November 2024 with Beautifully Mad
After a vibrant floor spot by Norma with three beautifully sung songs about cruising experiences, a macabre spider killing experience, and a piece dripping with irony about gender politics we welcomed back the popular duo, Beautifully Mad, who opened with two jazz based songs, scatting and playing mouth trumpet, before delivering two sets with a huge breadth of genre and scale of talent. They finished with Rawhide in Scottish and in Cantonese! You really had to be there!
But then the audience would not let them go without an encore, so to prove they can also sing covers they played a sensitive version of Lyle Lovett’s If I Had a Boat. This was such a terrific night that David Spira was highly motivated to write a longer report which you can read on our long form review page.
October 2024 featured Adder’s Fork
Floor spots this month stunned the audience with guitar virtuoso Elias Bartholomeo performing his predominantly instrumental music, although Elias demonstrated capable singing ability as well. Elias was followed by Geoff Jones who performed his original songs Clean Air and Wasted Years. We look forward to hearing more from these performers.
The feature group Adder’s Fork, performed for us with a show that foreshadowed October’s Halloween, with songs of elves, witches and the “old lore”. We even heard a chorus sung in elvish! (Probably some incantation 😉).
We heard that Nori (on recorders) was providing his last performance with Adder’s Fork before heading back to Japan. Isabel told of recently meeting one of the world’s wise ones, David Attenborough, after naming a new slug species after him.
We were treated to beautiful harmonies from Isabel and Bonnie and terrific original musicianship. How lucky to have local talent performing for us.
September 2024 with Ami Williamson
Ralph Graham opened with a floor spot set of a couple of original, uplifting songs and a poem. Ralph announced an upcoming album so we’re looking forward to that.
Ami Williamson established an immediate rapport with our audience with her sassy sense of humour and songs that reveal her some of personal life, the importance of her network of girlfriends, stories of suffragettes, her outfit, and her gardener.
We heard a cheeky song about old men having children with women old enough to be their granddaughters; a new song written a few days ago (after which Ami confessed to nerves when singing it publicly); the Joni Mitchell song Big Yellow Taxi (with an impromptu harmonica accompaniment by Ian Fretwell); covered Malvina Reynolds‘ Little Boxes which is of course a social satire (and spoke beautifully of the talented American folk singer and activist); her song about Joy McKean (Slim Dusty’s wife) and the shame that her talent, like that of so many women, has been obscured by her famous husband). We heard a most beautiful rendering of KD Lang’s version of O Canada.
Ami, you are “enough”, and not “too much”. You left us wanting more!
August 2024 featured Isabel Palethorpe
Tonight floor spots were taken by Jennifer Lees. Her original songs deserve to be heard more. We also heard members of Traditional Graffiti who presented a rousing and enthusiastic performance from the floor, leading us in to the feature artist.
Isabel Palethorpe brought along her 7 piece band of talented backing players and vocalists, and a thoroughly professional sound setup to best portray her original songs formed from observations of her life and the lives of others.
We were treated to an uncommon sound at HKFC, definitely with a pop feel to many songs, but well written with clever lyrics. Her performance ranged widely from pop to blues, rock, and she didn’t shy away from hip-hop elements if her song demands it. Isabel connects with the audience by singing about her authentic experiences and I loved the way she often used a couple of well-chosen words to set the scene for her songs.
Her song On Island, painted a lyrical picture of times spent on Lord Howe Island. Can it really be as mysterious as that dominant drum line made it sound?
Besides the many original, well-crafted songs we heard covers of Sting’s Englishman in New York (beautifully sung by backing vocalist Greg), Slice of Heaven, the Jigsaw song Dancing in the Kitchen, and others.
She finished with a raunchy end to the night with her song Anorgasmia Blues. Isabel and her band presented us with a tour-de-force of her versatility of styles, lyrical subject matter, and talented performances.
Isabel enjoys herself in her performance and clearly generates that joy in the audience. With that, often her lyrics express the realities of the lives we all participate in, and her own authentic experiences. She definitely satisfied the folk music tradition: storytelling, performance, and audience engagement.
July 2024 featuring Craig Sinclair
Tonight floor spots were taken by Mike Williamson, who sang original arrangements of Bob Dylan classics, Pam Farley presented an original poem, and Ellie and Duncan Boughton who performed the beautiful song about homesickness, Caledonia.
