Friends Of Duthie Park will be putting on a Christmas Carol Concert at 11 am and 2 pm on Saturday 20th December 2014 at David Welch Winter Gardens, Duthie Park.
The event will also include a raffle on behalf of Food Banks across the city.
To enter the raffle, and have the opportunity to win a Christmas Fruit Hamper donated by CFine, please bring along any tinned goods, packaged and jars of food, toiletries and staple items such as tea, coffee, sugar etc.
CFine will then distribute all items to those who need that extra bit of help at Christmas.
Anyone wishing to make a donation before the Christmas Carol Concert, should contact Arthur Gill, or drop their donation off at the Winter Gardens.
Environmental charity, Aberdeen Forward, is once again welcoming the Aberdeen community to their premises on 2 Poynernook Road for a Christmas Fayre.
All stands will have excellent quality Christmas gifts for sale from local producers, such as wooden candle holders, clocks and wooden fairy houses.
There will be Fruit and vegetables on sale from the Community Food Initiative North East, Inspire will be selling handmade soaps and there will be some of our tutors on hand to tell you about the exciting courses and workshops available.
The Christmas Fayre takes place on Saturday 13th December between 10am and 1pm where Aberdeen Forward will showcase the varied work they’ve been doing throughout the community in 2014.
Attendees will have the chance to purchase unique hand-made Christmas gifts all from local Aberdeen producers and crafters. The in-house Roots and Shoots team are also very excited to be hosting a stand with a variety of beautiful items made out of wooden logs and reclaimed wood. Delicious Christmas-themed snacks will also be on sale!
Visitors will enjoy complimentary spiced apple juice and Short bread on arrival. Christmas activities for the children such as Snow globe making (So please bring along an old jar to use for it!) and ginger-bread man decorating will take place throughout the morning, as well as face painting. There will also be a raffle (tickets £1 available now) with plenty of fantastic prizes from local businesses to be won!
As if all of this was not enough, Aberdeen Forward will host talks about one of their projects Zero Waste Scotland on the day, giving visitors tips on what they can do with the waste likely to be generated from the festive period.
Entry to the Aberdeen Forward Christmas Fayre is £1.00 for adults and 50p for children. The open day is located at 2 Poynernook Road, AB11 5RW. No need to book and please bring as many friends and family members as you like! Just pop along and enjoy this great community day out. Also remember your used glass jar complete with lid to create a snow globe!
More info: Aberdeen Forward is an environmental charity, established in 1999 to distribute landfill community funds. It now also funds and supports a number of waste minimisation, sustainability and social projects across the North East. All the funds made from this event will go into a range of local projects which work around Aberdeen city and shire to help various groups from young parents and to ex-offenders and those with disabilities.
Pantomime season arrived early this week as one of Scotland’s most talented performers, Elaine C Smith, made an impromptu appearance at Aberdeen’s Bon Accord Centre.
In full costume and accompanied by Prince Sebastion, perhaps better known as the Beast, Elaine mingled with shoppers and posed for the cameras as a prelude to her star role as Mrs Potty in HM Theatre’s 2014 Christmas panto production of “Beauty and the Beast.”
This is Elaine’s sixth year starring in pantomime at His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen.
“Some folk think that when you do panto it’s a sign that your stage career is over,” said Elaine “in reality it’s quite the opposite, this is Aberdeen’s very own panto not just a touring show … it’s a real pleasure to appear here.”
Now grandmother to new baby Stella, ‘Granny Smith’ has arrived to a warm welcome from the Granite City and she’ll not be leaving until the Beast is once again transformed into a handsome prince.
Produced by Michael Harrison, this years production has been written by Alan McHugh will don his frock for the 11th year running to delight audiences as Dame Kitty Brewster while Jordan Young will no doubt be up to some extreme mischief in his role as Boabby Brewster.
