Starts shortly after nine pm. Supposed to be very good, and friendly. I found it a bit patchy, and not much craic, but was assured this was an inordinately quiet night.
I'll take back what I said since 2 years ago - I've been down since then and it's a lively, jumping, well-attended AND friendly session. That first time I guess I caught it on a bad night - every session has them!
I've been going to this session for about three months - am enjoying it immensely as a relative newcomer to the irish tunes. Plenty of friendly players, and some real talent too. very wide repertoire (or so it seems to me) - i rarely hear the same tune twice! (not much help when you're learning though!) Need more like this on other nights of the week.
I hear that sister! I love getting down to the kilkenny when I can. Theres always a fairly good selection of instruments there even if it sometimes lacks a rythm section and theres always that fella that can play the pipes well (something I've found to be very rare in london). I'd recommend the session at Dylans in Lewisham on a Sunday first and foremost to you but the blythe hill tavern is good on a thursday as well.
i've heard kane is doing a session in the killkenny this sunday? does anyone else hear this . brian kellys going down and jamie smith. this should be a great sess. john bowe the main man will be there of course i hope!!!!! any one know any maore
The air hung hot and humid in the Kilkenny last night.
Thank the gods for cold lager!
But it was an excellent session!
Nice to see Brendan changing his pipes for the six stringed devil on a couple of sets!
I've learnt so much from these birds & blokes at this pub on Tuesday evenings..
Quiet night in the Who-Killed-Kenny last night.
But a fab bijou session none the less!
Michael (flute/ song)
Ed (fiddle)
Tony (bodhran)
Tony (guitar/ voice)
Tony (GHP/ small pipes but didn't get them out!)
John (whistle and all manner of weird other stuff!)
Myself (baritone uke)
Martin Weller (baritone uke/ song)
Not often you hear a Max Bygraves song at a session but we did last night! Yes. indeed...fings ain't what they used to be (to be sure). 90% was "proper Irish" tunes and t'ing despite what this short piece suggests!
Ortolan shaving in Punjab/ Yellow skool buses and filing problems...
A nice evening in by the coal fire at the Kilkenny last night!
From Alan anti-clockwise: flute, fiddle, fiddle/ box, fiddle, flute/ small pipes, baritone uke, box, fddle, bodhran, concertina, box, whistle, low whistle.
Had to give up conversation at bar with Ed and John as I was getting a krick in the neck talking to two such tall people.
A large & tight kicking hot sesh last night!
And fast! You could tell Bart was back!
Clockwise from Mr O'Leary (not all neccesarily at the same time!) : flute/ whistle, box, six string devil, bodhran, concertina, pipes/ flute, fiddle, low whistle/ whistle, flute/ singing, flute, six string devil, singer, bodhran, baritone joke-ulele/ cheap bouzouki, box/ fiddle, silver flute, piano accordian/ spoons marked 'Hospital Property', flute/ whistle, fiddle, banjo/ singing, fiddle.
No beer knocked over.
Ambling to the session last night I noted how unusually mild and humid the weather was; thick clouds scudding over a large nearly full moon. Got to the pub' and they had lit the open fire! Very pretty I'm sure but it was so hot! Also there were wafts of decidly non-Kosher roasting coming from the kitchen...
Anyway- jolly good session again despite the sauna! Two in weeks have been excellent.
Thank you everybody.
This week we had a fab end of session sessionette after most had gone. Mick, Brendan and Ed were smoldering, Clare you were burning!
I'm glad I had to change my trousers.
Polish John and his Peruvian trombone piece (keep your wigs on!)...
Last night was the Tuesday Kilkenny Session.
Earlier on there were three pipers sat in line down one side facing up to the fiddles of Alvin, Ed, Rosie and John. Later on there was a box love-in with Bart, Pat, Andrew and Vincent. The box/ pipes troops nicely made up for the forest of fiddlers last week! Nice to see Peter and Polish John changing their trousers on a Tuesday night and John’s piece on the Peruvian trombone was very cromulent- rumpelstiltskinned right up as he was. I did my best session wrecking stuff in between pints on my ludicrous wombat.
sounds like it was a great night, with 25 musicians including four pipers at one stage. Heard about it from lisaniska and was going to come along but for the fact it was a school day the next day
It was a quiet nite but at one stage there were eight pipers, a complete Czech silver band, two North London guys with drum kits, a 1973 Fender Rhodes, 29 left handed fiddle players, a Chinese stock car race, endless ballroom dancing and five netball games for fellahs in drag.