In typical style Craig Sinclair opened with an instrumental warm up and then into a song about the lands we live in. The first set was a mixture of original songs and covers, including a Joni Mitchell song.
We heard about about life in Western Australia and the call of the red country as an intro to his song Big Sky. The audience enjoyed harmonising on this song and many others. The tune Walk on Boy was accompanied by guest Tony Peri on harmonica. Great to see another harmonica player act as an impromptu support when Ian Fretwell is away!
After supper Craig told the story of the Western Australian mining disaster at Coolgardie where a miner called Modesto Varischetti was lost. Migrants from many countries worked together to save Varischetti. This is a powerful story worth knowing for the many migrant descendants of this country. But then Craig played the Pinjarra Massacre, the story of the justifications used against First Nations people of the Mandurah region in Western Australia. Justifications for genocide.
We heard a beautiful rendition of the Richard Thompson song Bees Wing, Craig’s Gambling on You, No Love for a Hitcher (about the road between Perth and Albany), Wood and Weatherboard (written by Craig and sung to encourage himself to put up with winter in such a house in Blackheath), Peace is the Road, and Air, Water, Wind and Time, all played with Craig’s signature emphasis.
Finishing with Hey River (accompanied by Lara), a song written in the time of pandemic telling the story of the travelling musicians of America’s deep south.
Craig provided a rich and deep evening of amazing songs and gentle vocal work, in keeping with his personality. If you didn’t make it I urge you to jump on Craig’s YouTube channel and look out for his upcoming performances.
Word is out that Craig’s Bees Wing might have inspired a local performer to do a Richard Thompson show… look out for that if the stars align in the future!
June 2024 featuring Nerida Cuddy
What a big night this was, with terrific floor spots by The Moonlighters, Jennifer Lees and VIktorija and Kara (with Alex and Andrew accompanying). They all contributed to a highly entertaining start to the night.
But the audience in the packed room were primarily there to hear Nerida Cuddy who came to Hornsby fresh from her recent tour in country NSW. We were delighted to welcome her back to HKFC to hear songs and stories, old and new, from her travels.
Nerida ended her first set with her original song We’re all in This Together written about her experiences living in her small town.
After the break we heard a quick floor spot from Pam Farley and Barry Parkes and then Nerida continued with songs from her Strength of Stories tour.
A highlight was her song, Shit Mountain. Nerida provided us clever songwriting; a thoughtful and powerful performer.
May 2024 double feature with Ralph Graham and Jasmine Beth
It’s heartening to see so many in the audience enjoy the variety of floor spots and talented performers that visit HKFC. We heard floor spot regulars Mick Scott, Ian Fretwell, Pam Farley and Traditional Graffiti in action in their inimitable style.
A delightful and very engaging Jasmine Beth managed to be thought-provoking and entertaining at the same time.
And after Jasmine, we heard Ralph perform a wonderful set of songs that conveyed a sense of depth, sadness, and humour. Ian Fretwell added his magical interludes on the harmonica that added a special touch to some of the songs.
April 2024 featuring Cap in Hand
This month we were lucky to have floor spots by two renowned international performers. British singer Linn Phipps sang several songs from her extensive repertoire of traditional songs and French-Czech guitarist Jan Vanek wowed the audience with his virtuoso guitar work.
Jan made an impact and left some of the audience wanting more. Since that Friday night he’s performed at the Canberra venue Smiths Alternative, QIRKZ on the Hunter, Sydney’s Marble Bar and Camelot Lounge (Marrickville) as well as us.
The feature artists were Cap in Hand who were again a big hit with the audience in good voice, with a bunch of our seafaring brethren joining in impromptu for 3 or 4 numbers. Seafarers enjoy a good sing-a-long.
More to come as news trickles in. Please have another look in a few days as this page will be again updated with photos and more reporting!
March 2024
Floor spots were taken by Craig Renneberg who performed a virtuoso, jazz tinged double base piece, Norma Odenthal with her beautiful voice and finally, self-penned poems by Ian Fretwell.
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Burger & Keane
Terrific original songs with thoughtful, provocative lyrics and beautiful guitar work by Alex and Chris.
Phil Bates
Phil sings in a warm mellifluous, vernacular voice that is beautifully tuned to deliver authentic Australian songs.
February 2024
Before Peter Campbell played, we heard floor spots from Ralph Graham and Rory Faithfield (who introduced some of us to Nanci Griffith and sang Back home in Derry). Ralph played some self penned songs (and we shall hear more from him in May).
