The gig on the Reaper was just great and also gave us the opportunity to get some nice promo shots. The setting was just stunning with such a beautiful evening, playing on a fine historic ship with the backdrop of an amazing sunset over Oban Bay.

The previous evening Pigtown Fling joined forces with the Ceilidh Bandidos to play at a private function. This was a ceilidh for marine biologists from all over Europe. From the very beginning, while playing unplugged, the audience thoroughly enjoyed the music and when it was time for dancing they were all on the dancefloor for the rest of the evening.

With the members of Pigtown Fling involved in other projects, this promises to be a fruitful time for the band and its members.

Next up for the band is a return to Kames to Play at the Kames Hotel, the scene of many good times last year. The staff and locals are always friendly and it can get quite wild at times, but that all adds to an entertaining time. We may see the return of the “breakdancing” displays, which made for an alternative way of expressing yourself to traditional music, but each to their own.

We will be playing on the Saturday night and we will also be inviting other local players to join us on the Sunday afternoon for a traditional session. Hopefully the weather will be good enough to play outside, but whatever the weather, I’m sure our trips to Kames will be as entertaining as ever.

The following Satuday Pigtown Fling will play at the Puffer Bar on the little island of Easdale to celebrate the first birthday of the new ownership of the bar. I’ve had many fine times on Easdale and in the Puffer and it’s always good to be back, and even better to be there playing with the band.

June comes to a close with myself and Stephen travelling to Dent Folk Festival in Cumbria to play on the Friday night and over the whole weekend. Unfortunately Chris is not able to join us for this one. We will be playing fast and furious tunes on the Friday night in the beer tent, just before one of our old friends, Jon Brindley, takes to the stage. Jon was with us on our first trip to Slovenia and by sheer coincidence is on the same bill as us.

On the Saturday we will be inviting players to join us for a traditional session, where we will be joined by Colin Blakey and others. There may also be some pipes and drums over the weekend, so it promises to be an eventful time.

The following months have a lot in store for the band, particularly in August, when Pigtown Fling visit Brittany for a mini tour. Along with this are more trips to Kames and no doubt more opportunities will present themselves. We are also hoping to start recording our first album this year, and with the other projects we are all involved in, it promises to be an exciting time for Pigtown Fling.

The trip started with Stephen leaving his home on the Isle of Seil at 4.30am in his motorhome to pick up Rab in Oban at 5am, then on to pick up the other carnival band members, Rob Welsh from Lochwinnoch, and Sara Ann Cull from Glasgow. A non-stop 48 hour drive through 9 countries then ensued. When we finally arrived in Ptuj, carnival was already underway. We had enough time to grab a few precious hours of sleep before we introduced ourselves to carnival for the second time.

We were invited back after their last successful trip 2 years ago by Peter Vesenjak, owner of Hotel Mitra, to bring the Scottish connection back to the town. Castle Ptuj, in the centre of town, was once owned by the Clan Leslie, and Peter wanted to bring a taste of Scotland back to the town by creating a special “Scottish Week”. Each night Pigtown Fling would introduce different aspects of Scottish music and dance to the people of Ptuj, whether it be highland dance demonstrations, pipes and drums, or a full blown ceilidh, held in the main suite of the hotel. We even played for a mothers and toddlers group, run by our event organiser Simona Gaiser, who has taken time out of work to be a mother to little Ela.

Hotel Mitra had previously undergone a massive expansion last year and had only just been re-opened, so carnival and “Scottish Week” were seen as the perfect way to mark a new era for the hotel. The band were asked to bring some Scottish beer for the weeks festivites, so the guests could get more of a “taste” for Scotland and its culture. This was kindly provided by the Islay Brewery. 180 bottles of different varieties of ale were driven halfway across Europe, and the guests of Mitra thoroughly enjoyed the experience, with the bottles going rapidly from the bar.

The week’s festivities were such a success, plans are already underway for next year, where a further expanded and refined programme will be introduced. This could include an introduction to a Burns Night or St Andrews Night, with the band introducing and demonstrating different aspects of Scottish culture and social events, from music and dance to food and drink.

Ten gigs in 6 days marked a very busy time for Pigtown Fling, who are about to embark on another busy season, with regular gigs throughout Argyll and the islands, plus a tour of Brittany in August. A previous visit last year to the Friends of Jean Langlais Festival in La Fontenelle proved such a success we have been asked to play more in the area this year with 4 gigs planned so far, plus a day of teaching celtic music to local people.

Every day of Scottish Week, Stephen created and updated a blog for this website, which can still be viewed here. This year the site is due for expansion, to not only be the web presence for Pigtown Fling, but for many other bands and music and dance projects that are ongoing in the area.

The band also are planning to record an album this year so our brand of music can leave a lasting impression on the different people and cultures we encounter.

