Newsletter             24 March 2008

Contact details
Tel. 01342 716975
or email:
info_at_acousticsussex_dot_org_dot_uk

CD competition winning answers!

Many thanks to the surprising number of people who entered our CD competition, to name the artists playing on our MySpace jukebox last week. The answers were:

- Ruth Notman (Over The Hill, from the album Threads)
- Brooks Williams (The Time I Spend With You, from The Time I Spend With You)
- Tom McConville (Mary and the Soldier, from Tommy on the Bridge)
- Corinne West (Lost and Found, from Second Sight)
- David Celia (Best Thing Ever, from This Isn’t Here)
- Karine Polwart (Can’t Weld a Body, from Fairest Floo’er)

The lucky winner of all 6 CDs was Steve Warner. Watch this space for future competitions in future!

Acoustic Sussex on MySpace

(Clockwise from left: Brooks Williams, Corinne West, Ruth Notman, Tom McConville, Karine Polwart, David Celia)

If you visit the jukebox now, you can hear 2 sample tacks from Brooks Williams; a track from Marsha Swanson (support for Brooks on 31 March); 2 tracks from Corinne West; and a track from David Celia (who supports Corrine on 21 April). Details of their upcoming shows can be found below.

Monday
31 March
BROOKS WILLIAMS
at The Ravenswood
Sharpthorne
www.theravenswood.co.uk
with
MARSHA SWANSON

£10 (£12  door)     8pm
Tickets 01342 714810
or buy online via Acoustic Sussex website

Tickets are also available at Hobgoblin Records, Crawley

Click here for full News Release in PDF format

Come and see our new staging, being used for the first time for this show!

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“If Williams' guitar picking gets any sharper, we'll have to invent new adjectives," wrote the Boston Globe. Well, they better start inventing because Williams' music, lyrics, singing, and picking get sharper with every recording. Critics and writers hail Brooks as "an acoustic guitar god'" and a "fret monster," saying his music is "electrifying," "dazzling," and "breathtaking," and that he sings like the "Angel of Soul." His unique combination of traditional and original music inspired Dirty Linen magazine to call him one of "America's musical treasures”.

With bluesy finger-picking, soaring bottleneck slide and swinging flat-picking, Brooks Williams’ music is rooted in the blues and is as fresh and original as any music you are likely to hear. With thirteen albums to his credit, the fans have seen and heard it for themselves. His huge and growing catalogue of original songs is "exquisite," says MOJO magazine.

Likened to James Taylor, Robert Johnson, Bruce Coburn and Bert Jansch Brooks is back in the UK with a new set of songs and a new album (featuring Dave Mattacks), The Time I Spend With You, launched this week. The title track was written whilst Brooks was on tour here last year.

 “One of the most fluid acoustic/electric guitarists on the planet”  fRoots

“Like a more upbeat Bruce Cockburn – from an artist who only gets better with every release.  …One of America’s most inspirational singer, songwriter, guitar-slingers of recent years”. Mojo

“How soulful a solo guitarist can be when he has talent, taste and astonishing technique”.  Blues Review

 “A consummate artist, Williams ranks among America’s musical treasures”
 Dirty Linen

“Intelligent, soulful song-writing and dazzling guitar work.”
Acoustic Guitar

Joining Brooks for this show is Marsha Swanson, recently voted Best Folk Artist and Album at the Glasswerk New Music Awards.

Brooks Williams

Marsha Swanson

Monday
21 April
CORINNE WEST
at The Ravenswood
Sharpthorne
www.theravenswood.co.uk
with
DAVID CELIA

£10 (£12  door)     8pm
Tickets 01342 714810
or buy online via Acoustic Sussex website

Tickets are also available at Hobgoblin Records, Crawley

Click here for full News Release in PDF format

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Dubbed the “Princess of progressive folk” Corinne West’s music lives smack-dab at that intersection of folk, bluegrass, and country styles that is called ‘Americana’. From the open meadows of California’s sierra mountains, her music has a cool, layered, driven sound and has been referred to as "utterly spell-binding", "radiant" and "extraordinarily beautiful". Corinne can grab one’s attention by almost whispering a hushed introduction to a ballad, but she’s also perfectly capable of raising the roof.

Fellow musician Buddy Craig describes her sound as a cross between Alison Krauss with Union Station and Natalie Merchant. Indeed her writing runs a golden thread through the likes of country, bluegrass, western, Americana and folk, but the resulting style is hers alone and her rhythm guitar playing rings with a song-writer’s solidity. Corinne is forging her own contribution to Americana music, fusing the voice of an original singer-songwriter with the historic tradition of keeping stories alive through song. She delivers a soulful body of music that strikes the listener to the core. Corinne is the ‘real deal’.

"...She writes great songs, plays with top flight musicians, sports a killer voice... There is not a bad song on the CD. With this much talent and drive, I imagaine Corinne West will be an important artist on the music scene for some time."  Americana Roots.com

“I love Corinne's music and truly believe in her as an artist. She has spirit, integrity and talent. I am a massive fan." Bob Harris, BBC Radio2

“Corinne West is a brilliant songwriter with a powerfully eloquent singing voice." Maverick

Special support for this show is David Celia.

Corinne West

STOP PRESS – Tune in to Bob Harris show on Saturday 5 April to hear Corinne being interviewed and playing live in the studio.

David Celia

For your future diaries...

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Other 2008 dates in the Acoustic Sussex programme include:

Ø    15 May – Tannahill Weavers + support: Celtish

Ø    24 May – Anais Mitchell + support (tbc)

Ø    2 June – Amy Wadge + support: Andy Walker

Ø    18 June – Eleanor McEvoy + support (tbc)

Ø    30 June – Thea Gilmore + support (tbc)

Ø    21 July - Eve Selis Band + support (tbc)

Ø    8 September – Kirsty McGee (tbc)

Ø    22 September – Dave Swarbrick & Martin Carthy

Ø    3 October – Eliza Gilkyson + sipport (tbc)

Ø    3 November – John Tams & Barry Coope + support (tbc)

Ø    9 December – Dougie MacLean + support (tbc)

More information on all up-and-coming artists can be found on our website: www.acousticsussex.org.uk. You can also find us on MySpace (with samples from some of the artists appearing) at: www.myspace.com/acoustic_sussex. If you know anyone who you think may enjoy our events, please forward this email to them.

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