Yes! You have to ease it off very carefully or it can cause scalp skin peeling which is very painful.
I now hear there were 239 pipers the other nite...
John Bowe's head ware, hot water bottle blowing and surprise baritone uke...
Busy old week dahn in Sarf Wimbledon.
Friday was the Irish club but I didn’t get there. Too busy eating dansak, drinking Buckie and watching Star Trek.
Back at the Who-Killed-Kenny Tavern on Sunday saw JB on box (with no flat cap on his head this time) aided and abetted by Peter Coughlan (lovely hair) who ferociously twangled his Takamine six string devil and sang euphorically. He also whacked a goat skin. They were joined by Lisaniska (the only bass player in the world who’s happier when his strap slips off and he has to hold it close with his elbows and keep playing!) on specially tuned six string devil, Joe on box and two of the Mullins family; one on yet another box and the other on banjo. I attempted to wreck the session (as ever) on my controversial instrument choice, plunka plunka. So there was a lot of strumming and squeezing and therefore quite a big noise for a small amount of persons. Later David added a fiddle and another chap percussed another bodhran.
I rediscovered Southern Comfort and lemonade. This was a trendy drink when I was a student some centuries ago. This lead to some experimental bottleneck wig glue jar playing and a dollop of backwards hot water bottle blowing.
Last night (Tuesday) saw a pub’ depleted of chairs by 9.30 pm. All the usual suspects in attendance apart from Ed & Clare. And there was a six string devil twangler who was not me with a BARITONE UKULELE!!! Which he played on one or two sets! Wa-hay! Is this the start of a movement?!
Tuesday Night
A hot rockin’ sesh in SW19 last night! Clockwise from the top: flute/ whistle (A) ; banjo (B); ‘zouk/ baritone ukulele (Y aka D aka D); concertina (N); bodhran (T); box/ flute/ whistle (B); pipes/ flute (B); flute/ voice (M); voice (?); great highland pipes (T); fiddle/ whistle (C); whistle (J); bodhran (?); banjo/ bodhran/ voice (F); flute (S); six string devil/ voice (J); fiddle (J); fiddle/ box (T); fiddle (A); six string devil (?); fiddle (R). JB poked the fire as ever! Someone was farting badly; this is why the fag ban was such a bad idea.
NB: We did not all play at once!
A certain well known box player suggested last night that he may use
'Igloo Wiggloo' and sometimes 'Teepee Toupee Attachment Product'. Manufactured by native Americans.
I have no idea what he uses it for though. If that's a wig it's a bloody good one! No gap.
Alan, Clare & Rosie away; out comes the Klezmer book!
An O’Leary-less session last night. Not one in sight!
Anyway we were: bodhran played by Tony; banjo plucked by Billy; pipes/ flute pumped & delicately breathed into by Brendan; whistle/ low whistle tickled by a bloke I know to talk to & who even bought me a pint but I’m afraid I don’t know his name; fiddle fiddled by John; flute/ whistle Moriaty-ed by Moriarty; fiddle played by Alvin; flute/ vox humana done by Mick; fiddle scraped by Ed; fiddle bowed by a lovely dreadlocked lady whose name I do not know and yours truly doing his best, as ever, to wreck the session on the cheap Rumanian baritone ukulele. Plus Ozric John tinkered with his Bulgarian wossit. It was a great night!
STRANGE END: It ended with Ed and the dreadlocked lady playing a few Klezmer tunes from THE DOTS OUT OF A BOOK! Shock! Horror!!
James comes all the way from New Zealand to show of hot water bottle collection...
Still impossibly warm in the evenings at the Who-Killed-Kenny pub. Will the summer never end? Roll on November! It melts the wig glue and increases the rubbery smell of the hot water bottle collection around the house.
