THE GREAT SOUND OF SUMMER (OR SUNSHINE ON GREET)
- 5 hours ago
- 9 min read
Music review from your GTSF correspondent on the front line (with the pint of Heavenly Blonde!)
Well, the Chief certainly poured sunshine on Southwell for the 19th GTSF. Over an action-packed, extra warm four-day event at Kirklington Lakes in beautiful rural Nottinghamshire, headliners such as The Proclaimers, Richard Thompson, Peat & Diesel and Elephant Sessions helped break all previous box office records.
Increasingly regarded as one of the friendliest and most successful music festivals in the Midlands, GTSF 2026 combined international quality roots, folk and acoustic artists with great family and children’s entertainment plus dancing, a beer and cider festival, fine food traders and excellent accessible facilities. This year’s festival began on the Wednesday evening when the vanguard of campers and caravanners pitched up and were warmly greeted by local acts such as The Boothill Toetappers.
GTSF really got underway on Thursday afternoon with the Local Artist Showcase featuring the dreamy voiced “countrygaze” sounds of Leah Wilcox, the soulful blues of Josie Field, bluegrass-infused harmonies from Lincoln’s Grass Roots High Roller Club and folk punk from Sleaford’s non-mods The Limewoods.
Meanwhile, on the more intimate Folk Stage, “Dolly Dylan” was a unique tribute to two great songwriters – Dolly Parton at 80 and Bob Dylan at 85. Among many strong contributions, Thomas Bradley’s Dylan covers ‘Mama You’ve Been On My Mind’ and ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ were real highlights along with fine interpretations from Winter Wilson, Terrible Parents and Becky Syson. As well as being GTSF’s children’s festival coordinator, Becky is a singer-songwriter (accompanied by the electric guitar of Chris Macguire) who performs sweet summer trip folk and always delivers positive vibes, as evidenced on her new single ‘Only Human’.
Thursday evening on the newly-extended Lake Stage welcomed Evolution of Fishermen, a London-based act surfing the latest wave of Young British Folk. Having performed at GTSF for the first time in 2025, they’re evolving well and based on releases such as ‘Days Like These’ and ‘The Moving Hand’ they’re not just a flash in the pan!
Sweet-voiced Edwina Hayes followed them, celebrating 30 years since her first solo gig in Bridlington and telling stories about her wayward father, “Bill Hayes, the thinking woman’s crumpet”. As well as performing her much-loved song ‘Pour Me A Drink’ (which the late great Nanci Griffiths covered on her 2009 album ‘The Loving Kind’), Edwina also did a strong cover of John Prine’s ‘ Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness’.
They’re tasty appetisers for the main man, the legendary folk rocker and Fairport Convention founder Richard Thompson OBE. Having had to withdraw from last year’s GTSF due to injury, “Thommo” kept his promise and walked onto the Southwell stage with his revolutionary beret and warmest grin to deliver some of the greatest songs in the folk roots canon. At 77 he’s still a remarkable solo guitarist and songwriter as revealed here on ‘1952 Vincent Black Lightning’, ‘Valerie’, the anti-despotic ‘Pharoah, and the much covered ‘Beeswing’. On one of his biggest hits, ‘I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight’, he’s joined by his wife Zara Phillips. It’s another landmark moment in the evolution of Gate To Southwell Festival.
From midday onwards on Friday, excitement began building towards GTSF 2026’s famous headliners. Before that there were warm receptions for diverse performers on the Boathouse Bar Stage such as Paul Carbuncle (with his fiery punk cover of ‘Pretty In Pink’) and Southwell’s own entertaining cello/guitar duo Terrible Parents, who surely merit greater opportunities going forward. Folk Stage highlights included the electro “dream folk” of Chris Cleverley and the English-meets-Americana folk of Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage.
While on the edgier Frontier Stage (with its new peaked cap cover) representing Nottingham’s finest there was strong beatbox loop-pedal indie folk from Warren Ireland and first-wave Jamaican ska-style from the mightily-entertaining Hoplites.
On Friday’s Lake Stage we were treated to the “stringband” bluegrass, ragtime sounds of The Hot Seats from Virginia USA, while two of the other Friday support acts were youthful and equally fascinating.