The Beast is played by Luke Newton while Anne Smith, of Madam JoJo’s West End Club fame, will play the Wicked Witch. Dundee born Maggie Lynne plays the role of the beautiful Belle and Paul Luebke, of Taggart fame, is cast as Harris McTweed.
Rehearsals begin soon and the theatre doors open on Saturday 29th November with performances up to and including Sunday January 4th.
Tickets are available from Aberdeen Box Office on 01224 641122 and on line at www.boxofficeaberdeen.com
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After a great year that has seen them play the prestigious Reading and Leeds and Boardmasters festivals, Sunset Sons, are heading out on a UK headline tour to support their new EP ‘No Bad Days’ (Polydor).
The tour starts at Cafe Drummond in Aberdeen on October 24th.
The Anglo-Aussie four piece have unveiled the official video for ‘Remember’, the lead track taken from their upcoming release,
Shot in the idyllic French surf commune of Hossegor where the band currently live, the ‘Remember’ video perfectly encapsulates Sunset Sons, cutting between shots of friends and locals living in the town and blistering live performance footage.
The tour includes a stop at the riverside venue Tamesis Dock for an intimate 150-capacity show before heading to Koko to play Club NME.
‘Remember’ is being released as part of the No Bad Days EP which is out on October 26th. This EP follows their debut release earlier this year, the Le Surfing EP which garnered much attention and firmly established Sunset Sons as the band to watch for 2015. Building on a dedicated community of fans in coastal UK towns, the band are picking up steam with huge support at national radio and champions in Fearne Cotton and Zane Lowe.
Tour Dates:
October 24th – Café Drummond, Aberdeen
October 26th – Sound Control, Manchester
October 28th – Oporto, Leeds
October 30th – Tamesis Dock, London
November 1st – Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar, Brighton
November 2nd – Sin City, Swansea
November 3rd – Cavern Club, Exeter
November 5th – The Hub, Plymouth
November 6th – The Watering Hole, Perranporth
Aberdeen and District CND will be hosting a Peace and Justice Concert at the Blue Lamp on Sunday afternoon 2-5.30pm on 19th October as part of a number of events for One World Week. There will be Music, Poetry and Dance performed by local artists from Scotland, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Germany, China, Japan, Spain and South America.
One World Week aims to bring people together across the world in the cause of Peace and Justice. The event is dedicated to all people suffering injustice worldwide.
Artists playing will be Dave Davies and friends, Colin Edwards, Nigel and Mark Lammas, Precious Few from Köln in Germany, Nabin Chhetri Nepalese poetry, Rev Dr Isaac Poobalan and Dr Amudha Poobalan Indian music,
Mukal Dahal Nepalese poetry, Fuji Toyonobu and friends Japanese music, Colin Edwards poetry, Minh Tri Tran Vietnamese guitar, Yoleah You Li Chinese violin, Imagine ensemble, Tommy Campbell reading Hilda Meer’s poetry / Simon Gall sings Hilda Meers followed by Simon Gall and Xavier Ortiz sing Latin- Columbian music, Nepalese Dance, Javier Dominguez and friends Flamenco and Dance.
There will be a finale of Bob Marley’s One Love and Stand up for your Rights with everyone either playing instruments dancing or singing
The event is free but donations will be welcome for the Local CND group and the World Development Movement
Please come along and join in the fun
For further information please contact Jonathan Russell
It’s quite a coup for local Americana promoter Martin Raitt’s Almost Blue Promotions to bring scintillating roots duo Carpenter & May to The Blue Lamp.
Attracting such a prestigious act is proof that in just over a year of existence, Almost Blue is punching above its weight and becoming the go-to outlet for PRs and promoters eager to promote their acts in NE Scotland.
The Gallowgate gig on Friday 3 October is the final date of the duo’s eagerly-anticipated eight-date Scottish tour.
Both experienced and busy musicians, Fred Carpenter and Tim May have impressive CVs, having variously worked with, among others, Emmylou Harris, Barbara Mandrell, George Strait, Patty Loveless and Charlie Daniels.