Last night James came especially all the way from New Zealand to play is fiddle at our session. Last week a couple of ladies came from Hackney. Hello to you all. I know you all said you read this nonsense, in fact stumbled across the Kilkenny session via thesession.org.
So last night in an anticlockwise sweep around the playing tables:
Cheap Romanian baritone ukulele (Session wrecker)
Fiddle (James- NZ)
Flute/ pipes (Brendan)
Fiddle (Claire)
Banjo (Billy)
Banjo (ooh! I can’t remember his name! Sorry!)
Bodhran (Tony)
Concertina (Nick)
Six String Devil (Kevin)*
Six String Devil (Kevin)*
Flute/ whistle (Alan)
Fiddle (Rosie)
Box (Ben)
Fiddle (Ed)
Fiddle (Alvin)
Fiddle (Lady in the Dreads)
Left handed flute/ whistle (Moriarty)
Box (name not known- woman)
Six string devil/ banjo (name not known- man)
Fiddle (John)
Sorry if I’ve overlooked anyone!
No klezmer this week!
*There were actually two blokes called Kevin both playing the SSD and sitting next to each other. But at this session only one backer at a time played generally, I hasten to point out!
B B King’s Wig Museum, the Tooting Old Testament Re-Enactment Society or The Hot Water Bottle Factory and the Catford Dog Track Ukulele Collective
Just to say: Billy started a set last night! (probably only of interest to those who frequent sessions at B B King’s Wig Museum, the Tooting Old Testament Re-Enactment Society or The Hot Water Bottle Factory and maybe some at the Catford Dog Track Ukulele Collective.)
Great nite at B B King's Wig Museum (Finchley, Tx)...
Brilliant session last night! Thank you everyone!
Alan- flute/ whistle,
Billy- banjo,
Tom- box/ fiddle,
Nick- concertina,
Tony- bodhran,
Claire- fiddle,
Bernard- fiddle,
Brendan- pipes/ flute,
Mick- flute/ vox humana,
Foxy- banjo/ vox humana,
Yhaal- cheap Romanian ‘zouk/ baritone ukulele,
John- fiddle,
Alvin- fiddle,
Ed- fiddle,
Ben- box,
Rosie- fiddle.
It was a tight loud fast romping sort of a session; a bit ceilidh-ish.
With a good mix of the bloomin’ obvious and the strangely obscure.
The pub’ nearly next door (the Grove) has very conveniently started an Open Mic Nite on Tuesdays and so all the six string devil and BLooZ bothererz and all those that don’t understand about sessions are funnelled off to the Old Hat Twelve Bar Dirge Marathon in there! Hooray! Long may it thrive as a session wrecker magnet!
Went to the Wig Museum last night. I was determined to go out and not be intimidated by the situation. It was supposed to be a bit of a 'special' at the old Who-Killed-Kenny for a certain Mr Dawes.
Anyway when I got there, there was four or five blokes with instrument cases stood outside a CLOSED PUB! All the other pubs in Merton Hi Street was closed, so I supposed the Old Bill had told them to (a tinsy winsy bit of an over reaction i would say but... c'est la vie!). So, no music!
See you all next week Wiggies!
Here last night!
The Hot Water Bottle Wigsters this week were: 3 fiddles, 2 boxes, a whistle, a six string devil, a piper and FIVE flutes (plus the piper doubling on flute making SIX at one point) plus a baritone ukulele. Thanks to Alan, Rosie, Pat, John, Paul, Brendan, Michael, Sarah, Mary, Martin, Alvin, and Ben and the flute player whose name I didn't know.
Michael & Mary also sang.
The pub next door (Mr Choudhry's Halal Deep Space Nine)continues to hold an Open Mic/ Acoustic BLooZ six string devil botherers event on Tuesdays and still acts as a magnet for all session wreckers. I'd suggest every session in the world should have one just next door at the same time!
The Wigsters were in attendance last night.
Surprizing how different it sounds from my usual spot when Alan & Claire swop seats.
Hot water bottle to you all...
If your average hot water bottle collector changes his trousers four or five times a session (corduroy to worsted preferably) on a Sunday night and a comparable wig glue enthusiast only polishes up his bugle thrice (slipjig/ hornpipe/ ooh er matron), what becomes of the broken hearted ex-hospital property spoons botherer?