The Journey

My journey there is going to be just plain crazy. But if I was ever to pick a way of getting anywhere, it would be the stupid way! I’m going on holiday to the Algrave, Portugal, on the 1st of July, coming back on the 16th, landing in Eat Midlands Airport at hopefully aroung 4am, driving up to Glasgow because I’m sharing the driving (it’s only fair), then getting picked up and driving all the way back down again to Bournemouth (I think), getting on a ferry to St Malo, and driving the 30 odd miles to La Fontenelle!

The Festival

The last I heard we were not going to be playing in the local church because the local priest said if we weren’t going to be playing any church related music, then we wouldn’t be suitable to play in a church. Fair enough. But I looked up the festival related website and we’re still billed to play there. I’ve played in a church once before, at a friend’s wedding, but this is another thing altogether. This festival has classically trained choirs and church organists and the like playing at it, and this wee band from Argyll are going to be the main end of festival entertainment. Quite nervous thinking about it. But I’m sure we will get our music across and our collective vibe will win the day.

The festival organisers asked us for a programme of music that we planned to play, something I have never had to come up with before. I’ve maybe used set lists, but never a set programme before.

Really looking forward to it all though. I may well be completely jaked by the time I get there, but at least I’ll be tanned and fabulous!

We got there around 6 so we had enough time to familiarise ourselves with the surroundings and take our time sizing up what we’d need for PA etc.

Before the gig we sat and had a light refreshment in the beer garden and had a bit to eat. Then we set up the gear and got ready to go.

The Gig

I noticed we should be in for a good night when I saw a small crowd coming in to listen to us.

We tested the water by starting the gig with some good ol Scottish tunes and it went down very well. And it just got better from there. The crowd were great and were appreciative and up for whatever we chose to play.

It had been a day filled with glorious sunshine so a lot of the younger crowd had apparently been at various barbecues, so that meant an older crowd at the start, then all the young ones piled in.

Instantly we were treated to some fine improvised dancing, including a couple of breakdancers. Definitely a first! They were all right up for it and they seemed to really enjoy themselves.

Once the gig had finished we packed all the gear away and we declined the request to join some of the locals and play at a party, so we played a small unplugged set at the bar, knowing our beds were only moments away should we need them.

The Midgies!

When the bar closed Chris went to her bed, leaving me and Stephen to go down to the slipway with a bottle of whisky, a mandolin and a mandola for some alfresco tunes.

As hard as we tried the midgies got the better of us. We tried to ignore them. We even tried in our most desperate time using some of the whisky as lotion to calm the bites down! We did manage a few tunes and a few drams, but we had to concede and head back to the hotel. I thought by 2am the midgies would be in their beds but no way!

The Session

Next morning Chris met some of her family and went sailing while me and Stephen nursed our heads and midge related injuries, went for a walk and headed back to the hotel to exchange some tunes, all before a HUGE lunch.

We then decided to get the session going by playing outside in the beer garden, where we were to be joined by some local fiddlers. Eventually the rain started and we moved inside and continued the session by playing some fine Scottish tunes.

As our first official gig as a trio I think it was a great success. The staff and owners of the Kames Hotel were very friendly, welcoming, generous and appreciative, and we are all looking forward to visiting them again on Saturday, 2nd of August.

Pigtown Fling now has a new member!

We are delighted to welcome Christine Beveridge to join us on our travels into music and beyond.

Chris comes from a variety of places (?) including Yorkshire and now stays in Taynuilt, Argyll.

She plays among other things fiddle, concertina and clarsach. No doubt more instrumentation will appear through time but that’s all she’s telling us about for the moment.

Chris’s fine playing was first witnessed by me at one of the sessions in Oban where she played fiddle and concertina. It was noticed very quickly her aptitude for picking up new tunes and playing them as well as anyone else just after hearing them for the first time.

(I still don’t know how she does it. I’ve been looking for wires and other tell-tale signs of robotics but nothing yet)

Then she brought along her clarsach and it was then we knew we had to snap her up before someone else did!

Anyway

Chris brings another new and exciting dimension to our already wide variety of sounds and textures.

The new line up and instrumentation now goes like this:

Stephen McNally: Border pipes, gaita, whistles, mandolin, vocals

Robert Woods: Guitar, mandola, banjo (hopefully), harmonica (ever so slightly), vocals

Christine Beveridge: Fiddle, clarsach, concertina

We have been working on new material and hopefully will have something recorded quite soon to put on site and on to demos to send out to all you lucky people.

We have also invited Chris to join us on what will hopefully be a mini tour of southern England and Brittany at around the Easter holidays 2008.

Only one booking as yet but we hope we will add to this and get a mini tour from our trip.

Also joining us will be Rob Welsh, who helped make our carnival trip in February so memorable.

I doubt it will be as wild as our trip to Slovenia but you never know!

That was one AMAZIN trip! Me and Stephen, 3,000 miles in a motorhome with 2 guys I’d never met before going through Scotland, England, France, Belgium, 12 miles of Holland, the WHOLE of Germany, Austria then Slovenia. We left Oban on Monday at 1pm, picked up Rob Welsh (piper, percussionist & spoon dancer – long story) from Lochwinnoch, then picked up Jon Brindley (singer/songwriter, guitarist, fiddle player, pianist, all round talented git) from Wigan.

