Loading

Edwina Hayes

Venue: Bothy Folk Song Club
Town: Southport
Date: 14/12/14
Website: http://www.edwinahayes.co.uk/

How would you describe folk music to a visitor from another planet? According to tonight's guest singer Edwina Hayes, it was summed up perfectly by Martin Simpson as "Two forty-five minute slots and a raffle". If Martin is right then tonight was definitely folk music.

Edwina is certainly no stranger to Southport, having been brought up in nearby Preston [although she now resides in the East Riding of Yorkshire]. Indeed, Edwina has played a fair number of gigs in the area in the recent past, whether as opening act for Fairport Convention on their Wintour or as a guest of The Kennedys [twice] in their excellent tribute to Nanci Griffith [Trouble In The Fields] or as a solo artist [twice at Grateful Fred's].

I was fortunate to be present at three of those shows but I was still keen to hear Edwina again, particularly as this was an "unplugged" show in the intimate surroundings and atmosphere of The Bothy, where they know a good singer when they hear one. Not for nothing did Nanci Griffith describe Edwina as "the sweetest voice in England" and I, for one, would not disagree. Nanci did, of course, cover Edwina's song "Pour Me a Drink" on her 2009 album "The Loving Kind".

Edwina's performances are a delight, not only for her singing but also for her warm personality and her convivial interaction with the audience.

Edwina's two sets were made up of several of her excellent self-written songs as well as some choice cover versions. In the latter category we had great songs by Richard Thompson ["Galway To Graceland"], John Prine ["Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness"], Nanci Griffith ["It's A Hard Life Wherever You Go"], Leonard Cohen ["Famous Blue Raincoat"] and, last but not least, Randy Newman. Edwina's version of his "Feels Like Home" was featured in the Cameron Diaz film "My Sister's Keeper" and has had over six million hits on You Tube.

Of Edwina's own compositions we had the catchy "Bend In The Road" [co-written with master songsmith Boo Hewerdine] and the charming quasi-traditional "Irish Waltz" as well as the heartfelt, personal lyrics of "Tell Me So", "Nobody's Coming Around" and "Want You To Stay". In contrast to these rather personal songs, Edwina encouraged the audience to join in with her on a communal version of Joe South's "Games People Play", which she had previously performed in a whisky distillery with Dougie MacLean as part of Dougie's Perthshire Amber Festival.

Edwina concluded her second set with a stunning rendition of the aforementioned "Feels Like Home" but despite the late hour, was brought back for a much-deserved encore. For this Edwina sang a delightful version of "Froggy Went A'Courtin'", which she originally recorded for a charity project to raise money for a school roof.

Both of Edwina's sets were preceded by sterling performances by members of the Bothy's impressive roster of resident singers. These performances by Pete Rimmer/ "Wild" Bill Hackney; David Hirst; Nev Grundy and Ray Rooney demonstrated the strength in depth of the Bothy's home grown talent. I think that our hypothetical visitor from outer space would have been impressed with what we call "folk music".

Peter Cowley