Its a been a busy Autumn so far! Last night I played at CAT for the students on the Futuring Module. It was a good one! I was joined by Nic on double bass, Spiv on sax, and Ben on trumpet. they both played percussion too in some songs.

I have quite a few more gigs coming up between now and Christmas:

10.11.23 - Worldwide Welshman (solo show), supporting Tommy Mills and Pedro at the Mid-Wales Arts Centre, Caersws

11.11.23 - Lo-fi Jones / Tacla yn Neuadd Llangywer, Ger Y Bala

17.11.23 - Worldwide Welshman / Lo-fi Jones / Yasmin Latkowski at Saith Seren, Wrecsam

23.11.23 - Worldwide Welshman / Pete The Temp, Bank Vault, Aberystwyth

24.11.23 - Worldwide Welshman / Pete The Temp at The Magic Lantern Cinema, Tywyn

25.11.23 - Worldwide Welshman / Pete The Temp yn Ysgol Bro Hyddgen, Machynlleth, fel rhan o gynhadledd/gyfarfod genedlaethol XR Cymru / XR Cymru's nationa gathering!

9.12.23 - Worldwide Welshman in Brunel Goods Shed, Stroud!!

16.12.23 - Worldwide Welshman Christmas Party in the Bank Vault, Aberystwyth

On the 1st of November, I released a new version of "Waltz With Me Darling" recorded in January this year. It features Ailsa Mair, The Fairytale Cellist on cello and vocals, and Nicolas Davalan on double bass, and was recorded, mixed and mastered by Mike West at Our Lady Studio, Borth.

It is a love song for all those trapped in a situation of conflict or fear.

If you feel like it, you’re welcome to sing the song in folk clubs and open mic nights. 
Here are the chords & lyrics:


E             C#m           A          B  
Waltz with me darling waltz with me my love,
E             C#m             A          B 
waltz with me sweetheart we're floating above
C#m        G#m          A          E
all of the death and destruction below, if
C#m          G#m       A             B        B7
we were to fall and die no one would know


waltz with my darling waltz with me my girl, lets
dance to the airport and fly round the world
you laugh but I'm serious, one of these days,
we'll earn enough to escape from this place

E              C#m        A    B
leave all this carnage and violence,
defy all those who wish to silence us


Hide with me darling hide with me my dear,
don't talk to loud or they might overhear,
all of the secrets my heart says to you  
when will they leave us to live as we choose?

Run with me darling, lets set ourselves free
leave our fraught, dissected community
one of these days we'll be happy again
away from this tragedy, hardship and pain

B7          B7            
but my love how could we

leave our community burning,
only the memories returning, if we
left all this carnage and violence,
who'd stand up to those who silence
us

The song was originally written in the summer of 2014, when bombs rained down on Gaza and Aleppo (there’s an earlier version on my first CD, “The World if like a crazy goat”, released in 2018).
We decided to re-record it in January in response to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In gigs, I often dedicate this song to refugees like my grandmother, Bella Kerridge, who came to the UK from Bessarabia in Eastern Europe to escape the anti-Jewish programs.
The characters in the song could be living under any conflict or oppressive regime. The war, the trauma, the violence moves around. Human life is not valued as it should be. Racism and colonialism persist.
 
In a recent CAT lecture, Dr Leon Sealey-Huggins explained how colonialism is one of the root causes of the climate crisis and also a lot of the conflict and instability we see today. His argument made a lot of sense to me. I recommend listening to one of his lectures.

Our hearts goes out to everyone suffering at the moment from war, racism, oppression, tyranny and political failure in Palestine and Israel, in Sudan, Ukraine, Syria, Yemen, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Libya, and in many other places around the world. We join sane and rational voices in the international community calling for a #Ceasfirenow in Palestine-Israel, the release of all hostages and political prisoners, and end to the blockade of Gaza, and end to the occupation, and equal rights for all citizens of Israel & Palestine regarless of religion, political beliefs, ethnicity, tribe, gender, sexuality or ability. 

The think the UN Secretary General, António Guterres was bang on.

This Welsh Jew says, #NeverAgainForAnyone !

The differences between us are artificial, stoked by extremists, cult-mentality, dehumanisation of ‘the other’. We are all human, and we are suseptable to these thinking errors. We must be mindful of this, and challenge these narratives in ourselves and others.

Personally, I have found hope in the organisations in Palestine and Israel who are working towards peace and co-existence. Please help amplify their voices! As a Jewish person (I was brought up Catholic, but my grandmother on my mother’s side was Jewish), I find myself to be very much aligned with organisations such as Na’amod. Its not really my business to give an opinion from afar; I can only offer my greatest sympathy and compassion for all the people on 'both sides' of the artificial divide who’ve lost loved ones and support the voices calling for a non-violent solutions. But for what it’s worth, I think the “One Democratic State Campaign” is an idea worth promoting. It is a “Palestinian-led initiative which […] strives for the establishment of a single democratic state in historic Palestine, based on political, social, economic and cultural justice, in which Palestinians and Israeli Jews live in equality. [The campaign] was launched by Palestinian and Israeli Jewish activists, intellectuals and academics in early 2018 in the city of Haifa”. I know that many people out there who might disagree with this proposal, and I respect your views.

