I employ a hard-nosed, brown-nosed, pushy, flashy, plugger bugger to do all my promotion. I wish I didn't have to, because it goes against all my principles - but the rules of the game are such that without him I'd never have even got started in this folk lark. Actually he's quite a nice guy once you get to know him, and (weird, this)... he has the same birthday, and stranger still - even same name as me ;-)

(Dave - new album 'The Whisper' now in production - mostly to be recorded in Alderney starting next week, featuring all four Pipers Sons, plus a 16-year-old called Ned Darlington who's one of the best guitarists I've ever heard, Matt Nelson on sax, Mudcat's The Doctor (Peter Taylor) on marching drum and voice, and, best of all - Lady Vocals (including a duet with me on John Riley, and lead on a superb new Pipers Sons version of God Speed) by the stunning Alex Birch (who sings Where Strangers Stare on the Island Stories CD). I'll be sending a copy to TGIF via my tame plugger bugger as soon as).

Tom

See what I mean?