Amelia Coburn was last at GTSF with her ukelele as a solo singer-songwriter five years ago, but tonight she returned with her cool band, her distinctive brand of Goth Folk and addictively strong songs such as ‘Something Wild’ and ‘Dublin Serenade’ from her excellent ‘Between The Moon And The Milkman’ album. Keston Cobblers Club brought their sunny brassy folk-pop sounds to both the Lake and Frontier stages. Tracks like ‘Almost Home’ and ‘Another Summer’ already feel like sing-a-long classics and, late night, they also had everyone dancing to ‘Jupiter’ and their fabulous tuba-powered cover of Talking Heads’ ‘This Must Be The Place’.
The Proclaimers attracted one of the biggest crowds Gate To Southwell has ever seen in its history. Saltires, kilts and Craig & Charlie cut-out cardboard masks were very much in evidence as the identical twins took the stage, almost forty years on from their breakthrough debut album ‘This Is The Story’.
Naturally all the massive hits were here – ‘Letter From America’, ‘I’m On My Way’ and of course ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’ – plus fiery classics like ‘Cap In Hand’, the more recent and bitter blame-culture anthem ‘Dentures Out’ (“blame the Jocks and blame the Paddys, blame the scourge of absent daddies…”) and the strong, thoughtful new single ‘You May Offend’. Inevitably, there was a fantastic vocal audience reception for one of the greatest of all love songs, ‘Sunshine On Leith’. “As long as the Chief puts sunshine on Leith…”.
Highlights of Saturday afternoon included the excellent alt-country of True Foxes from Cornwall, the traditional folk partnership Bryony Griffith & Alice Jones, proper old school musicians and performers The Hunch led by Michael Doonan and his uillean pipes, and those piratical self-styled reprobates and agitators Blackbeard’s Tea Party who urged us to ‘Stand Up Now’ (and appropriately delivered a rowdy late night ceilidh on the Folk Stage).
The “prolific collaborator”, great songwriter and skilled guitarist Kris Drever (Lau, Spell Songs etc) appeared alongside New Mexico’s Cahalen Morrison, a mandolin/banjoman who’s now based in Glasgow; this is a special warm partnership, and their voices work beautifully together supporting Drever’s recent radical call to “bring back hanging…around…with my friends".
Saturday on the main stage was always going to be populated with singular folk voices. Show of Hands’ Steve Knightley appeared with his Winter Yards Band, apparently named after the storage spaces used by travelling fairground workers out of season; ‘The Ride’, ‘Exile’ and ‘Remember This Kiss’ are songs charged with emotion, and the sense of loss and passing time that inhabits the best folk music.
In vocal contrast Riognach Connolly sits centre stage of Honeyfeet, like the fierce matriarch of a crime family, and belts out powerful tracks like ‘Sinner’ , ‘Demons’ and ‘Whatever You Do’ over a brass-funk-meets-folk soundtrack. She’s got one of the most powerful, sweetest and scariest voices in contemporary music.
Then came Peat & Diesel, the “Hebridean Pogues” led by Innes on accordion, with Uilly on drums and featuring the granite vocals and hard guitar of Boydie MacLeod. Peppered with what sounded like Gaelic expletives, Boydie’s voice is a unique weapon in Celtic folk rock music. They continue to build on their cult status, returning to GTSF triumphantly after four years, delivering a rapturously received set that includes ‘Western Isles’, ‘Brandy In The Airidh’, ‘Callum Dan’s Transit Van’ and, a typically local-inspired new track, ‘01851’, which celebrates the dialling code for their home island. With references to their favourite Stornaway businesses such as Lewis Builders and Charlie Barley’s, the repeated chorus seems to be “it’s 01851 if you want to get hold of a Lewis man”. (Even if it’s not a big UK hit it’s bound to be useful to needy residents outside Harris and Lewis.)
There’s a great community spirt at the Gate To Southwell Festival. Based on farmland midway between Newark on Trent and Mansfield, not for profit and run by volunteers, it’s surrounded by beautiful countryside and woodland. Walking round the site you’re greeted by warm smiles from festival goers and stewards of all ages and there’s plenty happening in various corners of the event. In the Kids & Family area there’s outdoor games, the campfire circle, festival fairies, and even a baby chillout zone. Plus there’s Mark Fraser, the legendary storyteller, and the fantastic juggler, entertainer and clown Dan The Hat; this man is truly hilarious and can sculpt dogs out of balloons too.
Elsewhere, there are food-sellers and traders (including the soundtrack generated from Chisel Monkey’s cigar box guitars stall) plus folk dance shows from travelling sides such as Northumberland’s Hadrian Clog and Norwich’s Golden Star.
