to know really, but it's in my job
description so I do have to tell you that the rest of the
band are Patrick Clahar (ex Steve Grossman, Incognito) on
sax, Steve Hamilton (Van Morrison, Gary Burton) on keyboards
and on bass Mark Hodgson (who, we are told, has 'played with
everybody' - actually more information than we need, but
good luck to him). Anyway, a great night out with the man
who actually turns that distinctly worthy, but dodgy - well,
to us anyway - term 'jazz fusion' into great fun and a
musical force to be reckoned with.
Tickets
£8.50 Concessions £7.50 Members
£6.50
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Friday
16th December 8pm 'til late
THE TOWER
CHRISTMAS EVENT starring.
THE CRAZY WORLD OF
ARTHUR BROWN... and More!
'Quite
simply one of the best theatrical voices this country has
ever produced' Peter Gabriel
'I agree'
David Bowie
The God of
Hellfire returns to live performance! A musical and
theatrical influence dutifully acknowledged by the likes of
Pete Townsend (Who he? He Who! - Ed), Prodigy and the Red
Hot Chilli Peppers. Indeed, such was the awesome power of a
CWOAB performance that it is said one Jimi Hendrix wouldn't
appear on the same bill for fear of being upstaged - setting
fire to your guitar is not quite so spectacular as setting
fire to your head. The new show is a compelling mix of new
material plus all the psychedelic stuff including that
Monster Mash - top of the charts for 14 weeks - 'FIRE!'; an
all-time classic which features one of the most sublime
musical moments ever, you know, that bit when the brass
kicks in........gets us everytime. (Get on with it - Ed) As
usual there'll be more Tower wackiness which we have yet to
sort, the wild and wilful Tower Christmas Raffle, the only
UK Raffle which fails year in year out to make any money,
some food, a feast of fun and surprise special guests. The
Social Event of the Calendar, Darling, an absolute MUST. BE
THERE or be doomed to surf the duel waves of regret and
remorse throughout 2triple0+one. Don't be the Pariah in your
Parish....Throw off the drab, gabadine mac of Grinding
Drudgery and don the racy, two piece swimsuit of Gadding
About.......Thrill (Enough already, I think they've got the
message - Ed)
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £5*
(*Calling
Tower Members! Sorry, we have to charge this year as The
Tower Budget lies, temporarily beached on the twin sandbanks
of Increased Expenditure and Income insufficient to match!
Yet! Thanks for your continued support, much
appreciated)
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Friday
22nd December 8pm
Christmas Is
Come! The Music Of Rural England!
THE MELLSTOCK
BAND
Seasonal
merrymaking, assisted by Thomas Hardy, Charles Dickens, John
Clare, William Barnes and George Eliot. Mellstock was the
fictional name that the poet and novelist Thomas Hardy gave
to his home parish of Stinsford, Dorset and the band has
been inspired by his detailed and vigorous portrayals of
music, song and dancing, as well as performing music form
his familys' collection of manuscript books.
Tickets
£8 Concessions £7 Members £6
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