Saturday Feb 2nd 2019; Andy Fairweather Low & the Low Riders with the High Riders Soul Review. Andy returned to Square Chapel for BGR Events with his big band & played another superb set for the sell-out audience. He really knows how to win over an audience and can still mix it with the best! A fantastic show, and our proceeds from this sell-out will be going to Overgate Hospice shortly.
Saturday Feb 16th 2019; Phil Beer with Alice Jones at Wadsworth Community Centre. Phil came back to Wadsworth for the second time in February & it was another sold-out show. On this occasion he teamed up with local performer Alice Jones who played a variety of traditional songs on her keyboard, her tenor guitar or her harmonium - a first for us at Wadsworth. Phil accompanied Alice with his violin on 'Woody' , her final song before he took over the stage and played a marvellous mixture of material from his amazing back catalogue. As usual, his relaxed & entertaining banter went down really well with the audience and he genuinely seemed to have enjoyed the gig, despite a heavy cold. The Little Feat classic, 'Willin' was amongst many highlights. A great gig.
Friday March 8th; Edgelarks. Phillip Henry and Hannah Martin made a welcome return as Edgelarks to Wadsworth and the show sold out as before! They played a number of new songs, beginning with Feather (see the video; the link is on the Past BGR Events 2019 page) ,but also played many 'standards' including Silbury Hill & The Nailmakers Strike. For many, this was one of the best Events we've hosted at Wadsworth, and we're often asked, as satisfied music-lovers leave after another wonderful evening's entertainment, 'How are you going to top that?' This was another of those nights. Here's to many more.
Friday 12th April 2019; Megson retuned to W C C for a second gig and played material from their new album Contradicshun -yes that's how it's spelt - as well as a selection of older material. We were very pleased to be able to welcome a group of young local musicians, Calder Youth Folk, who were attending a Wadsworth gig for the first time. They all seemed to really enjoy the show - why wouldn't they? - and we hope that they'll come back again in June for Brooks Williams or to one of the Autumn shows. Stu & Debs Hanna were on great form and genuinely seemed to be enjoying being back at Wadsworth again. You can be fairly sure that this visit won't be their last.
Saturday 4th May 2019; Square Chapel Arts Centre in Halifax was the venue for this show, where we were delighted to welcome Cara Dillon & Sam Lakeman for a duo show. They played to an audience of well over 200 and had enjoyed a quick visit to the Piece Hall before the soundcheck was completed & then had time to visit Syhiba for a curry in Sowerby Bridge before the show! A delightfully relaxed performance followed featuring material from the latest album Wanderer, as well as old favourites including Hill of Thieves and There Were Roses. A personal highlight was The Leaving Song, which is a very moving and poignant song written by Cara and is based on true stories told to her by her mother about the migrations to America from Ireland in the last century. Cara & Sam seem keen to return to Halifax again at some point to explore the district further. Here's hoping they're able to do so before too long.
On June 14th 2019, Brooks Williams, from Statesboro, Georgia, entertained an enthusiastic audience with a spectacular show featuring exceptional guitar playing, songs (including his own) from many sources and genres. He played the obligatory Statesboro Blues of course.
Prior to Brooks, we were privileged to have Jack Blackman, a fantastic guitarist from the West Midlands, play a stunning support set. Check out the videos of the show by searching Jack Blackman at Wadsworth, and/or Brooks Williams at Wadsworth on YouTube. You won't be disappointed.
The Autumn season of BGR Events got off to a flying start in September when Plum Hall opened the show for Emily Smith & Jamie McClennan.
Nick and Michelle always put on a great show, and tonight was no exception. Emily and Jamie followed on from Plum Hall and performed wonderfully, both acts providing us with another gig which emphasised the quality of musicianship and song-writing that is flourishing in Britain today. Sweetest Girl was a particular highlight for me as was the excellent a capella version of A Little Bit of Everything which they performed to close their set.
Equally impressive were Gilmore & Roberts, who played for us in October, again to a very respectful and appreciative audience of around 100. It was a varied and highly enjoyable set with many highlights.
Local pipe player Becky Taylor got proceedings underway before Katriona & Jamie with a fine set of tunes from various parts of the British Isles, which were very well received.
And our programme drew to a close with a wonderful show which began with a lovely set from Hebden's own Sarah Watson, and was followed by a fine performance from Alden, Patterson & Dashwood who are getting better and better by the day. Noel Patterson's dobro playing was superb ( I love a good dobro!) but the harmonies, musicianship and everything about them was wonderful, and the students from Calder Youth Folk (who came to the gig after performing themselves in Hebden Bridge that afternoon) all really enjoyed the event.
All in all, 2019 was another remarkable year for BGREvents, and 2020 looked likely to be another. The New Year got off to a flying start with an Independent Venue Week gig featuring Chantel McGregor and a second support slot set from Jack Blackman. The gig sold out (as expected) and, as is often the case, people travelled from far and wide to witness a special Wadsworth event.