Their debut CD Carpenter & May was released four years ago and topped the Folk Radio airplay chart on its release. It continues to delight fans, four years on. The critics were effusive in their praise…
“It is obvious by the end of the first song on this new album by Fred Carpenter and Tim May that the virtuosity expected from these two wonderful musicians is in full effect. This album is fun, powerful, and superb.” – Bluegrass Unlimited
“Anyone seeking an alternative to blazing bluegrass and slick Nashvegas sounds could find what they are looking for right here. Everything is impeccably understated and without pretension.” – Driftwood Magazine
“It is easy to see why Fred Carpenter and Tim May have had a great deal of success beside some of the biggest names in country music. It’s time for them to step out and shine individually.” – Sing Out!
Witnessed live, the duo has attracted fine reviews too, and not only from the critics…
“Fred Carpenter and Tim May play roots music at its best. Using guitar, fiddle, mandolin, bass, and vocals, they can mow down backyard bluegrass, tug the Celtic heartstrings, or even croon a jazz standard.” – Tim O’Brien
“Fred and Tim are a one-two punch: two virtuosos who share a passion for acoustic music from many different traditions. Both have a musical maturity and depth of phrasing that instantly complement and play off each other. From achingly beautiful ballads, through celtic airs, jigs and reels, to hot jazz and fiery bluegrass, they bless us with their talent, their vision and the generosity of spirit with which they play.” – Kathy Mattea
The Lampie’s clientele is in for a treat, then. It promises to be one of the year’s best city gigs.
Big Country will be performing songs from their classic multi-million selling album ‘Steeltown’ on Friday 3rd October at The Lemon Tree. With thanks to Dave Hill.
‘Steeltown’ is the second studio album and was recorded at ABBA’s Polar Studios in Stockholm with Steve Lillywhite producing. It was released on 19 October, 1984. Bruce Watson remembers the time very well, amid the nationwide strife back in the UK, fully in the grip of the Miners Strike:
“We started work on Steeltown back in June 1984 at Abba’s studio. We worked alongside Steve in Studio One as Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber worked on ‘Chess’ next door in Studio Two. Stockholm felt like the most expensive place on earth – it’s as if we were on a different planet to how things were back home – my Dad was a miner, so what we did was knuckle down to hard work for six weeks”.
Regarded by many as a classic, the multi-million selling Steeltown went straight to the Number 1 slot in the album charts.
The band will perform songs from the album as well as the classic hits and live favourites including
Harvest Home – Fields of Fire – In A Big Country – Chance – Wonderland – Look Away – The Teacher
Plus many more…
Steeped in a stunning catalogue of proud and stirring hit songs such as ‘Fields of Fire’, ‘Chance’, ‘In A Big Country’ (which sold 2 million), ‘East Of Eden’ and their biggest UK hit ‘Look Away’, along with massive albums such ‘The Seer’, ‘Steeltown’, ‘Peace In Our Time’ and the triple Grammy –nominated, ‘The Crossing’, Big Country continue to look beyond the next horizon in 2014.
The band – BRUCE WATSON (guitars/vocals); MARK BRZEZICKI (drums, vocals); JAMIE WATSON (guitars/vocals) and former SIMPLE MINDS’ bassist/vocalist , DEREK FORBES – will be augmented on stage by SIMON HOUGH ex-front man for DENNY LAINE (WINGS), ERIC BELL (THIN LIZZY) etc.
The programme is extensive and it is advisable to book tickets in advance for some of the events, as they will have number restrictions.
In fact, you would be advised to stay in Tarland for the weekend, so as not to miss anything!
The weekend kicks off on the evening of Friday 26th September with a rare opportunity to hear the Wrigley Sisters, supported by Paul Anderson and some members of his extensive musical family.
Please spread the word to your friends and family. This will be a special evening, and a busy weekend.
