Day: May 6, 2015

Martin Wyndham-Read is an English folk singer whose career spans four decades and he is the guest at Irvine Folk Club on Wednesday 13th May. From January to March of this year Martin was on tour in Australia and he is now on a UK tour.
In his late teens, Martin left his Sussex home and headed off to Australia to work on a Sheep Station. It was while there that he heard old songs and was captivated by them. He moved on to Melbourne and became part of the Folk revival in the ‘60s before returning home. His great affection for Australia has continued throughout his musical career and he is a regular visitor.
Martin plays acoustic guitar and sings songs, ballads and sea shanties. He is particularly interested in folksongs of England and their American and Australian variants and these have featured in some of the 32 albums he has so far released. His most recent album Starlit Skies has Eric Bogle’s Now I’m Easy as the first track, so clearly Martin’s repertoire includes contemporary material as well as traditional.
Maypoles to Mistletoe is a popular and long established concert series instigated by Martin. The concerts do what it says on the tin – they portray the Seasons of the year through song, dance, music and verse. Year on year, new material is added to ring the changes thus keeping the concerts fresh. Martin is also kept busy playing at Festivals across the UK, the US of A and of course Oz.
Therefore, head along to hear Martin Wyndham-Read on Wednesday 13th May in Vineburgh Community Centre at Quarry Road. The Club starts at 8pm and it’s BYOB.
Finally, arrangements for this year’s Marymass Folk Festival – the 48th one – are almost complete. The Festival dates are Wednesday 19th – Sunday 23rd August and info as it comes to hand is available on www.irvinefolkclub.org.uk