****

We wish for a world without borders and without war, where all people can live in freedom without fearing for their lives, where people are treated with compassion. Furthermore, our care and respect should extend to animals, plants and the whole ecosystem. Our freedom must not encroach on others' freedom, and all of us must live within the planetary boundaries.

The proceeds from downloads of the song will be donated to humanitarian relief charities.

Please join the international call for a ceasefire in Palestine & Israel: https://www.saferworld.org.uk/resources/news-and-analysis/post/1015-ceasefirenow-open-call-for-an-immediate-ceasefire-in-the-gaza-strip-and-israel

With love,

Liam & Ailsa

On the 6th of October, my brother and I released our song, "Fan Transit Coch" (Red Transit Van) on our Lo-fi Jones Soundcloud and bandcamp pages.
It went down well; we got a lovely write up in Welsh contemporary music blog, Y Selar, and we were featured in this week's "Fresh Favs" on British music blog, Fresh On The Net.

Erthygl yn Y Selar! - "Lo-fi Jones a'r actores o'r Iseldiroedd"

UPDATE (12/12/23): Fan Transit Coch is now available on digital streaming services!

Geiriau a chordiau / Lyrics & chords:
Penill 1:
F           Em                Am
Clywais gan fy ffrindiau, o’ gen ti lefydd
F                  Em
Taflu fy stwff yn y sach
      Am              
Rwy’n ysu am rhwy fath o antur, baby
F           Em                Am      G
Fan transit coch ble’r wyt ti nawr?

cytgan 1:
C           Em       Am          G
Red Transit Van ar y motorway yn Ffrainc
C              Em        Am
Van du transit rouge sur l’autoroute
C           Em     Am          Em
Fan transit coch a ni o hyd ar goll
      Dm         Em     
sur l’autoroute avec mes amis,
   F                  G
Je me demande, où est mon ex-amour?

Penill 2:
Mewn maes parcio multi-stori
Methu cael yn rhydd
Beth os ni dal yma fory?
Pwy a wyr be fydd
Ym mhellderau y dyfodol yn dal i chwilio
Tydi’r llwybyr byth yn glir

cytgan 2:
Red Transit Van ar y motorway yn Ffrainc
Van du transit rouge sur l’autoroute
Fan transit coch a ni o hyd ar goll
dans la belle camapange avec mes amis,
J'essaie d'oublier mon ex-amour
Instrumental
Penill 3:
Red Transit Van ble wyt ti’n myned?
Be’ ‘di’r holl gerddoriaeth?
Mae’n swnllyd ond dwi’n meddwl dwi’n lico uh oh
Fan transit coch ble’r wyt ti nawr?

Cytgan 3:
Red Transit Van ar y motorway yn Ffrainc
Van du transit rouge auf der autobahn
Van du transit rouge et nous sommes très perdus
sur la planète Terre avec mes amis,
Je ne peux pas oublier mon ex-amour

Coda/outro:
C          Em                 Dm
Roulons à travers, la planète Terre,
              G                 C
d’gajant d’la fumees dan l’atmosphere.
Ça roul ma poule, avec mes amis,
J'essaie d'oublier mon ex-amour


Translation/cyfieithiad:
I heard from my friends that you had a few spaces.
chuck some stuff in a case
I got a feeling for some kind of adventure
red transit van where are you now?

Red Transit Van on the motorway in France
Red Transit Van on the motorway
Red transit van and we’re always lost
On the motorway, with my friends
I wonder where is my ex-love?

In a multi-storey carpark
Can’t get free.
What if we’re still here tomorrow?
Who knows what will be?
In the distant future, still searching
The path is never clear

Red Transit Van on the motorway in France
Red Transit Van on the motorway
Red transit van and we’re always lost
In the beautiful countryside with my friends
I try to forget my ex-love

Red transit van where are you going?
What’s with all that music?
It’s a racket but I think I like it
Red transit van where are you now ?

