Old friends Tom McConville and Tony Wilson played as a duo in the 1970s, but it wasn’t until they bumped into each other at the 2009 Whitby Festival in the summer of 2009 that they decided to work together again.
A frequent guest at EFC for over forty years, award-winning fiddle player and singer Tom McConville makes a most welcome return tonight. Tom was BBC Radio 2's Folk Musician of the Year in 2009 and is internationally renowned for his fiery, heart-stopping performances, from fast rhythmic dance tunes to beautiful slow airs, and great singing, humour and style. Having worked with Stephane Grappelli, Barbara Dickson, Lindisfarne, Richard Thompson and many others, Tom is the most original fiddle player in the UK, blending traditional music from Tyneside with Irish, American and Scottish influences to create a sound that has elements of jazz, folk, bluegrass and classical music.
Tony Wilson was born in South Shields and is a well-regarded singer, guitarist, ukulele and banjo player, and, for the last twenty years, a first class storyteller. Annual story-telling tours take him around the UK, South America and Europe, as well as China and Korea. Since 1999 he has visited almost 2 000 schools.
Together, Tom and Tony present an entertaining, rich and varied collection of music and song that they have absorbed, developed and written during their long and varied careers, bringing together all of their skills and expertise to display a refreshingly dynamic and unique take on folk music old and new.
After success with their Winter Tales tours, in 2014 they toured schools with Songs of The Great War, a collection of music, stories and reminiscences, and since 2015 they’ve toured as a musical duo. Tonight we'll have music from Ireland, Scotland and America and traditional, contemporary and original songs from all over the world.
So come in, sit down, get a drink and expect to be amazed, amused and entertained by two of the North-East of England's finest sons.
WEBSITE
http://www.tommcconville.co.uk/index.html
YOUTUBE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW2aJ9R8rkA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9hBJNa_Fq0