2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)

Subject: Obit: Linda Kelly
From: Ian
Date: 14 Aug 24 - 07:44 PM

Sorry to bring the sad news that the singer song writer, Linda Kelly of Hull UK passed away over the weekend. She has left us with some wonderful songs relating to the fishing industry. Funeral details to be advised soon.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 14 Aug 24 - 08:18 PM

I'm sorry to read this. We have had several Linda Kellys on Mudcat over the years - do you know if she was a member and what handle she used?

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly
From: Reinhard
Date: 14 Aug 24 - 09:07 PM

Linda Kelly of Hissyfit

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly
From: Joe Offer
Date: 14 Aug 24 - 11:53 PM

I think all of the Linda Kellys who posted at Mudcat were the Linda Kelly of Hissyfit. Mainly, Linda posted under her own name, Linda Kelly (she used to be Ickle Dorrit). My condolences to her singing partner Hazel Richings and to all who loved Linda Kelly.

Here are Linda and Hazel singing "Lament" together:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-ru1u6oISI

And "The Kingston Peridot":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGwCaR1IYxg

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,MCFa
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 02:50 AM

Devastated to hear this News

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 02:50 AM

Very sad news indeed. Linda was a great writer and singer, and a lovely lady with a fine SOH. Others who knew her better than I did will no doubt contribute, but she will be very sadly missed, especially in the Humberside/East Yorkshire area where she lived.

Here’s Linda and Hazel performing ‘Sweet Minerva’, their song in praise of the pub close to the old Humber Ferry terminal and at the entrance to the Hull Marina…

Hissyfit - ‘Sweet Minerva’

RIP Linda.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 03:11 AM

Oh my, such sad news. Linda was a smashing lady and good company. My condolences to John, and all of her family. She will be much missed.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,Brimbacombe
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 04:44 AM

So sorry to hear this news. Linda was a marvellous singer, a wonderful songwriter, but most of all a lovely person. She will be missed by many. My condolences to all who knew her.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Herga Kitty
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 07:45 AM

I think, when I first met Linda, her Mudcat name was Ickle Dorrit... but she later switched to using the real name for which she was known as both a writer and performer of wonderful songs. I am very shocked to hear of her sudden passing and send deepest sympathies to her family and friends.
Kitty

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: r.padgett
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 08:12 AM

Yes belated condolences as the family and Hazel Richings are devastated by the news

So we reflect on the lives of Linda Kelly and Mick McGarry from Hull who sang and wrote fine songs from Hull around the trawling trade

The youtube has some lovely songs sang as a duet with Hazel Richings (Hissyfit)

Ray

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GeoffLawes
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 09:11 AM

Flick and I were very sad to hear this upsetting news yesterday. Linda was a very accomplished songwriter and performer who will be much missed. Linda's songs will continue to be performed and appreciated here in Hull and more widely around the UK, as they have been for the last twenty years. We will mis her. XX

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 10:02 AM

very sorry to hear this news: had only met Linda a couple of times, but enjoyed seeing Hissyfit perform together. I know Hazel's twin sister better, and Hazel herself, Sincere condolences to Linda's family and friends.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Steve Gardham
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 10:21 AM

Condolences to the family. Such a shock. Her songs will be a wonderful legacy, not just in Hull where they are sung by just about everybody, young and old. Spare Hands will be singing 'Luckiest Sailor' at our gig at the Beggars Folk Club tonight, and again at Hull Festival.

There will be a big gap in East Yorkshire and Hull.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Les from Hull
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 10:43 AM

Very sorry to get this news,Linda was a great friend and an immense talent at everything she did. Condolences to family and friends.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: MoorleyMan
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 08:11 PM

What a shock, this is devastating news.
I only heard yesterday, having not been on Mudcat for the past 24 hours.
Linda was a great songwriter whose songs I have known and sung for a good 20 years; they sure have stood the test of time. She was also a very fine singer, whose performances with Hazel (as Hissyfit) were always pindrop intense, providing me with so many spinechillingly memorable moments at clubs, festivals and sessions. And Linda's warmth and humility were boundless. My deepest sympathies and condolences to Hazel and to Linda's family.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,Susanne (skw)
Date: 15 Aug 24 - 09:29 PM

Very sad and shocking news indeed! I met her at the 2009 Hull Festival (still got a pic of her and Hazel in full swing!), bought their CDs, and when I contacted her a few years ago about their new one she sent it to me as a gift, and we exchanged a few eMails. She was a great singer and a lovely lady!