In March Trials of Cato played a spectacular set for us, which was very well received by our sell-out crowd.
Then Covid 19 hit & everything stopped.
2021
September; Becky Taylor & Iona Lane shared the bill for our first post-Lockdowns event. We're back up and running! Fantastic to see some live music after so long!
November; The Jon Palmer Trio were next up and were very well received by our small, socially-distanced audience.
December; Christina Alden and Alex Patterson returned to Wadsworth to round off the year. Here's hoping we get back to something approaching 'normal' in 2022. A great concert which lifted the spirits.
2022
Independent Venue Week is back!!
February; Jack Kerouac's centenary was celebrated in words, music and film to much acclaim by the Wadsworth crowd on Friday 4th & on Saturday 5th Jigantics played a very varied set which included some unusual covers as well as plenty of original material. It was a brilliant gig!
March; Dan Walsh and Brooks Williams gave a masterclass in banjo and guitar to a massively appreciative (and slightly increased) audience. Henry Parker returned to Wadsworth to open the proceedings and joined Dan & Brooks for their encores, which included a great version of Bert Jansch's Black Cat Blues. This was the first time Henry & Brooks had actually played the tune together, as their original collaboration was a Lockdown Zoom thing, which is well worth finding on YouTube. Many other songs in Dan & Brooks set were being premiered during our show, which hopefully may lead to an album from the pair in due course.
April; We were finally able to welcome Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage to play their postponed pandemic gig, and it was well worth the wait. A superb show, as expected.
May; Ranagri played for the first time at Wadsworth and it was another great show. The combination of flute and harp is particularly impressive and has to be seen to be believed. Excellent percussion and great vocals and everyone went home happy, particularly as we welcomed back Plum Hall for the support slot, and they always go down well with the Wadsworth audience. Special thanks to our soundman for the night Martin Webster (ably assisted by his wife) who did a fantastic job for us.
Also in May , we welcomed Willy Porter back to Calderdale, along with Jack Blackman and used the venue at the Archway Project in Halifax. These guys had never met, but joined together for the encore at the end of the night, and it was very special. Great stuff from both artists!
Sept; Sykes Martin. Only one word; magnificent.
Oct; Daoiri Farrell. An exceptional musician and entertainer. Even better than last time? The jury's out on that one.
Nov; Katie Spencer & Ellie Gowers double-header. Two terrific performances from two wonderful performers. A great audience enjoyed a memorable evening.
Saturday Feb 16th 2019; Phil Beer with Alice Jones at Wadsworth Community Centre. Phil came back to Wadsworth for the second time in February & it was another sold-out show. On this occasion he teamed up with local performer Alice Jones who played a variety of traditional songs on her keyboard, her tenor guitar or her harmonium - a first for us at Wadsworth. Phil accompanied Alice with his violin on 'Woody' , her final song before he took over the stage and played a marvellous mixture of material from his amazing back catalogue. As usual, his relaxed & entertaining banter went down really well with the audience and he genuinely seemed to have enjoyed the gig, despite a heavy cold. The Little Feat classic, 'Willin' was amongst many highlights. A great gig.
Friday March 8th; Edgelarks. Phillip Henry and Hannah Martin made a welcome return as Edgelarks to Wadsworth and the show sold out as before! They played a number of new songs, beginning with Feather (see the video; the link is on the Past BGR Events 2019 page) ,but also played many 'standards' including Silbury Hill & The Nailmakers Strike. For many, this was one of the best Events we've hosted at Wadsworth, and we're often asked, as satisfied music-lovers leave after another wonderful evening's entertainment, 'How are you going to top that?' This was another of those nights. Here's to many more.
Friday 12th April 2019; Megson retuned to W C C for a second gig and played material from their new album Contradicshun -yes that's how it's spelt - as well as a selection of older material. We were very pleased to be able to welcome a group of young local musicians, Calder Youth Folk, who were attending a Wadsworth gig for the first time. They all seemed to really enjoy the show - why wouldn't they? - and we hope that they'll come back again in June for Brooks Williams or to one of the Autumn shows. Stu & Debs Hanna were on great form and genuinely seemed to be enjoying being back at Wadsworth again. You can be fairly sure that this visit won't be their last.
Saturday 4th May 2019; Square Chapel Arts Centre in Halifax was the venue for this show, where we were delighted to welcome Cara Dillon & Sam Lakeman for a duo show. They played to an audience of well over 200 and had enjoyed a quick visit to the Piece Hall before the soundcheck was completed & then had time to visit Syhiba for a curry in Sowerby Bridge before the show! A delightfully relaxed performance followed featuring material from the latest album Wanderer, as well as old favourites including Hill of Thieves and There Were Roses. A personal highlight was The Leaving Song, which is a very moving and poignant song written by Cara and is based on true stories told to her by her mother about the migrations to America from Ireland in the last century. Cara & Sam seem keen to return to Halifax again at some point to explore the district further. Here's hoping they're able to do so before too long.
