Dear old Don Briers passed away yesterday. His son Stuart rang me today and asked me to pass the sad news on to the Barton/Barrow/Hull musical community, and to the wider Mudcat community, where Don occasionally posted as Ploughboy.

Don and Stuart were regulars at the Sloop session in Barton after they moved south from Shetland, Don playing accordion in a distinctive style to Stuart's fiddle. They were often accompanied by Tillie, Don's great friend who lived in Leicester and visited often.

By the time the session moved to Barrow, Don's health was starting to suffer, and after a while he could barely lift his 120 bass accordion, and devised a stand that he could use whilst sitting to play in the session. Eventually his attendances became very rare, and Stuart did a fine job as full-time carer. Don sadly only made 76 years of age, even though his battle with cancer started in his late sixties.

His definitive tune was the Mucking of Geordie's Byre, which he played with great aplomb It's always Don I think of whenever that tune comes up at a session, and I will play it at tonight's Coast Inn session, in West Mersea, Essex, in his memory.