Our Song of the Day comes from Steve Tilston with The Fisher Lad of Whitby. He mentions in the video, which was filmed at Bath Folk Festival in 2011 that he learned this Yorkshire folk song from Holroyd’s Collection of Yorkshire Ballads. The song tells of a loved one taken by press gangs during the reign of George III to fight in the Napoleonic wars. Holroyd’s footnotes include an excerpt from E. Lamplough on the press-gang in Yorkshire.
“The north-east coast of Yorkshire, with its hardy mariners, was a rich field from which to gather fresh victims for those bloody French wars, and we can easily imagine the deep alarm that spread through village and town when the press-gang came rushing up; great bludgeons in the hands of officers and sailors, and cutlasses by their sides. The hunted men vainly attempted escape by concealment or flight; or sometimes turning upon their ruffianly assailants made a fierce struggle for dear liberty, only to be dragged away, bruised and bleeding, and subject to tyrannical discipline that ruled in his Majesty’s fleet.”
With libraries rapidly disappearing (a point mentioned by Steve in the video) we’re lucky to have many of these books available online. You can read or download this one for free in many different formats via the Internet Archive here.
Steve Tilston Tour News
Steve is set to play a couple of autumn festivals; Tenterden Folk Festival, celebrating its 25th anniversary, and Costa del Folk, in Portugal this time, and as well as solo spots he’ll be playing a set with his old pal Wizz Jones.
Steve & Jez Lowe have been invited to do a series of village hall shows supported by Highlights Rural Touring Scheme…and he has announced dates for The Tilston & Lowe Sometimers … who have a preview show on 7 November in Birmingham, at the Kitchen Garden Cafe ahead of the official launch in London, at the home of English folk music, Cecil Sharp House on 8 November… the new band line-up features Hugh Bradley (double bass) & Chris Parkinson (keyboards/accordion) plus Steve & Jez of course.
For full details and ticket links click here
shows marked (T&L) Tilston & Lowe with Jez Lowe
Fri 1 Sep Poynton
Phoenix Pholk Club, Poynton British Legion, Georges Road West, Ponton SK12 1JY
01625 873120
Sat 2 Sep Ascott-under-Wychwood
Wychwood Folk Club, Tiddy Hall, Shipton Road, Ascott-under-Wychwood OX7 6AG
01993 831427 or 07870 563299
Sun 3 Sep Whitstable (T&L)
Whitstable Sessions, St Mary Hall (Umbrella Centre), Oxford Street, Whitstable CT5 1DD
07895 683567
Fri 8 Sep Thames Ditton (T&L)
Ram Club, Old Cranleighan Club, Portsmouth Road, Thames Ditton KT7 0HB
020 868 69421
Sat 9 Sep Bristol (T&L)
Bristol Folk House, 40A Park Street, Bristol BS1 5JG
0117 9262987
Thu 14 Sep St Ives (T&L)
St Ives September Festival at Western Hotel, Royal Square, St Ives TR26 2ND
Sat 16 Sep Colwall
Pindrop Events at The Colwall Ale House, Mill Lane, Colwall WR13 6HJ
07979 542449
Fri 29 Sep Edinburgh (SOLD OUT)
Corstorphine Folk, Corstorphine Heritage Centre, St Margaret’s Place, Edinburgh EH12 7SX
0131 316 4246
Thu 5 Oct Tenterden
25th Tenterden Folk Festival, Town Hall, High Street, Tenterden TN30 6AN
01843 835694 kathybob@tenterdenfolkfestival.org.uk
Fri 6 October Blandford Forum
Wessex Acoustic, Royal British Legion, Church Lane, Blandford Forum DT11 7AD
01202 732239
12 & 13 Oct Portugal
Costa del Folk Festival, Grande Real Santa Eulália Resort, Albufeira, Portugal
01254 445050
Highlights Rural Touring Shows with Jez Lowe
Fri 27 Oct Bishop Auckland (T&L)
Frosterley Village Hall, 17 Front Street, Bishop Auckland DL13 2QW
01388 526632
Sat 28 Oct Darlington (T&L)
Scarth Memorial Hall, Harrington Road, Staindrop, Darlington D12 3JL
01833 660786
Sun 29 Oct Levens (T&L)
Levens Village Institute, Levens Lane, Levens LA8 8NL
01539 560534
Thu 2 Nov Crook (T&L)
St Cuthbert’s Centre, Church Hill, Crook DL15 9DN
01388 765002
Fri 3 Nov Murton (T&L)
Murton Village Institute, Murton, Appleby CA16 6LZ
01768 353642
Sat 4 Nov Newbiggin in Teesdale (T&L)
Newbiggin in Teesdale Village Hall DL12 0TX
01833 640608
Sun 5 Nov Wark (T&L)
Wark Town Hall & Mechanics Institute, Main Street, Wark, Hexham NE48 3LG
01434 230180
Tue 7 Nov Birmingham – preview Tilston & Lowe Sometimers
with Hugh Bradley (double bass) & Chris Parkinson (keyboards/accordion)
Kitchen Garden Café, 17 York Road, King’s Heath, Birmingham B14 7SA
0121 443 4725
Wed 8 Nov London – official launch for the Tilston & Lowe Sometimers
with Hugh Bradley (double bass) & Chris Parkinson (keyboards/accordion)
Cecil Sharp House, Trefusis Hall, 2 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 7AY
0207 485 2206
Fri 10 Nov West Kirby (T&L + Hugh Bradley)
West Kirby Arts Centre, Old Unitarian Church, 29 Brookfield Gardens, West Kirby CH48 4EL
Sat 11 Nov Alstonefield (T&L + Hugh Bradley)
Hopedale Music, Alstonefield Village Hall, Beresford Lane, Alstonefield DE6 2FR
01335 310322
Wed 15 Nov Eastbourne
Lamb Folk Club, Lamb Inn, High Street, Old Town, Eastbourne BN21 1HH
01323 728268
Thu 16 Nov Newport
Newport Folk Club, Newport Fugitives Athletics Club, High Cross Road, Rogerstone, Newport NP10 9AD
Fri 17 Nov Cambridge
Cambridge Folk Club, The Golden Hind, 355 Milton Road, Cambridge CB4 1SP
01638 603986
Sat 18 Nov Beccles
The Library Sessions, Beccles Library, 32 Blyburgate, Beccles NR34 9TB
01502 714073
Mon 20 Nov Warwick
Warwick Folk Club, Warwick Arms Hotel, 17 High Street, Warwick CV34 4AT
01527 401121
Sun 10 Dec Rainford
Wooden Horse Folk Club, The Junction, News Lane, Rainford WA11 7JU
www.stevetilston.com
Photo Credit: Shay Rowan. Promo via www.stevetilston.com/press/