Are there enough jackets in the world for all box players? (feet four square on the floor or old skool legs crossed style)
When facing East around a session table, do you prefer to tootle your zootle in a mixolydian or F sharp major or would your sooner be in Christian restaurant? (that’ll be a mutton khottu, curry goat, chicken Manchuria and a side of corndog: “There’s an R in ‘corndog’”)
Swopping my steel for nylon for posh nylon (synthetic gut) for real sheep intestines (catgut) I realized that all roads lead to Ballybunion’s combined wig factory and lettuce drying plant and all further discussion pointless.
Does Norman Vader wear a syrup? If he does does it improve his playing? If it is, it’s a very good one: no visible gap even close-up.
Lovely session last night!
Clockwise in the convoluted spiral starting at Alan & ending with Bernard it was:
Flute, fiddle/ flute (!), box (flute!), pipes/ flute, flute/ vox humana, whistle, fiddle, fiddle, box, fiddle, baritone ukulele/ bouzouki, six string devil, box, concertina, goat skin doodah, vox humana, fiddle. And two Vincent moments: one box; one vox humana.
There was a lot of fluting by those who normally should be boxing or fiddling.
I'd like to thank the young lady who was randomly in the pub' who was completely overwhelmed by the fab music. You rarely get punters that enthuiastic thank Heavens!
Starts shortly after nine pm. Supposed to be very good, and friendly. I found it a bit patchy, and not much craic, but was assured this was an inordinately quiet night.
# Posted on June 25th 2003 by Rudall the time
Sundays
Danny ...
By all accounts the Sunday afternoon sessions here are great crack!
(Not that I've been. Merton's a long haul by public transport!)
# Posted on June 28th 2003 by Aidan Crossey
Yeah - but isn't that more of a gig. The great John Bow displaying his talents, so I've heard.
# Posted on June 29th 2003 by Rudall the time
Alan O'Leary (flute) and his daughter Claire (fiddle), between them, know every tune going. It's a great session for increasing one's repertoire.
# Posted on February 5th 2004 by CreadurMawnOrganig
Photo Album
Some pix from the Tuesday session.
# Posted on April 15th 2005 by Presumin Ed
http://www45.brinkster.com/kilkennytavern/default.htm
# Posted on April 17th 2005 by Presumin Ed
UPDATE!!
I'll take back what I said since 2 years ago - I've been down since then and it's a lively, jumping, well-attended AND friendly session. That first time I guess I caught it on a bad night - every session has them!
# Posted on July 15th 2005 by Rudall the time
I've been going to this session for about three months - am enjoying it immensely as a relative newcomer to the irish tunes. Plenty of friendly players, and some real talent too. very wide repertoire (or so it seems to me) - i rarely hear the same tune twice! (not much help when you're learning though!) Need more like this on other nights of the week.
# Posted on November 29th 2006 by soulsong
I hear that sister! I love getting down to the kilkenny when I can. Theres always a fairly good selection of instruments there even if it sometimes lacks a rythm section and theres always that fella that can play the pipes well (something I've found to be very rare in london). I'd recommend the session at Dylans in Lewisham on a Sunday first and foremost to you but the blythe hill tavern is good on a thursday as well.
# Posted on December 22nd 2006 by Daniel Gott
is kane o'rourke over this weekend??????
i've heard kane is doing a session in the killkenny this sunday? does anyone else hear this . brian kellys going down and jamie smith. this should be a great sess. john bowe the main man will be there of course i hope!!!!! any one know any maore
# Posted on January 24th 2007 by bearded folk head
Re: is kane o'rourke over this weekend??????
yes i just got confirmation from mark conyard he will be playing along with a few others at a session this sunday at the kilkenney sth wimbledon
# Posted on January 24th 2007 by Ripthecalico
Rare Ornithological Sighting in SW London
looking forward to spotting the Ginger Goose!
a rare delight...
# Posted on January 24th 2007 by biggus dave
Last night especially rocked!
Thanks to Alan, Claire and the crew...
# Posted on April 25th 2007 by yhaalhouse
This week...
I look forward to next Tuesday.
To coin a phrase: SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY!
