Help: N Scotland sess/clubs

Subject: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Mr Red
Date: 27 Sep 01 - 08:28 AM

sessions/SAR/clubs for Mr Lemon
he is a guitarist/singer first and sesssion musician second.
He is going Monday 1st Oct for maybe a week.
Nairn and Inverness are target cities.
I have saved two web pages but only one gives days of the week and I know not of the last update date.
up-to-date websites would do.
TIA
wish I was going with my red boran.

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: 53
Date: 27 Sep 01 - 08:06 PM

never been to scotland. bob

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From:
Date: 28 Sep 01 - 07:36 AM

Try the TMSA site. Hasn't been updated for a few months but session info probably still valid.

http://www.tmsa.demon.co.uk/tmsa/home/tmsa.html

Scott

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Nynia
Date: 28 Sep 01 - 02:50 PM

Ditto to what Jock said with the Scottish Folk Directory site

http://www.scottishfolkdirectory.com/


Nynia.

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 28 Sep 01 - 03:57 PM

Well guys I work in Inverness and I don't know of any FCs in the area anymore. The folks in this end of the world are so "PROUD" of their musical traditions that they allowed Balnain House the so called "Home of highland music" to go bankrupt and close down. Still we had a delivery for Phil Cunningham the other day, and none of my drivers knew who he is, all of them (7) except 1 Scots. Kind of makes you want to cry doesn't it?.

Jock

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Mr Red
Date: 29 Sep 01 - 07:24 AM

Thanks Guys.
I finally remembered Blackfriars Music and found the Scottish Folk Directory. They list the Grog & Gruel in Fort william. I always regarded their data as the most reliable.
albafolk.freeserve.co.uk list the Beaufort Hotel Sunday, is that still current?
TMSA list a session at the Clachnaharry Inn, Clachnaharry Thurs. Giok -Is this a suburb of Inverness? Can't find it in my atlas.
There are several references to Lossiemouth Tues, Banff 1st Thurs, Keith Fri, Strichen Tues and Aberdeen seems well catered for.
I saw that Balnain House had gone out of tune - (ha).

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Jock Morris
Date: 30 Sep 01 - 07:12 AM

Pretty sure there's a folk club in Fyvie as well. 2nd Wednesday rings a bell, but you'd better check first!

Scott

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Mr Red
Date: 30 Sep 01 - 07:30 AM

Jock Morris, ta ,
I did know but Mr Lemon may not stay more than a week, there is one in Tarves on the last Sun in the Aberdeen Arms but it is outside the **WOO** (window of opportunity).

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Mikey joe
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:28 AM

Tom Roche says try these boyos in Aiberdeen. Follow the session links.

http://www.abdn.ac.uk/~gen330/Tomspage.htm

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Murray MacLeod
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 06:28 AM

There was always a session in the Ceilidh House in Ullapool (unless that has gone bankrupt too)

Murray

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 05:01 PM

The Ceilidh House in Ullapool is still going but I don't think they have sessions anymore,the Clachnaharry is on the outskirts of Inverness, and I'll try to find out about that one. The Beaufort Hotel club is gone, but you're welcome to visit "chez moi" in Lairg if you get that far, you'll get a dram or two if nothing else.

Jock

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: 53
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 10:27 PM

sounds like things are going pretty rough for the pickers over there, why don't you just pick on the street corner like we down down south over in the states, it's a lot of fun and you meet alot of new people that way. BOB

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: GUEST,Scabby Doug at work
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 05:42 AM

Hey, 53..

October in Scotland is not conducive to street corner picking unless you have one of them new-fangled waterproof guitars.

I was in Ullapool last year - both the Ceilidh Place and the Seaforth Hotel hosted sessions ( the ceilidh place had 2 nights per week, I think).

Cheers

Steven

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: GUEST,Bothy Bill
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 09:13 AM

The Ugie Folk Club in Aberdeenshire has it's festival over the weekend of 5-7th October. There are concerts and sessions there. See www.ugiefolk.8m.com for details.

