Long time boss Keith Taylor is currently taking things deservedly quietly with a batch of singers nights led by regulars - tonight we were in the capable hands of jiva who had decreed in advance that it would be a totally acoustic (non PA) night. They employed an unusual method of interestingly drawing the singers rota by numbers.

jiva themselves started on the 12 + 6 string arrangement of Taylor guitars with self penned 'Different Dreams' (much chorus along in this starting number) then their own 'life's crossroad' song 'Some Way Home'. Relaxed Ken Cross was up next to give us a cover of Dylan's 'Times They Are A Changing' on his lovely nylon string guitar ahead of the Lorraine Jordan song 'Winds of Freedom' employing an interesting mix of both guitar and unaccompanied singing. Then a brilliant and popular dedication to Mike at 60 with a lovely picked and self penned "Folk Club" song - once we got the lines, everyone got into this one. Geoff Pickard was the first number selected (no 7 of 12) to give us the Iain Campbell song 'Outward Bound' and a boozy 'When Jones' Ale Was New', both nicely picked but a little quiet. On banjo, Allan Savage (no 9) provided a fine gusto version of 'The Mingulay Boat Song', always a favourite here, then a Rabbie Burns song, translated into English as 'Always Awake'. Maintaining the night's anecdotes on age, Mike Jessop (number 3) provided a picked 'Bankers Blues' with dire prognostications regarding joint accounts and Hull's strummed 'Marshall Rileys Army' about the Jarrow March. Visitors from Lancashire, holidaying near Seahouses, Pete and Gill Benbow provided an excellent close to part one. With beautiful guitar picks and fascinating note runs they gave out 'Someday Soon', then for our stand in MCs, Allan Taylor's wonderfully written 'Some Dreams', before a humorous tale from their home Club, with useful large print written version of the chorus on display, 'I'm Glad'. I'd be very glad if they came back again.

The second half saw regulars Dave Page and John Richardson (relieved of the usual sound desk duties) on a fine guitar duo - their descending ending on Labi Sifri's 'Telephone' was superb, then accompanied with banjo (Allan Savage) and bass (Jimmy Powells), the 4 played 'Back Home Again'. Ellen Morgan, tonight with a nice baby Taylor guitar, provided Woodstock and an unaccompanied version of Joni Mitchell's 'Big Yellow Taxi', well assisted by chorus-a-long around the room and a fine "giggle" ending thrown in for good measure. Jimmy and Carol, announcing the arrival of grandson, gave us, on double bass and guitar, 'My Lovely Rose of Claire', with harmonica, then a Katy Moffatt song - 'Hallie Lonigan' - Carol told us it was all about the hard lives of women!!. Mike Hughes - 60th Birthday boy himself - demonstrated all that was pointed out in Ken's earlier dedication... Mike started unaccompanied on an 1840 Thomas Davidson song, then strumming a 12 string with the Elliotts usual closing song gave us a strong 'Union Miners', before a fine friendly foreign song, delivered and shared with Ken - a French drinking song whose title passed me by, but the fun didn't. Impressive. John Gibson provided two Cornish Folk Songs - 'The Old Grey Duck', sung unaccompanied, then again with Ken Cross (boy was he a busy support tonight) on guitar, 'Sweet Nightingale' which had the choir well up and running. Peter Meek had a few fine anecdotes and a wonderful red cutaway Washburn guitar. He gave us - after a practice of 'Boy Named Sue' requested in the gents loos - Fairport style 'Matty Groves' with runs on the bass strings then Steeleye's 'Hares On The Mountain' inspired from a recent Edinburgh Festival play on John Peels life.