Born and raised in the northern Scottish Orkney Islands, the twins began performing together when barely into their teens; Jennifer on fiddle, Hazel on guitar and piano. A decade or so later, their fan-base stretched around the world, built up through a hectic schedule of concert tours and festival appearances in Europe, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Far East.
The universal audience appeal of Jennifer and Hazel Wrigley reflects both the calibre of their music, a sparkling blend of traditional, contemporary and original material, invigorated with jazz, blues and ragtime flavours – and the effervescent charm of their performances.
The Wrigley Sisters will be performing at the MacRobert Hall, the Square, Tarland, AB34 4YL on Friday 26th September, starts at 7.30pm and the admission is £12.00. The gig is licensed, and your ticket price includes some lovely nibbles.
The Grampian Transport Museum will once again be holding its Autumn Autojumble on Sunday, 28th September. With thanks to Martyn Smith, Marketing and Events Organiser, Grampian Transport Museum.
A wide range of automotive parts and memorabilia will be on offer as traders from across the country converge on the museum’s dedicated road circuit.
The 2013 event proved to be as busy as ever, with a variety of parts and even vehicles changing hands!
Whether it’s time to clear space in the garage or shed, or an opportunity to find a new winter project the Autojumble is the ideal opportunity.
Anyone who is looking to book a stall can still do so, priced at just £12 in advance including 2 complimentary passes to the museum. Pitches will also be available on the day, priced at £15 but without complimentary passes.
The Autumn Autojumble takes place on Sunday 28th September from 9am to 3pm. Admission to the event is open to the public from 9am, with adults £3 and children under 16 free of charge.
The museum will also be offering reduced price admission, giving visitors to the Autojumble the opportunity to have a look at the 2014 exhibition including the Great Train Robbery exhibit – featuring the actual Austin Loadstar truck which was used in ‘The Crime of the Century’. Museum admission is £6 for adults, £5 for concessions and 2 children are admitted FREE with every adult.
Ollie Howell with legendary film soundtrack composer and record producer, Quincy Jones.
London-based drummer Ollie Howell, who brings his acclaimed quintet to Aberdeen next week, has some high profile admirers.With thanks to Rob Adams.
Howell ‘floored’ Quincy Jones, the legendary film soundtrack composer and record producer who worked with Frank Sinatra and oversaw Michael Jackson’s multi-million-selling album Thriller, during a performance staged to feature some of the best students at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff in 2009.
This led to Jones, who is affectionately known in the music business as Q, mentoring the Wallingford-born Howell and monitoring his progress as he has moved into a full-time professional career.
“Quincy’s one-quarter Welsh and was being presented with an honorary doctorate at the RWCMD when I was a student there,” says Howell.
“I was a big fan of his work on the Sinatra at the Sands album and when he invited me to New York to play with some of his friends after hearing me on that concert in Cardiff, I had to pinch myself. He later invited me to Montreux Jazz Festival and I’ll be visiting him in Los Angeles later this year to go through plans for my next album.”
Howell has also been taken under the wing of the legendary former Miles Davis drummer Jimmy Cobb, who featured on Davis’s classic Kind of Blue album, and is the first musical recipient of a Sky award, having won a Sky Academy Arts Scholarship earlier this year. A television documentary will be screened on the Sky Arts channel during 2015 as a result.
In between these and other career highs, which include winning the prestigious Peter Whittingham Development Award in 2012, Howell has had to deal with being diagnosed with a debilitating brain malfunction, which required urgent surgery. He has now fully recovered and named his first album, Sutures and Stitches, which was released on Whirlwind Recordings, after the experience.
His quintet, which features tenor saxophonist Duncan Eagles, trumpeter Mark Perry, pianist Matt Robinson and bassist Max Luthert, appears at the Blue Lamp, Gallowgate on Thursday September 18 at 8pm.
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With thanks to Dave Macdermid.
