It may be half a year away but Early Bird tickets are on sale and the first wave of music stars has already been announced for next summer’s Gate To Southwell Festival. Running from Thursday June 6th to Sunday June 9th 2019, it’s one of the UK’s premier acoustic, roots and folk music events, featuring well-established acts and exciting new artists from across the music world.
Scotland’s Skipinnish already rank among the most powerful and entertaining bands on the Celtic music scene while Sam Kelly & The Lost Boys are one of the most exciting folk-meets-rock-meets blues groups in Britain today. Alongside the brilliant and beautiful harmonies of Netherland’s SYA (Suddenly Years Align), there’ll be the fine acoustic pop-rock of Morrissey & Marshall, top piratical dance band Blackbeard’s Tea Party, plus talented young “supergroup” The Tweed Project, featuring Southwell favourites Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar with BBC Folk Award winners Josie Duncan and Pablo Lafuente.
The Gate To Southwell festival has received great responses to previous tribute events such as Dylan@75 and the Summer Of Love celebration. June 2019’s Saturday concert will feature an all-star Woodstock collaboration to mark 50 years since the pivotal peace and music festival. Plus the immensely talented Sunjay will appear on Sunday to mark the 60th anniversary of Buddy Holly’s death by reprising his acclaimed role in the successful travelling show, Buddy Holly & The Cricketers.
Leicester singer-songwriter and activist Grace Petrie will return to the festival for 2019, having released her highly-acclaimed ‘Queer As Folk’ eighth album, as will the immensely talented and original Irish performers Ranagri. And, having had to miss the 2018 festival through illness, we’re delighted that one of Edinburgh’s finest musical sons Ross Wilson – aka Blue Rose Code – will also be on the bill next June.
Adding to Southwell’s typically eclectic wave of names, there’s the contemporary folk of the Bird In The Belly collective, the gypsy Hot Club jazz of Nottingham’s Maniere Des Bohemiens while on the other there’s the bizarrely brilliant, madly entertaining John Otway & Wild Willy Barrett, over forty years on from their cult solo hit ‘Really Free’. Throw into the mix French-born folksinger Flossie Malavialle and lovable Geordie singer-songwriter-kids-entertainer Keith Donnelly and, with many more acts to be announced, the early festival forecast looks extremely bright.
With excellent children’s entertainment and camping facilities, in a beautiful Nottinghamshire location, there’ll also be dance sides from all over the UK, a beer and cider festival, a craft fair plus many other special family events.
2019 will be the 13th annual gathering and previous line-ups have included big names such as Eliza Carthy, Billy Bragg, Bellowhead, Jools Holland, Hayseed Dixie, Kate Rusby and Lindisfarne. As the Irish singer Cara Dillon said, the 2018 festival was “incredible, just the right size, you can feel the energy”.
With many more acts for 2019 still to be announced, Early Bird tickets are on sale via www.gtsf.uk