# Posted on May 4th 2007 by yhaalhouse
Bijou but beautiful!
Fab sesh last night.
Not many faces but very enjoyable.
Thanks to:
Alan, Claire, Hughie, Ben, Nick, Jack, Brendan, Sarah, Tony.
(Two flutes, two boxes, a concertina, two fiddles, a set of pipes, a bodhran and a baritone ukulele!)
# Posted on September 26th 2007 by yhaalhouse
And Vincent...
I forgot about Vincent!
# Posted on October 1st 2007 by yhaalhouse
Perfect Poking!
A fab people poking took place this week.
And we generally agreed that flutes are the top instrument of poke.
# Posted on October 25th 2007 by yhaalhouse
Humid and cooking and the Kaiser...
The air hung hot and humid in the Kilkenny last night.
Thank the gods for cold lager!
But it was an excellent session!
Nice to see Brendan changing his pipes for the six stringed devil on a couple of sets!
I've learnt so much from these birds & blokes at this pub on Tuesday evenings..
# Posted on June 11th 2008 by yhaalhouse
Just a quorum!
Quiet night in the Who-Killed-Kenny last night.
But a fab bijou session none the less!
Michael (flute/ song)
Ed (fiddle)
Tony (bodhran)
Tony (guitar/ voice)
Tony (GHP/ small pipes but didn't get them out!)
John (whistle and all manner of weird other stuff!)
Myself (baritone uke)
Martin Weller (baritone uke/ song)
Not often you hear a Max Bygraves song at a session but we did last night! Yes. indeed...fings ain't what they used to be (to be sure). 90% was "proper Irish" tunes and t'ing despite what this short piece suggests!
# Posted on August 27th 2008 by yhaalhouse
Ortolan shaving in Punjab/ Yellow skool buses and filing problems...
A nice evening in by the coal fire at the Kilkenny last night!
From Alan anti-clockwise: flute, fiddle, fiddle/ box, fiddle, flute/ small pipes, baritone uke, box, fddle, bodhran, concertina, box, whistle, low whistle.
Had to give up conversation at bar with Ed and John as I was getting a krick in the neck talking to two such tall people.
# Posted on December 10th 2008 by yhaalhouse
Bluddy good sesh in Sarf Lunden last night!
A large & tight kicking hot sesh last night!
And fast! You could tell Bart was back!
Clockwise from Mr O'Leary (not all neccesarily at the same time!) : flute/ whistle, box, six string devil, bodhran, concertina, pipes/ flute, fiddle, low whistle/ whistle, flute/ singing, flute, six string devil, singer, bodhran, baritone joke-ulele/ cheap bouzouki, box/ fiddle, silver flute, piano accordian/ spoons marked 'Hospital Property', flute/ whistle, fiddle, banjo/ singing, fiddle.
No beer knocked over.
# Posted on September 30th 2009 by yhaalhouse
Phew! A hot one last night!
Ambling to the session last night I noted how unusually mild and humid the weather was; thick clouds scudding over a large nearly full moon. Got to the pub' and they had lit the open fire! Very pretty I'm sure but it was so hot! Also there were wafts of decidly non-Kosher roasting coming from the kitchen...
Anyway- jolly good session again despite the sauna! Two in weeks have been excellent.
Thank you everybody.
# Posted on October 7th 2009 by yhaalhouse
Changing my trousers...
I'll certainly be changing my trousers tonight!
# Posted on December 1st 2009 by yhaalhouse
Burning!
This week we had a fab end of session sessionette after most had gone. Mick, Brendan and Ed were smoldering, Clare you were burning!
I'm glad I had to change my trousers.
# Posted on December 3rd 2009 by yhaalhouse
Bowe and O'Rourke
sneaky open sesh today with resident master John (box), Kane (fiddle, over from ireland) and Peter Coughlan (guitar plus a few songs), all welcome
from 3-7pm but will prob carry on through
# Posted on January 24th 2010 by lisaniska
Weekly Sunday sesh returns
just to flag up a second sesh at this venue being the welcome return of it's historical Sunday afternoon hosted by John Bowe
i've put up a new 'Sunday' one for here to provide details, such as Mark Conyard (fiddle, banjo) guesting next week
# Posted on February 7th 2010 by lisaniska
Polish John and his Peruvian trombone piece (keep your wigs on!)...
