midsummer Drone at Sherwood

The first Children of the Drone session in over a month yesterday evening. Long overdue! This one was out in the barn next to Vaughan's cottage in Sherwood Forest.


(left to right) Andi, Keith, Mick, James S, Henry
It was a gorgeous midsummer evening, still light until well into the second half of the session. Andi, who's sung with us at St. Stephens church, came along, also Mick's Slovakian percussionist friend Igor who immediately slotted into the vibe, supplementing Henry's drumming perfectly (they swapped roles at one point, Igor getting behind Henry's kit). Unfortunately, the first piece, probably about half an hour of beautiful, delicate string-y exploration, did not get recorded - one of those 'legendary' pieces which got away. Oh well, sometimes you have to let this go. I remember thinking several times during that piece, "This is just too nice...I really should check that I haven't left the MiniDisc recorder on 'pause'" (which I had), but not wanting to get up and check lest I disrupt the fragile atmosphere supporting the music.

At the beginning of the first recorded piece you can hear Vaughan pointing out a hummingbird hawk-moth to John, which was hovering just outside the barn. Another piece ends with us trailing off and the sounds seguing nicely into the drone of an aircraft passing overhead.

James S - khamak, didgeridoo, saz, percussion, voice
Vaughan - zither, acoustic guitar, mandolin, percussion(?), voice
John - acoustic guitar, charango, acoustic bass guitar, voice, whistles, mandola(?), percussion(?)
Henry - percussion
Keith - electric guitar, acoustic bass guitar, percussion(?)
Andi - voice
Mick - electric guitar, acoustic bass guitar
Igor - percussion
me - saz, balalaika, percussion

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