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,The Villan
Date: 16 Aug 24 - 06:28 AM

So very sad and a shock to hear of Linda's passing. I have been friends with Linda and Hazel for many years. You will be missed so much Linda RIP. Condolences to Linda's family and Hazel Ritchings.
This song includes Maggie Boyle (RIP). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f89TlYUDtEg

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Raggytash
Date: 16 Aug 24 - 06:39 AM

We are so sad to hear this news. Linda was always a charming, kind and funny lady who, to my mind, was one of the best songwriters of recent years.

Our sincere condolences to her family and all those who knew her.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Skipjack K8
Date: 16 Aug 24 - 10:57 AM

I can't add anything to the heartfelt words above, but I was truly shocked to open Mudcat to find this news. Linda was so welcoming and warm to me when I was a newby in Hull and to Mudcat, long before I worked out she was Ickle Dorrit.

RIP Linda, you were a good person, and are a kind soul.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: MudGuard
Date: 16 Aug 24 - 12:07 PM

quite a shock!
I had the privilege to meet Linda at two gatherings (Llanstock 2 in 2001, Stony Stratford 2002) and at the Whitby Folk Festival.

After having talked to her for about 5 minutes, it felt as if we had been befriended for many years ...

To hear her sing was great!

Rest in peace, Linda!

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: YorkshireYankee
Date: 17 Aug 24 - 09:03 PM

I too was shocked to hear this news. I first met Linda (as well as Hazel) at a Yorkshire MudGather in Selby (IIRC). A friend (Sue Van Gaalen) sang Linda's song "The Kingston Peridot"while a small group of us (including Linda) listened, and by the end I had tears rolling down my cheeks. That was also the first time I had the privilege of hearing Hissyfit sing – always a treat, and something I looked forward to when I went to the Whitby Folk Festival – especially in more recent years, after they had officially retired.

Superb songwriter and singer, and all round brilliant person.

Deep sympathies to John and the rest of the family, and to Hazel.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Waddon Pete
Date: 18 Aug 24 - 10:10 AM

The YouTube videos give a good measure of her singing, her joy in performing and her songwriting ability. I have included Linda in the "In Memoriam" thread and send my condolences to all those who knew and loved her. She will be missed, not just in Whitby but all around the folk world. RIP

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 18 Aug 24 - 01:57 PM

Pete, how do I find the ‘In Memoriam’ thread?
Cheers, BWM.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Waddon Pete
Date: 18 Aug 24 - 04:23 PM

Easiest way is to set the frequency of days at the top of the Mudcat page from 7 days to 30 days then press refresh. Then do a search of the results! Hope this helps.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 18 Aug 24 - 04:40 PM

Thanks Pete, found it. Incidentally, Linda isn’t appearing in the ‘In Memoriam’ thread, the last post was on 11/8, and was for Muppet.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 04:40 AM

Same findings (or not finding) here, Pete.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,The Villan
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 05:15 AM

Try this and scroll down to England and then scroll down for Kelly (list in surname order)
/mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=142251

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 08:19 AM

Yes, that works. That is what I’d already found, but Linda’s passing is not recorded there - as I posted earlier, the last entry was by WP in respect of ‘Muppet’ on 11/8/24.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,The Villan
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 09:01 AM

Backwoodsman I have Facebook PMed you.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 09:27 AM

Got it! All sorted - thanks Villan.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,The Villan
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 10:49 AM

No Problem

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Eric the Viking
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 11:32 AM

This is terribly sad news. I have looked in to see what was what and found this sad news. Linda was great fun back in the early noughties and earlier. Rest in peace and harmony.

Subject: ADD: Spare Hand (Linda Kelly)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 03:10 PM

SPARE HAND
(Linda Kelly)

I dream of distant waters though my fishing days are gone
And for thirty years I’ve worked the factory floor;
At night when I lay sleeping I can still hear howling gales
As we hauled our nets and brought our fish aboard;
Though owners called me casual I’d twenty years at sea
And I swear I worked as hard as any can,
And although they cut the quotas and they took me job away
In my heart I know I’m still a fisherman.