Last night was the Tuesday Kilkenny Session.
Earlier on there were three pipers sat in line down one side facing up to the fiddles of Alvin, Ed, Rosie and John. Later on there was a box love-in with Bart, Pat, Andrew and Vincent. The box/ pipes troops nicely made up for the forest of fiddlers last week! Nice to see Peter and Polish John changing their trousers on a Tuesday night and John’s piece on the Peruvian trombone was very cromulent- rumpelstiltskinned right up as he was. I did my best session wrecking stuff in between pints on my ludicrous wombat.
# Posted on February 10th 2010 by yhaalhouse
sounds like it was a great night, with 25 musicians including four pipers at one stage. Heard about it from lisaniska and was going to come along but for the fact it was a school day the next day
# Posted on February 10th 2010 by sashiko calico
It was a quiet nite but at one stage there were eight pipers, a complete Czech silver band, two North London guys with drum kits, a 1973 Fender Rhodes, 29 left handed fiddle players, a Chinese stock car race, endless ballroom dancing and five netball games for fellahs in drag.
# Posted on February 10th 2010 by yhaalhouse
You're going to have to ease off that wig glue, yhaalhouse
# Posted on February 10th 2010 by sashiko calico
Yes! You have to ease it off very carefully or it can cause scalp skin peeling which is very painful.
I now hear there were 239 pipers the other nite...
# Posted on February 11th 2010 by yhaalhouse
John Bowe's head ware, hot water bottle blowing and surprise baritone uke...
Busy old week dahn in Sarf Wimbledon.
Friday was the Irish club but I didn’t get there. Too busy eating dansak, drinking Buckie and watching Star Trek.
Back at the Who-Killed-Kenny Tavern on Sunday saw JB on box (with no flat cap on his head this time) aided and abetted by Peter Coughlan (lovely hair) who ferociously twangled his Takamine six string devil and sang euphorically. He also whacked a goat skin. They were joined by Lisaniska (the only bass player in the world who’s happier when his strap slips off and he has to hold it close with his elbows and keep playing!) on specially tuned six string devil, Joe on box and two of the Mullins family; one on yet another box and the other on banjo. I attempted to wreck the session (as ever) on my controversial instrument choice, plunka plunka. So there was a lot of strumming and squeezing and therefore quite a big noise for a small amount of persons. Later David added a fiddle and another chap percussed another bodhran.
I rediscovered Southern Comfort and lemonade. This was a trendy drink when I was a student some centuries ago. This lead to some experimental bottleneck wig glue jar playing and a dollop of backwards hot water bottle blowing.
Last night (Tuesday) saw a pub’ depleted of chairs by 9.30 pm. All the usual suspects in attendance apart from Ed & Clare. And there was a six string devil twangler who was not me with a BARITONE UKULELE!!! Which he played on one or two sets! Wa-hay! Is this the start of a movement?!
# Posted on March 3rd 2010 by yhaalhouse
Initially speaking...
Tuesday Night
A hot rockin’ sesh in SW19 last night! Clockwise from the top: flute/ whistle (A) ; banjo (B); ‘zouk/ baritone ukulele (Y aka D aka D); concertina (N); bodhran (T); box/ flute/ whistle (B); pipes/ flute (B); flute/ voice (M); voice (?); great highland pipes (T); fiddle/ whistle (C); whistle (J); bodhran (?); banjo/ bodhran/ voice (F); flute (S); six string devil/ voice (J); fiddle (J); fiddle/ box (T); fiddle (A); six string devil (?); fiddle (R). JB poked the fire as ever! Someone was farting badly; this is why the fag ban was such a bad idea.
NB: We did not all play at once!
# Posted on March 10th 2010 by yhaalhouse
More on wig glue...
A certain well known box player suggested last night that he may use
'Igloo Wiggloo' and sometimes 'Teepee Toupee Attachment Product'. Manufactured by native Americans.
I have no idea what he uses it for though. If that's a wig it's a bloody good one! No gap.
# Posted on April 14th 2010 by yhaalhouse
Pictures of donkeys...
