Support: Dave and John
Support: Esther Marshall

A great night last Tuesday at Cramlington, but it very nearly didn’t happen. The guests arrived early at the Comrades Club, to find the steward closing up because he had no staff. Club members arrived shortly after, and raced round the village to find another venue. The village club very kindly gave us a temporary home, which turned out to be a pleasant setting.

Dave and John started us off with Allan Taylor’s 'Want You Back Again' (minus jiva's additional verse!), John leading, followed by Dave with 'Scarborough Fair'. To finish the set John returned to Allan Taylor – 'Love The Way You Love Me'. A great start, they were both in good voice, and they got folks going nicely.

Talking of good voices, Esther followed with three beautiful songs. She began with 'Peggy Gordon', followed by Ann Lister’s 'Moth'. At Terry’s request, she ended with 'Fly Away' ('She’s Getting Ready To Fly'). A lovely set.

Then came Anthony John and Elizabeth, totally unfazed by the swift relocation. The whole evening was strewn with stories, jokes, insults (to Liverpudlians in general and Liz in particular!), and generally good fun. Their voices were great throughout (personally I would have preferred Liz’s harmonies a little louder, but this is probably down to the mixing, which was very ad hoc due to the circumstances). They started with 'Changes' ('Pretty Girl I’ve Got My Eyes On You'), followed by 'An Acquaintance Of Mine', which really showed off his creativity as a writer. Next came 'Names' – an essay on getting things wrong. Then we had 'Two People' – knowing that the woman you love will always be there – how much feeling can you fit into one song? The set ended with 'One Night Stand' – think of how many words can the human voice fit into one line, then double it, and you’ve got an idea of the speed of this one.

After the break Dave and John returned with 'You Are There' and 'El Condor Pasa' (back to Simon & Garfunkel), and got the room going well. 

Esther’s second set started with Byron’s 'In Silence And Tears' – a moving song on separation and loss. She ended with Paul Brady’s 'The Island' – powerful and strong.

Back came the guests – that man loves words, loads of them! They began with Chris Flegg’s 'Things Just Might Not Get Better!', and then into 'Between Midnight And Blue'. It bowls you over. They followed this with Anthony John’s song of the pain of homelessness in Belfast, 'The Only Life Gloria Knows'. Then, to lighten the mood for a little while, came 'Tuesday Night Is Always Karaoke' – bringing out so many of his skills – words, humour, getting us going, making us squirm at some of the realistic twists! This was followed by 'Millionaire Pie' – it’s what you’re eating when it’s all going well for you! Back to the serious theme for an ending – his very own 'The Broken Years', and everybody was with him singing 'together we can mend the broken years.'

So thank you Anthony John and Liz for a great night; thank you Esther, Dave and John. Thank you all those who came along, and finally thanks to Cramlington Village Club.

See you all back home next week for Pegleg Ferret.