I was honoured to perform a selection of my songs at St Michael & All Angels Church in Bampton, Devon, on Friday 2nd December, to open their Christmas Tree Festival weekend. A warm, appreciative audience made the long journey from Oxfordshire worthwhile.

Also featured on the night were local handbell ringers, who drew the audience out to participate in a few carols. I even did my bit, playing low C and D bells!

On Wednesday 14th September, the Bullingdon on Cowley Road, Oxford, was host to a great line-up of music, culminating in a set from The Loose Salute. Supporting were solo acts Nick Ruck and Lewis Watson, our very own Band of Hope, and Oxford band Cat Matador.

The evening was great fun, and the sound (out front and on stage) was great!
Check out The Loose Salute’s new album “Getting Over Being Under”, which has been well-deservedly doing the rounds on BBC Radio 2 and 6Music.

On Monday 5th September, I’ll be standing in on bass for the Nelson Brothers in the Mahogany Bar at Wilton’s Music Hall. It will be a great opportunity to hear some great songs in a beautiful vintage setting. Music starts at 9pm.

I’m looking forward to playing Greenbelt this year with the rest of Band Of Hope. The event runs from Friday 26th to Monday 29th August, over the bank holiday weekend. We will be performing on Monday evening at the Performance Cafe – a great little stage for upcoming bands and artists, as well as some more well-known artists playing acoustic sets.

For more information see the Greenbelt website.

The [edit] radio podcast showcases some of the best “New and Alternative” music every week. This week’s podcast includes all-acoustic sessions of “Two” and “Phoebe” recorded especially for [edit] radio, with my guitar and vocals.

Check this out, and the other great tracks by bands such as Zeus, Violent Femmes and Teenage Fanclub.

Pangbourne’s monthly acoustic night, Hall of Sound, have kindly invited The Invisible Few (in one of its more acoustic configurations!) to perform a set, alongside some other great acts for the evening.

As well as trying my luck at singing whilst playing double bass, I’ll be accompanying Gordon Buss as part of Ugly Dog Poetry.

The event itself takes place in Pangbourne Village Hall at 8pm on Friday 29th July.

To entertain visitors to the beer festival at Didcot’s Cornerstone this July, Hundred Acre Wood will be performing an afternoon set.

“The trees have ears. At the centre of Hundred Acre Wood is a clearing, where Rags’ smooth, soulful voice soars into the evening air, through an understated canopy of strings, bows and hammers. Seasoned but unvarnished musicians, with a childlike curiosity for new sounds and surprises, tug gently at the fragile cords of our lives until the melody flows out.”

See us on Saturday July 23rd at 1pm.

I’m honoured to be on bass duties for The Organ Grinders at the Ashburton Blues Festival in Devon this weekend, supporting none other than Muddy Waters Jr., son of the blues legend himself.

Be there for the Saturday evening session (28th May 2011 from 6pm) to catch this awesome band in full swing (and funk, and latin, and blues)…

I am very pleased that I’ll be playing bass with Band of Hope at Wood Festival this year, on Saturday May 21st at 1pm. Wood is a great festival with strong green credentials – running as it does entirely from renewable energy. In addition to all the great music there are workshops, discussions and places to eat and drink. Day tickets are available, as well as weekend tickets allowing camping in the lovely surroundings of Braziers Park.

According to Wood Festival’s own news blog: “Festival regulars Band of Hope open up the Wood stage on Saturday with beautiful pastoral folk-rock…”. So there…!