Last night there were no pictures of donkeys or indeed instruction on how to get to where the donkeys are.
# Posted on June 2nd 2010 by yhaalhouse
Alan, Clare & Rosie away; out comes the Klezmer book!
An O’Leary-less session last night. Not one in sight!
Anyway we were: bodhran played by Tony; banjo plucked by Billy; pipes/ flute pumped & delicately breathed into by Brendan; whistle/ low whistle tickled by a bloke I know to talk to & who even bought me a pint but I’m afraid I don’t know his name; fiddle fiddled by John; flute/ whistle Moriaty-ed by Moriarty; fiddle played by Alvin; flute/ vox humana done by Mick; fiddle scraped by Ed; fiddle bowed by a lovely dreadlocked lady whose name I do not know and yours truly doing his best, as ever, to wreck the session on the cheap Rumanian baritone ukulele. Plus Ozric John tinkered with his Bulgarian wossit. It was a great night!
STRANGE END: It ended with Ed and the dreadlocked lady playing a few Klezmer tunes from THE DOTS OUT OF A BOOK! Shock! Horror!!
# Posted on July 7th 2010 by yhaalhouse
James comes all the way from New Zealand to show of hot water bottle collection...
Still impossibly warm in the evenings at the Who-Killed-Kenny pub. Will the summer never end? Roll on November! It melts the wig glue and increases the rubbery smell of the hot water bottle collection around the house.
Last night James came especially all the way from New Zealand to play is fiddle at our session. Last week a couple of ladies came from Hackney. Hello to you all. I know you all said you read this nonsense, in fact stumbled across the Kilkenny session via thesession.org.
So last night in an anticlockwise sweep around the playing tables:
Cheap Romanian baritone ukulele (Session wrecker)
Fiddle (James- NZ)
Flute/ pipes (Brendan)
Fiddle (Claire)
Banjo (Billy)
Banjo (ooh! I can’t remember his name! Sorry!)
Bodhran (Tony)
Concertina (Nick)
Six String Devil (Kevin)*
Six String Devil (Kevin)*
Flute/ whistle (Alan)
Fiddle (Rosie)
Box (Ben)
Fiddle (Ed)
Fiddle (Alvin)
Fiddle (Lady in the Dreads)
Left handed flute/ whistle (Moriarty)
Box (name not known- woman)
Six string devil/ banjo (name not known- man)
Fiddle (John)
Sorry if I’ve overlooked anyone!
No klezmer this week!
*There were actually two blokes called Kevin both playing the SSD and sitting next to each other. But at this session only one backer at a time played generally, I hasten to point out!
# Posted on July 28th 2010 by yhaalhouse
B B King’s Wig Museum, the Tooting Old Testament Re-Enactment Society or The Hot Water Bottle Factory and the Catford Dog Track Ukulele Collective
Just to say: Billy started a set last night! (probably only of interest to those who frequent sessions at B B King’s Wig Museum, the Tooting Old Testament Re-Enactment Society or The Hot Water Bottle Factory and maybe some at the Catford Dog Track Ukulele Collective.)
# Posted on August 11th 2010 by yhaalhouse
Great nite at B B King's Wig Museum (Finchley, Tx)...
Brilliant session last night! Thank you everyone!
Alan- flute/ whistle,
Billy- banjo,
Tom- box/ fiddle,
Nick- concertina,
Tony- bodhran,
Claire- fiddle,
Bernard- fiddle,
Brendan- pipes/ flute,
Mick- flute/ vox humana,
Foxy- banjo/ vox humana,
Yhaal- cheap Romanian ‘zouk/ baritone ukulele,
John- fiddle,
Alvin- fiddle,
Ed- fiddle,
Ben- box,
Rosie- fiddle.
It was a tight loud fast romping sort of a session; a bit ceilidh-ish.
With a good mix of the bloomin’ obvious and the strangely obscure.
The pub’ nearly next door (the Grove) has very conveniently started an Open Mic Nite on Tuesdays and so all the six string devil and BLooZ bothererz and all those that don’t understand about sessions are funnelled off to the Old Hat Twelve Bar Dirge Marathon in there! Hooray! Long may it thrive as a session wrecker magnet!