Peter Campbell
Peter Campbell previously performed at HKFC 20 years ago! After a career in graphic design he has now returned to his first love, music after his performance at the Bundanoon Folk festival of 2023.
His self-penned songs, sweet, powerful voice, and towering stage presence made for an exceptional night. With his penchant for social commentary and keen eye for the cynicism of politics, he shone a light on our current state of social discourse.
Yet he also sang about the beauty in the world with his song Brindabella Blue, tinged with sadness as it was when segueing into the topic of the bushfires in that part of NSW and the supportive community in the southern highlands.
Peter spoke about recording his first album (Across the Border) with Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary in the mid 70’s.
A highlight was a beautiful rendition of Leonard Cohen’s song Anthem with the powerful line “there is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in”.
Beautiful messages in his songs of optimism and the “tending of the garden”.
January 2024
Fred Smith
Mike Williamson played a floor spot with a couple of early Dylan cuts as well as a traditional Irish tune (She Moved Through the Fair). He was supported with occasional unrehearsed harmonica by feature artist Fred Smith.
Alex Burger and Chris Keane also performed a couple of songs, giving us a taste of what they’ll bring as one of the March feature artists.
Then we heard from Fred Smith who brought a guitar case full new songs of irony, humour and self deprecation from his new album, Look. With stories of relationships, travels, and Helen Garner’s, “heart work”, Fred revealed our day to day lives to ourselves.
But amongst all that he revisited some older stories of war and its heartbreaking effects on soldiers.
As always, Fred brought video to his performance to punctuate his songs. We’re so pleased to host Fred as he tries to “build a future for himself”.
December 2023
Traditional Graffiti
What a refreshing change to see that HKFC was fully booked this night. With a packed agenda, we started by presenting a lifetime membership award to Barry Parkes and Pam Farley for nearly four decades of service in maintaining the club as a regular venue for live acoustic music.
We heard terrific floor spots from Norma, Ralph Graham and Alex Burger (accompanied by Chris Keane) who are all exceptional talents in their own right. All songs (bar Albatross performed by Alex and Chris) were either original or with modified lyrics and were filled with meaning and reflection. I feel sure we will hear more from them in the coming years.
Traditional Graffiti.
November 2023
Wayne Gillespie supported by Rob Grosser
Wayne Gillespie (guitar and vocals) and Rob Grosser (percussion) performed a formidable set of songs from a broad range of genres and many drawn from his recent album Frazz which is a terrific listen! Some of the stories were real eye openers, such as while busking in Paris and singing Leonard Cohen’s song That’s No Way to Say Goodbye, he noticed a listener in a fedora step forward and leave a very substantial payment. Yes, it was the song’s writer himself. Learn more about Wayne at his website, Famous Blue Raincoat.
We also heard floor spots from the Sydney Scottish Fiddlers and from Mike Williamson who sang the traditional song, She Moved Through the Fair.
October 2023
J Shaw
Our feature act this month was the talented CJ Shaw who brought us amusing, insightful lyrics and storytelling… all the elements that make folk music so compelling. CJ proved to be a talented performer and storyteller and captivated the audience with songs and poetry featuring personal and public events drawn from his experiences.
We also heard floor spots from the also talented Ian Fretwell & Mick Scott, Alex Burger, Chris Keane and an unexpected performance from CJ’s surprised brother, Jonathan Shaw.
September 2023
Pat Craigie and Maurie Mulheron
Featured artists Pat Craigie and Maurie Mulheron followed a floor spot taken by Kara & Viktorija who performed instrumental pieces.
August 2023
Rachel Collis
Feature artist Rachel Collis followed an extended floor spot by Coolfin Mac
It was pleasing to have such a good turn-out and enthusiastic audience this month, with numbers back to pre-Covid levels again!
The evening began with an extended floor-spot from Coolfinn Mac. The trio features Pam Merrigan – guitar/whistles/vocals, James Palethorpe – fiddle and Chris Merrigan – guitar and acoustic bass guitar.
With the band front and centre and in full acoustic mode, we were treated to an engaging mix of traditional and contemporary songs and tunes. Highlights included Dougie MacLean’s modern folk ballad “Caledonia” and Anna McGariggle’s oft covered “Heart like a Wheel”.
There were traditional tunes aplenty too – and it was good to see that Pam still finds time to perform herself, given the extent of her involvement in nurturing folk music behind the scenes.
July 2023
Rare Treats at HKFC
