Cannings Court again

As with the last few years, I headed off to Dorset a couple of days before John and Heather's annual charity barndance at Cannings Court, to help with the set-up, etc. (the morning after that last Drone session)

As always, Red Dog Green Dog played (this time it was Jim who couldn't make it, having sliced part of his knuckle off in a freak washing-up accident in Paris). The evening's other act was Cliff Stapleton (hurdy-gurdy) and Andy Bard (bagpipes), who've teamed up since the demise of Cliff's band Primaevil. It was pretty much all original material all evening, and a barnful of happily dancing people, despite the appalling rain and mud outside.

We got a bit of a sunshine earlier that afternoon, when I got into a bit of jamming with Ewan (clarinet), who I met at Small World Festival earlier this summer (part of Planetman and I Jah Mo's bands) and then again (in zebra costume and gold-fringed ruff) at the Secret Garden Party. He's studying music somewhere in London, big on his theory, but very keen to learn folk tunes and just jam.

There was also a brief indoor percussion and mbira jam with Stef, Andy and Cliff before festivities began.

I recorded the RDGD set as usual, but Joel asked me not to make it public this year (he's got a new gurdy, different setup, so wasn't hitting all the notes he wanted to). Andy's going to make good use of the discs, though (analysing Mike's piping technique).


RDGD at Saint Chartier earlier this summer
After the RDGD set, an enthusiastic Ewan rounded up musicians to keep the session going. I was fading rapidly at this point (despite not having participated in the dancing), wandered back to my tent to the the distant sound of a saxophone-led bouree...

Cycling back to Sherborne station the next day on a borrowed, undersized, bright yellow ladies' bike (with my saz on my back and all my gear bungeed on the carrier), I got caught up in a wave of competitive lycra-clad cyclists - part of the "UK Ironman Triathlon". As a result, I found myself being cheered along a good part of the eight miles or so by bemused local residents who'd come out to watch.