Following on from last year’s True North album, Johnny Campbell has released his new single Roving I Will Go. The single marks the 60th Anniversary of the Pennine Way, one of Britains most iconic and historic walks which was officially opened in 1965. Performing alongside Johnny is Liz Hanks on Cello (read our Off the Shelf feature with Liz), Mikey Kenney on Fiddle and Viola, and Kurt Wood on drums and bass. The single is accompanied by a scenic video that was filmed by Jonathan Doyle on the Peak District’s Black Hill, the highest hill in West Yorkshire (watch below).
The 268 mile walk follows Britain’s rocky spine across the wild moorlands, mountains and fells of Northern England, to finish in Kirk Yetholm, Scotland. Not shy of a challenge, Johnny is setting his compass north for a remarkable Pennine Way Tour, performing seventeen shows in nineteen days from 19th March to 6th April 2025. Hopefully, he will have a firm wind at his back as he combines his passions of music and walking.
With a couple of pairs of sturdy boots, a trusty Ordnance Survey map, and a guitar on his back, the tour will encompass shows in a myriad of iconic Pennine locations en route. From music venues and cafes, to the more obscure, such as Tan Hill Inn, (Britain’s highest pub and also famous for stranded winter snow-ins), St Oswald’s Church, Vindolanda Roman Fort, The Old Nag’s Head (the official start of the route) and The Border Hotel (the official end of the route), see full details below.
To help him make the journey, Johnny has launched a Kickstarter campaign which you can get behind here.
Johnny shared:
I’ve walked on, around, and along the Pennine Way all my life, but never in one go. There’ll be lots of us in the North who do so, consciously or subconsciously. It’s a marking point, a vein that threads its way through the North, binding us together as we criss-cross it on foot, bike, car or otherwise.
There’s also parts that I don’t know, like from Ickornshaw to Malham, or much of the Northumberland stretch. It’s a jigsaw puzzle, missing pieces that slot together to create a full picture.
For the 60th anniversary, I wanted to champion the route in a unique way. It’s not just a walking route, there’s culture, history, and a myriad of fabulous venues too. To perform Tan Hill Inn, Britain’s highest pub, Vindolanda Roman Fort or the iconic St Oswald’s Church (possibly the most photographed in the Yorkshire Dales) is pushing a tour to new direction for me, whilst working with established music venues like Dark Woods Coffee or Wadsworth Community Centre.
It’s been a tough tour to orchestrate, due to being a linear route along a rigid line. I’ve also had to get a specialist all-weather instrument case from Fusion Bags who I’m collaborating with, and testing their case to the extreme. There’s also little deviation from the path, which has made logistics of booking shows quite strict, but being able to make this happen, to champion the North’s finest landscapes, doesn’t just make it a tour. It marries my two passions, music and walking. It’s what I do.
The Pennine Way Tour
Ticket links: https://johnnycampbell.co.uk/tour
19th March, Old Nags Head, Edale
20th March, Labour Club, Glossop
21st March, Darkwoods Coffee, Slaithwaite
22nd March, Fox and Goose, Hebden Bridge
23rd March, Community Centre, Wadsworth
24th March, Methodist Church, Malham
25th March, St Oswalds, Horton in Ribblesdale
26th March, Green Dragon, Hardraw
27th March, Tan Hill Inn, Swaledale
28th March, Tees’pot, Middleton in Teesdale
29th March, Village Hall, Dufton
30th March, Saddler’s Bakery, Alston
1st April, The Threshing Barn, Greenhead
2nd April Vindolanda Roman Fort
3rd April, First and Last, Bellingham
4th April, Forest View Walkers Inn, Byrness
6th April, Border Hotel, Kirk Yetholm
Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/johnnycampbell/the-pennine-way-tour