# Posted on October 20th 2010 by yhaalhouse
Pics in the Irish Post
http://issuu.com/tcmeditorial/docs/ip101
# Posted on February 9th 2011 by yhaalhouse
Hey Ho! Let's Go as the Ramones said...
Still here! Come down y'all!
# Posted on April 20th 2011 by yhaalhouse
Still going!
I was there this week.
# Posted on August 4th 2011 by yhaalhouse
Burnin' an' a-Lootin'
Went to the Wig Museum last night. I was determined to go out and not be intimidated by the situation. It was supposed to be a bit of a 'special' at the old Who-Killed-Kenny for a certain Mr Dawes.
Anyway when I got there, there was four or five blokes with instrument cases stood outside a CLOSED PUB! All the other pubs in Merton Hi Street was closed, so I supposed the Old Bill had told them to (a tinsy winsy bit of an over reaction i would say but... c'est la vie!). So, no music!
See you all next week Wiggies!
# Posted on August 10th 2011 by yhaalhouse
A Flut-astic Night...
Here last night!
The Hot Water Bottle Wigsters this week were: 3 fiddles, 2 boxes, a whistle, a six string devil, a piper and FIVE flutes (plus the piper doubling on flute making SIX at one point) plus a baritone ukulele. Thanks to Alan, Rosie, Pat, John, Paul, Brendan, Michael, Sarah, Mary, Martin, Alvin, and Ben and the flute player whose name I didn't know.
Michael & Mary also sang.
The pub next door (Mr Choudhry's Halal Deep Space Nine)continues to hold an Open Mic/ Acoustic BLooZ six string devil botherers event on Tuesdays and still acts as a magnet for all session wreckers. I'd suggest every session in the world should have one just next door at the same time!
# Posted on August 31st 2011 by yhaalhouse
Autumnal Equinox Eve...
The Wigsters were in attendance last night.
Surprizing how different it sounds from my usual spot when Alan & Claire swop seats.
Hot water bottle to you all...
# Posted on September 21st 2011 by yhaalhouse
Eleventh of October Two Thousand & Eleven...
Many wig glue enthusiasts and hot water bottle collectors in attendance last night...
# Posted on October 12th 2011 by yhaalhouse
I meant to say...
If your average hot water bottle collector changes his trousers four or five times a session (corduroy to worsted preferably) on a Sunday night and a comparable wig glue enthusiast only polishes up his bugle thrice (slipjig/ hornpipe/ ooh er matron), what becomes of the broken hearted ex-hospital property spoons botherer?
Are there enough jackets in the world for all box players? (feet four square on the floor or old skool legs crossed style)
When facing East around a session table, do you prefer to tootle your zootle in a mixolydian or F sharp major or would your sooner be in Christian restaurant? (that’ll be a mutton khottu, curry goat, chicken Manchuria and a side of corndog: “There’s an R in ‘corndog’”)
Swopping my steel for nylon for posh nylon (synthetic gut) for real sheep intestines (catgut) I realized that all roads lead to Ballybunion’s combined wig factory and lettuce drying plant and all further discussion pointless.
Does Norman Vader wear a syrup? If he does does it improve his playing? If it is, it’s a very good one: no visible gap even close-up.
# Posted on October 14th 2011 by yhaalhouse
Absence makes the heart grow fonder?!
I haven't been there for about three weeks but I'm sure it's still going! But my bugle is being polished in anticipation...
# Posted on November 2nd 2011 by yhaalhouse
Great night out for Wiggy Wigstaff...
Lovely session last night!
Clockwise in the convoluted spiral starting at Alan & ending with Bernard it was:
Flute, fiddle/ flute (!), box (flute!), pipes/ flute, flute/ vox humana, whistle, fiddle, fiddle, box, fiddle, baritone ukulele/ bouzouki, six string devil, box, concertina, goat skin doodah, vox humana, fiddle. And two Vincent moments: one box; one vox humana.
There was a lot of fluting by those who normally should be boxing or fiddling.
I'd like to thank the young lady who was randomly in the pub' who was completely overwhelmed by the fab music. You rarely get punters that enthuiastic thank Heavens!
# Posted on December 7th 2011 by yhaalhouse