It’s a dim and distant memory now and fading with the past
Like a photograph that’s not seen light of day,
But you can’t forget the hunger and you don’t forget the pain
Or the misery that doesn’t go away;
’Cause when the fishing ended and the men in suits demand,
“You’d better find another job and this time on dry land,
But don’t expect redundancy or to have a helping hand.”
Don’t they know that I was born a fisherman?

The cold of the Atlantic chilled the hearts of angry men
Who struggled on to earn their daily bread,
Who like their fathers long before had ploughed the ocean deep
And they never thought their living would be dead:
Now they’re waiting by the factory gates, they’re queuing in a line
Saying, “Try again tomorrow, lads, you’ve had no luck this time.”
So they wander home and tell the wife and kids it will be fine,
And I wish that I was still a fisherman.

And the TV and the tabloids they got bored and went away
And they told us that they’d bigger fish to fry,
And the men in suits informed us it’s a fight you cannot win
So give up lads and let the fishing die;
But they’re sure to pay the owners, was their influence that great
That they wouldn’t have them suffer at their hand?
It’s a trickle down economy, they’ll give you what they can,
So you best forget you were a fisherman.

And the children sit and listen to the tales their fathers tell
And it doesn’t seem a world they’ll ever know,
Of the catches and the conflicts, of the misery and the hell
And the battle grounds of Iceland long ago;
For their father is a carpenter, he’s a driver of a van,
He’s a lagger or a miner, or he does the best he can;
But when he goes to sleep at nights he’ll be bringing in the cran
’Cause you’ll always live and die a fisherman.
Yes when he goes to sleep at nights he’ll be bringing in the cran
Yes you’ll always live and die a fisherman.

https://www.sparehands.org.uk/spare-hand/

Subject: ADD: Northern Tide (Linda Kelly)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 04:22 PM

Northern Tide
Linda Kelly

Out to sea, on a northern tide
On a northern tide, I'm bound away,
To the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide
And more besides, to earn my pay.

But I'll not let the ocean come between us,
There's part of me that never leaves the shore
and though I haven’t said the words, my own one
I couldn't love you more.

Far away, to my second home,
In the salt and foam, of a foreign sea.
Lashed by the winds of a raging gale,
Sleet and hail are home to me.

You ask me, 'Is it lonely on the ocean?'
You ask me if I miss you but you know
I miss you, but the sea will never leave me
-And I can't let her go.

Heave to Lads, and haul your nets
And fill the decks, with a ton of cod!
Barrels full of liver oil, fisherman's spoil
Pays the rent-Thank God!

Our holds are full and we are heading homeward
To the Humber's muddy waters we'll return
We'll leave the icy ocean far behind us
And pleasure, in the money, we have earned

Sailing home, on an evening tide
On an evening tide, we're getting near
From the fishing grounds, and the ocean wide,
And more beside, to you, my dear.

https://www.pintndale.com/CDpages/SOTS%20pages/setofsaillyrics.htm#tide

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f89TlYUDtEg

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST
Date: 19 Aug 24 - 06:01 PM

I'm very sorry to hear this. She was very kind to me many (over 20!) years ago.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,Severn
Date: 20 Aug 24 - 12:49 PM

We never got her over here, though we did have Hazel visit. I heard them in England and started singing some of her songs at shanty sings over here.Then Hazel came over for some visits, and now Linda's songs are regularly sung in the Maryland-DC area, and there were a number of people wanting to meet her on their UK trips. She wrote wonderful songs, was a good person and will be greatly missed in the singing community and wherever else she touched others' lives.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: GUEST,The Villan
Date: 24 Aug 24 - 03:39 PM

Refresh

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: r.padgett
Date: 25 Aug 24 - 03:09 AM

Just back from Whitby folk week ~ Hazel just talking about the realisation and memories

Joe thanks for posting the lyrics ~ brought a tear to my eye to look closely at what is being said ~

Ray

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: Jeri
Date: 27 Aug 24 - 05:51 PM

I fell in love with her songs back when she sent me a tape of some she sang. She didn't think her voice was that good (this was before Hissyfit, I believe), but she I believe she knew how good the songs were.
This seems too soon.
We'll remember her.

Subject: RE: 2024 Obit: Linda Kelly (Hissyfit)
From: SINSULL
Date: 28 Aug 24 - 08:30 PM

I'll play my Hissyfit CDs and remember.
Beautiful lady. Beautiful music.