We drove to Dover and had our first real tune. One of the guys asked about rehearsals and was told by me and Stephen ‘No chance. Rehearsals not allowed’. So we drove all the way. Each takin turns o drivin 4 hrs. When not drivin we tried to get some kip. Once in France that was it – 800 miles non-stop apart from eating and calls of nature breaks – and wee arrived in Ptuj on Wednesday at 9pm. Dumped our stuff and went straight to the main 3,000 capacity carnival tent where we met lots of new friends – the wonderful Simona, with her partner Tomaz, along with Stasa , Dani, Silvo and Silva. I was immediately accosted by Tomaz and Silvo who FORCED me drink about 15 Cuba Libres. It was terrible, honest.

After about 20 mins I looked round and saw the main stage in the tent. I then demanded that Simona organise for us to play there, and I wouldn’t be happy til it happened.

Tomaz said to me ’3 rules to carnival. 1. cheat 2. drink 3. fight in that order.

Her older brother Silvo said ‘NO! one rule for carnival – FIGHT! Make good fight! Enjoy fight! If you no enjoy fight, you come to me!

To which I said ‘no problem Silvo – you are now my friend’

The tent closed at about 3 and we then went to the main local night club called Super League til 6am. had 6 hrs sleep (the longest sleep I had the whole time) then all week we got our kilts on and played pipes and drums round all the local shops. The first shop we went into was this photography place so my mate could pick up a disk wi photos on it. We went in playin Scottish reels. When we stopped they all gave us a round of applause and said ‘you will drink viljamovka!’ A pear spirit which is very tasty. Got a bottle in the house. And it was the same everywhere. Couldn’t escape the bevy. The 2nd place we went to was a quaint establishment called Old Irish Pub! Superb. We went in playin and the gut poured us lots of Guiness. So by noon we were already quite drunk and it was like that every day.

Our days consisted of:

gettin up about 11

playin pipes and drums in the afternoon and gettin steamin

playin at the town hall on a stage in the main square or

playin in the big local shoppin centre where our job was to follow women around and play pipes and drums at them. Followin them up escalators, in shops. Hilarious. Any wary lookin ladies were promptly surrounded by hairy drunk Scotsmen and bombarded wi jigs and reels.

playin at the Hotel Mitra where we played for our b&b

played at the main tent twice

then stayed at the tent til it closed then Super League til 6am

then bed

then start all over again

We also appeared in the national press where they gave us a really nice write up (in Slovenian) and get this……

WE APPEARED LIVE ON SLOVENIAN NATIONAL TELEVISION!

That was weird but good fun.

One night when playin in the hotel I said to the audience ‘this isn’t about us over here and you over there, you’re meant to join in. If you can sing a song the whole way thru, we’ll back you up’.

To that a girl asked ‘Do you know Country Roads?’

‘Yes – sing it then’

Then the whole place started singin that bloody song in Slovenian. Weird!

Then Jon sang a few of his trademark songs, such as ‘I want to drink your blood’ sung in a Bela Lugosi kinda way, and Escape from Alcatraz, which was also very silly.

Another night in the hotel I was sittin playin and I looked up and all the seats were taken. I looked up again a wee while later and there were people standin round the seated punters. I looked up again a wee while later and there were people all the way up the stairs sittin watchin us. Great.

At the tent nearly all Slovenia’s top pop stars were there (oooo!) and we met most of them including this saucy wee thing in a catsuit. Cant remember her name. Me and the other dudes went right to the front of the stage and made various gesticulations at her. Great fun. All this plus one of Serbia’s finest gypsy brass bands. Absolutley tremendous. Never danced so much in my life.

So we did all this for a week solid. before we left we went to the local winery and I picked up 6 bottles of Slovenian champagne, a free bottle of white wine and a bottle of viljamovka. All for about £30. Simona’s folks have their own vineyard and they presented us with 2 litres of their wine and a bottle of Slivovic (schnapps) (rocket fuel). One night we were invited to Simona’s folks house for dinner where we stuffed ourselves wi goulash and home brewed wine and slivovic. When waitin to leav Silvo came up and said ‘Hey! More wine!’ and while waitin to leav I must’ve drank a bottle in about 5 mins. Steamin again.

The worst night was the night before we left cos I had to come off the booze, which wasn’t easy. I then made the mistake of drinkin loadsda coffee and stayed awake shakin most of the night.

When we were leavin all the women in the hotel were very upset and were all crying! And we were ordered to come back next year which we are already planning.

We passed the 3,000 mile mark while crossing the border back into Scotland. Took me 2 weeks to recover but I still have some Slovenian champagne, viljamovka and slivovic, photos, videos and loads of ridiculous memories to keep me going til NEXT YEAR!