Free americana is always a good thing (well, maybe not if you’re a musician) and in that spirit the Al Festo festival which takes place at the Sun Inn, Dedham, Colchester is returning for a fifth year on 13th and 14th July. It’s described as “a mini-Maverick and without the camping that mixes the best of Americana and Folk music with craft beer and great food in beautiful surroundings with wonderful people.” Continue reading “Al Festo returns for 2019 – free americana in Colchester!”
If you’re looking for a great night of cheatin’ country songs then there’s no better way to go about it than to pull up a seat at a My Darling Clementine show. Married couple Lou Dalgleish and Michael Weston King have been performing their quarrelsome pairing for almost a decade now and while, initially, the primary inspiration for the band were Nashville’s warring duos such as George and Tammy and Porter and Dolly, they’ve moved on quite a bit since then. They channel the melting pot of country and soul which was perfected in Memphis in the late sixties while there’s also a grand Brill Building pop sensibility to some of their songs. Tonight they returned to Celtic Connections with a red hot line up and while the theatrics are still there, there’s a deep and abiding love of the genre they so admire with several of the songs performed deep cuts from the country canon. Continue reading “My Darling Clementine + Taylor & Leigh @Celtic Connections, Oran Mor, Glasgow, 19th January 2019”
That’s the meteorological autumn to you. My Darling Clementine, the now well established side project of husband and wife Michael Weston King & Lou Dalgleish, have announced a run of September and October UK dates, including a show a London’s St Pancras Old Church on October 31st. Continue reading “My Darling Clementine announce UK dates for the autumn”
Now in its 11th year, Glasgow Americana brightened up the dark nights coming in as we prepare for winter. Over five days the festival provided a strong set of concerts which showcased some of the brightest talents from the Scottish roots scene along with the usual complement of visiting stars. Altogether over 20 acts appeared at several venues across the city with many of the shows selling out, the venues including converted churches, a brewery, tiny pub back rooms and, according to Michael Weston King of My Darling Clementine, a squash court. As often happens when such a lot of music is squeezed into such a tight time line there were clashes meaning your correspondent had to forego some shows however online comments and actual chat with those who had gone to those shows beamed back with positive smiles and thumbs up. There was a fine mix of standard gigs featuring a headliner along with a couple of portmanteau shows offering a range of acts playing shorter sets. Continue reading “Glasgow Americana Festival, 4th – 8th October 2017”
Suffolk is such a green place when you live in treeless Yorkshire, every time I stray there I feel the inner workings of my soul refreshed. Normally I wander that way once a year for Maverick, but this year it’s two journeys in a month, for the three day Red Rooster Festival is on the cards. The first thing I notice is the amount of camper vans and caravans vs tents, a 50:50 split suggests this is an older, more affluent crowd. Continue reading “Red Rooster Festival, Euston Hall, Suffolk, 1-3 June 2017”
Husband and wife team, Michael Weston King and Lou Dalgleish – My Darling Clementine – continue to forge ahead with their celebration of the classic country duets of the sixties and seventies with their fourth album, Still Testifying, which is due out in June. Continue reading “My Darling Clementine still testifying – New album and tour dates”