Special mention too for diverse acts such as young jazz/bluesman Jack Boyd and his sharp looking swing band The Bold Rileys, Holly Holden infusing her indie pop with the Latin sounds of a salsa summer and Ireland’s Grainne Hunt with her lovely voice and emotional storytelling on songs like ‘Magnet’. Not forgetting Alex Akiba, a young fingerstyle guitarist and soft-voiced singer-songwriter with distant echoes of Nick Drake, and Sticky Bones Jones, a one-man bluegrass band from the Derbyshire Dales with strong songs and the personality to match.
GTSF 2026 certainly delivered on the fruits of the festival’s new connection with the East Coast Music Association of Canada. Across the weekend there were top drawer performances by seven magnificent artists such as the French Celtic folk band Aboiteau and three harmonious double acts in Campbell & Johnston, Rachel Davis & Darren McMullen and Matthew Byrne & Sherman Downey. We’ve all loved great Canadian songwriting and storytelling over the years - from Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen to Neil Young and Gordon Lightfoot and the McGarrigles through to Ron Sexsmith – and, lyrically, there’s definitely a down-to-earth focus on the important things in life such as love and family and the struggles of everyday living.
Old Man Luedecke, who’s actually relatively young and very funny, delivers banjo-driven creations like ‘I Quit My Job’, ‘My Status Is The Baddest’ and ‘The Early Days’ which reflects on the realistic ups and downs of parenting: “Look forward to the evening, when the monkeys go to bed…” Similarly, fast rising folk star Emilea May evokes the spirit of Joni and even another Canadian Alanis Morissette with emotional songs like ‘Good Mother’ and ‘Logical’. While the Newfoundland band Rum Ragged might look like rough outlaws at first glance, they’re proud of their roots and sing strong upbeat songs about tough living and loving and surviving desperate backgrounds: “we’re dirt poor in tatters and rags, we’re dirt poor but we’re not dirt bags”. Respect for all these talented East Coast Canadians and all they contributed to the community-spirit of this festival.
To be frank, there’s so much going on over the long weekend that it’s impossible to catch everyone, but you still pick up snippets and warm receptions for Ranagri’s distinct folk sounds featuring Eliza Marshall’s flute and Eleanor Dunsdon’s harp, the organic rhythms of Caraway, Celtic Kiwi multi-instrumentalist Rennie Pearson, the Carole King-inspired Laura Wyatt, positive energy from Bradford’s Common Culture (even if ‘It’s Going To Work Out’ has, they admit, ‘a miserable chorus’), the lovely natural harmonies and guitar-meets-harmonium magic of Newcastle’s Watersmeet and Southwell festival regulars Reuben And The Bridge.
If anyone was feeling remotely festival weary after three and a half hot and humid days, spirits were definitely lifted by the arrival of Black Umfolosi on Sunday evening. Great showmen and women from Zimbabwe, their harmonies, rhythms, stomping and leaping, won the audience over even before they started their famous gumboot dancing. Positive vibes, powerful a cappella messages of unity and hope, and plenty of audience participation on tracks like ‘Imbube’ (known worldwide as ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’), ‘Summertime’ and the South African national anthem ‘Nkosi Sikelela’.
Perhaps, given Black Umfolosi's role as ambassadors for African tourism and the prevalence of breeding herds around the Black Umfolosi river, it made total sense to follow them with the Highland electronica-meets-trad-dance sounds of Elephant Sessions. While the sound, staging and musical performances of all the artists across the festival was of an exceptionally high standard these four guys from Inverness took it to a new , higher level. Building on their award-winning performances at Celtic Connections and their acclaimed albums ‘What Makes You’ and ‘The Elusive Highland Beauty’, the Elephants had everyone dancing and received an incredible response to their trancelike indie techno folk. The perfect end to a fine festival.
“It’s been a great year in terms of artists, weather, community spirit and Gate To Southwell’s largest audience,” said festival director Mike Kirrage. “So many highlights, with artists receiving standing ovations everywhere you looked, but we’re particularly pleased the partnership with The East Coast Music Association of Canada was so well received. We'd like to thank all our supporters, volunteer stewards and site crew who made it such a memorable event.”
So, in the words of The Proclaimers, GTSF 2026…”thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you”.
Your GTSF correspondent on the front line (with the pint of Heavenly Blonde)!
****Thanks also to the photographers: Alan Beastall, Jim Connolly, Kris Worsley, and Phil Richards*****
