Live Reviews Review by Hector Christie with photographs by Phil Carter Fylde Folk


Festival Fleetwood, Lancashire 2 – 4 September, 2011


Christine & Alan Bell Calan • Photos by Roger Liptrot


here are many festivals to choose from in the UK in this, the 21st Century. No one can go to them all, so a degree of selectivity is necessary. I have a low boredom threshold, which was forced lower in the role of organiser for a number of years. Nowadays, I more often than not sample 20 minutes or so of someone’s set as the average 45 minutes fails to hold me unless it’s something very special, and my selectivity has developed to a degree where I attend only a couple of events a year ( and even that’s recently gone up by one)! My choices are governed by a number of things which have little to do with proximity or price. By that I mean that a festival may be on my doorstep, but if it doesn’t tick a huge number of boxes I won’t go, whereas I’ll happily travel to the other end of the country, or out of it altogether, if the event appeals to me. Whilst the most unusual event I’ve been to recently was a festival in Arbo, Galicia, a heady mix of gastronomy (some would say gluttony!) and music, my most consistent musical destination is the Fylde festival.


T


I first attended Fylde in 1978 with two young kids in tow, and remember it well as a time when money did dominate, or rather the lack of it, because we couldn’t afford to buy tickets for everything. I remember my relief (and pride at the taste of my offspring) when The Watersons in concert were unanimously selected as the one event we could afford to attend. Although not an attendee from that year on, I have made the trip many times, for reasons that never falter, and certainly apply to the festival in 2011.


Uppermost among my reasons is the location. Fylde is derived from the Saxon “Gfilde” which was used to describe the flat plain which encompasses Fleetwood, Blackpool and Lytham St Annes, and the festival has always been held in the fishing port of Fleetwood (which celebrated its 175th anniversary in 2011).


The Living Tradition - Page 58


Ahhh - location, location, location. Fleetwood is one of my favourite environments because of its location. The main venue, the Marine Hall, is the focal point of the festival and sits proudly on a beautiful esplanade overlooked by the picturesque Mount, and backed by spectacular views of Morecambe Bay. It’s been a working port (just how frenetically busy you realise by looking at old photographs in its museum), and there are numerous reminders of those days. They include the exquisite seafront statue of a small family waving to the dad’s boat; the surprise when you encounter a couple of on-land lighthouses planted firmly a street apart, whilst the trams have a charm located in an earlier age. If I find some part of the festival fare unappealing, I can always find alternative pursuits, and for me the aesthetic appeal of the place is complemented by one of the best indoor markets I’ve seen, and a plethora of cafes and restaurants, whose prices never fail to stun my London friends by their reasonableness. (It’s a sure sign of something when you realise that pubs no longer play any part in a review and that you’re reflecting instead on the price of mushy peas!)


I enjoy the hidden skills that go, not just in the selection of artistes on a bill, but how they’ve been programmed. At Fylde it’s not about flavour of the month artistes, bunging on “big names”, or appeasing local acts by giving them coveted slots on a bill that perhaps they’re not up to. Certainly Fylde has offered opportunities to many, but when you see, for instance, Ben and Joe Broughton on a bill, it’s because they deserve to be there. The programme usually gets it right by putting together a programme where proper juxtapositions will bring out the best in all the acts, and there won’t be a need for too radical, jarring “gear changes”.


An important factor is venue. It’s also important to point out that I didn’t set out to enumerate things in this way, and that they shouldn’t be read as a prescriptive list - I’m simply reflecting on those things that, when I sat down to consider the event, I realised were crucial to my enjoyment. The Gas workers Club venue has the feel of something you’d encounter on the stereotypical Northern Comedy circuit. For afternoon events it has an informality that breaks down reserve and inspires camaraderie between everyone whether artistes or audience,


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68