On June 14th 2019, Brooks Williams, from Statesboro, Georgia, entertained an enthusiastic audience with a spectacular show featuring exceptional guitar playing, songs (including his own) from many sources and genres. He played the obligatory Statesboro Blues of course.
Prior to Brooks, we were privileged to have Jack Blackman, a fantastic guitarist from the West Midlands, play a stunning support set. Check out the videos of the show by searching Jack Blackman at Wadsworth, and/or Brooks Williams at Wadsworth on YouTube. You won't be disappointed.
The Autumn season of BGR Events got off to a flying start in September when Plum Hall opened the show for Emily Smith & Jamie McClennan.
Nick and Michelle always put on a great show, and tonight was no exception. Emily and Jamie followed on from Plum Hall and performed wonderfully, both acts providing us with another gig which emphasised the quality of musicianship and song-writing that is flourishing in Britain today. Sweetest Girl was a particular highlight for me as was the excellent a capella version of A Little Bit of Everything which they performed to close their set.
Equally impressive were Gilmore & Roberts, who played for us in October, again to a very respectful and appreciative audience of around 100. It was a varied and highly enjoyable set with many highlights.
Local pipe player Becky Taylor got proceedings underway before Katriona & Jamie with a fine set of tunes from various parts of the British Isles, which were very well received.
And our programme drew to a close with a wonderful show which began with a lovely set from Hebden's own Sarah Watson, and was followed by a fine performance from Alden, Patterson & Dashwood who are getting better and better by the day. Noel Patterson's dobro playing was superb ( I love a good dobro!) but the harmonies, musicianship and everything about them was wonderful, and the students from Calder Youth Folk (who came to the gig after performing themselves in Hebden Bridge that afternoon) all really enjoyed the event.
All in all, 2019 was another remarkable year for BGREvents, and 2020 looked likely to be another. The New Year got off to a flying start with an Independent Venue Week gig featuring Chantel McGregor and a second support slot set from Jack Blackman. The gig sold out (as expected) and, as is often the case, people travelled from far and wide to witness a special Wadsworth event.
In March Trials of Cato played a spectacular set for us, which was very well received by our sell-out crowd.
Then Covid 19 hit & everything stopped.
2021
September; Becky Taylor & Iona Lane shared the bill for our first post-Lockdowns event. We're back up and running! Fantastic to see some live music after so long!
November; The Jon Palmer Trio were next up and were very well received by our small, socially-distanced audience.
December; Christina Alden and Alex Patterson returned to Wadsworth to round off the year. Here's hoping we get back to something approaching 'normal' in 2022. A great concert which lifted the spirits.
2022
Independent Venue Week is back!!
February; Jack Kerouac's centenary was celebrated in words, music and film to much acclaim by the Wadsworth crowd on Friday 4th & on Saturday 5th Jigantics played a very varied set which included some unusual covers as well as plenty of original material. It was a brilliant gig!
March; Dan Walsh and Brooks Williams gave a masterclass in banjo and guitar to a massively appreciative (and slightly increased) audience. Henry Parker returned to Wadsworth to open the proceedings and joined Dan & Brooks for their encores, which included a great version of Bert Jansch's Black Cat Blues. This was the first time Henry & Brooks had actually played the tune together, as their original collaboration was a Lockdown Zoom thing, which is well worth finding on YouTube. Many other songs in Dan & Brooks set were being premiered during our show, which hopefully may lead to an album from the pair in due course.
April; We were finally able to welcome Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage to play their postponed pandemic gig, and it was well worth the wait. A superb show, as expected.
May; Ranagri played for the first time at Wadsworth and it was another great show. The combination of flute and harp is particularly impressive and has to be seen to be believed. Excellent percussion and great vocals and everyone went home happy, particularly as we welcomed back Plum Hall for the support slot, and they always go down well with the Wadsworth audience. Special thanks to our soundman for the night Martin Webster (ably assisted by his wife) who did a fantastic job for us.
Also in May , we welcomed Willy Porter back to Calderdale, along with Jack Blackman and used the venue at the Archway Project in Halifax. These guys had never met, but joined together for the encore at the end of the night, and it was very special. Great stuff from both artists!
Sept; Sykes Martin. Only one word; magnificent.
Oct; Daoiri Farrell. An exceptional musician and entertainer. Even better than last time? The jury's out on that one.
Nov; Katie Spencer & Ellie Gowers double-header. Two terrific performances from two wonderful performers. A great audience enjoyed a memorable evening.