It's always a good weekend.

Bothy

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 04:29 PM

As Scabby Doug says in the N. of Scotland outdoor picking this time of year is out of the question. There is also the question of our friends with the ego problems who wear the blue uniforms, they can be really unfriendly, and downright nasty if disagreed with. Re. the weather it's pissing down at this moment and blowing a gale too.

Jock

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: 53
Date: 03 Oct 01 - 02:00 PM

oh well that was just a suggestion, sorry BOB.

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Mr Red
Date: 12 Oct 01 - 04:47 PM

Mr Lemon , armed with a bit of info from me, checked-out a few Scottish sessions & clubs. He was told that sesions in Keith and the Beaufort, Inverness are closed. Lossiemouth, Beach bar, Tues is current. Clachnaharry Inn, Clachnaharry, Inverness Thur is running and he joined a sesson in the Seaforth Hotel, Grantown on Spey Fri which hopefully will become regular as the instigator is a local doctor, Irish and plays Uillean pipes, so expect lots of Irish music. He met a Gaelic (should that be Gallic?) speaking fiddler - Keith Scammell - who has founded a Trad Scottish music charity called Ceol Beo (can't do accented alpha yet) and will run a 1st Sun session in the Thistle Inn, Celt St, Inverness 3-6pm. His tel no is 01463 223354. Mr Lemon did observe that attendances were a little light, quality not quantity.

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: 53
Date: 12 Oct 01 - 04:57 PM

any luck. bob

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: Max Tone
Date: 12 Oct 01 - 07:37 PM

My favourite Highland Muso village of Evanton, Easter Ross, now has 2 out of 2 pubs that support regular weekly sessions/gigs. Balconie Inn, Thurdays and Novar Hotel, Sundays.

Embryonic Fest booked for 2nd w/e May 2002 (9th-12th), session based, but with possible gigs, ceilidhs, workshops and kids events TBA. Campsite, quiet streets, FIVE Eaglesham brothers (2 in Wolfstone) and innumerable other local world class musos round the village. Addictive atmosphere. 'Catters convention arrangeable!

Feedback, please, Rob

Subject: RE: Help: N Scotland sess/clubs
From: The Shambles
Date: 13 Oct 01 - 05:41 AM

Given all the problems presented to sessions and gigs by law and council authorities in England, The following is incredibly the way things are in Scotland....

(source: Donald McLeod, Licensing Solicitor, Aberdeen council):
The Licensing (Scotland) Act 1976 is mainly concerned with selling of liquor. If you've got a liquor licence you DON'T need a separate public entertainment licence for live music, unless the music is going to go on after drinking-up time. Renewing a Liquor Licence for a pub is only about £80 once every three years. Police, fire, building control, and environmental health departments are consulted on renewal.

In Aberdeen alone there are about 300 public houses, hotels and restaurants. A band could walk into any of these premises and play without any problem. The number of musicians is not an issue. The licensee does not have to do anything - he is not committing any offence, nor does he have to pay anything to the local authority.

Venues like nightclubs or theatres these are more closely regulated, usually requiring a Civic Public Entertainment Licence (Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982) which imposes additional public safety conditions.

The above was obtained by Hamish' Birchall, whose comments follow......

So here we have neighbouring EC jurisdictions one of which effectively limits musicians' employment to 5% of 111,000 potential venues, while in the other there is no such restriction. The difference could not be more stark. Note also the complete lack of any financial penalty for the provision of live music in these premises in Scotland.

I am quite sure that this extraordinary difference has legal implications. Scotland's live music laws are rational, and the country is actively implementing Article 27.1 of the Universal Declaration; but the equivalent law and enforcement in England/Wales is irrational (prevents live music where there are no noise or safety concerns), and actively opposes Article 27. The difference dates from about 1982 (there was a radical overhaul in Scottish licensing in 1976, but the full effects did not come into force until '82).