Red Transit Van on the motorway in France
Red Transit Van on the motorway
Red Transit Van and we are very lost
On the planet earth with my friends, I can’t forget my ex-love

Rolling, travelling along, planet Earth,
Releasing fumes into the atmosphere
Let’s roll, baby, with my friends,
I try to forget my ex-love


Hanes y gân / behind the song
Buom ni'n ddechrau i greu'r gân hon tra roeddwn ni ar roadtrip mewn fan transit coch nôl yn 2018. Cafodd y geiriau eu hysbrydoli gan hanes un o'n gymdeithion ar y daith, actores o'r Iseldiroedd. Mi oedd hi newydd dorri fyny a’i chariad, felly penderfynodd dod gyda ni, pobl ddiarth, ar daith 1160 milltir o Gent, Gwlad Belg, lawr i Porto, ac yn ôl.
****
This song began life on a road trip in a red transit van, going from Belgium to Portugal for a new years Eve folk gathering. The lyrics were inspired by the story of one of our travel companions who joined us last minute after seeing our callout on social media. She’d recently broken up with her boyfriend and decided that a spontaneous 2320 mile adventure with total strangers was just what she needed.

DIOLCH O GALON i bawb ddaeth allan nos Wener i'r cyngerdd cymorth ar gyfer Twrci a Syria, ac i'r berfformyr eraill: Gwilym Morus, Khrystyna Makar, Catrin O'Neill, Lo-fi Jones, Mach Dance Band a Raj'een. Codwyd dros £850 ar y noson, a mae na mwy yn dod i mewn o'r raffle a'r paypal. Bydd i gyd o'r arian yn mynd at yr Apêl DEC ac i Heyva Sor (Kurdish Red Moon).
******
MASSIVE THANK YOU to everyone who came out on Friday to our fundraiser and to the other wonderful performers, Gwilym Morus, Khrystyna Makar, Catrin O'Neill, Lo-fi Jones, the Mach Dance Band and Raj'een. Thanks to your generosity, we managed to raise over £850 for the DEC Turkey-Syria Earthquake Appeal and Heyva Sor (Kurdish Red Moon), and there's still more coming in from the raffle and the paypal fundraiser (I would add the paypal link to this post but I don't have it to hand, sorry; but you can give directly to those charities or others helping in that area).
(Clips/photos coming soon!)
*****
Hefyd, mae gen fi a Siôn newyddion cyffroes iawn! Rydan ni wedi llwyddo i gael trwodd i'r rownd derfynol Cân i Gymru 2023 gyda'n cân neywdd, Y Wennol!! Mae'r cân yn son am ymfudwyr, natur a'r byd. Byddwn yn perfformio’r gân yn fyw am y tro cyntaf yng Nghanolfan y Celfyddydau Aberystwyth ar y 3ydd o Fawrth, ynghyd â 7 ymgais wych arall. Un o'r ymgaisiau yw fy ffrindiau Eve Goodman a Sara Zyborska sydd hefyd ar y label CEG Records gyda fi.

Mae'r tocynau wedi mynd, ond fedrach chi gwilio ni ar s4c neu clic. Pleidleisiwch i ni os ydach chi'n hoffi'r cân! Bydd y cân yn cael ei ddarlledu am y tro cyntaf ar Radio Cymru ar y 1af o Mawrth.
*****
Also Siôn and I have some exciting news! We have made it to the final of Wales's annual Welsh language song competition, Cân i Gymru with our brand new song, "Y Wennol" (the swallow). The song is about migration, and we wrote in December especially for the competion. We'll perform the song live for the first time in the Aberystwyth Arts Centre along with 7 other marvelous entries, including my friends and fellow CEG records artists, Eve Goodman and Sara Zyborska.

Tickets have sold out, but you can watch it on S4C or on Clic. Please vote for us if our song is your favourite. The song will be broadcast for the first time on Radio Cymru on the 1st of March.

Cân i Gymru 2023: Pwy sydd yn cystadlu eleni?

GIGS
CYMRU (Machynlleth) - Nos Fercher/Wednesday, 7y.h. - Dathliad Diwrnod Santes Dwynwen ym Mhopty Clai //St Dwynwen’s Day celebration in the Clay Bakery. £10, inc. soup and a drink. Contact Natty at Popty Clai - Clay Bakery to book.


LONDON (Hackney) - Tuesday, 31st, 7.30pm - Paper Dress Vintage, Worldwide Welshman, Lovell, River Wild (album launch) - £8

NEWS
I was in Our Lady Studio in Borth recently, and I recorded two tracks with Ailsa on cello and Nic on double bass! One old one, re-done, and one new collaboration with Ailsa, the Fairytale Cellist. They’ll be out in Feburary and March.

I’m planning to record my first full studio album in the near future. But first, I need to apply for funding! Wish me luck.

In other news, Lo-fi Jones have some exciting news which we’ll reveal next month.

My first time at Celtic Connections
I’m currently on my way back to Machynlleth from Glasgow. I went to Celtic Connections! It was brilliant. On Friday night we danced to the magnificent Moroccan/French gnawa-psychadelic-rock band, Bab l’Bluz.

Then on Saturday, I caught the last four songs of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s Big Folk Band showcase, directed Jenn Butterworth. Phenomenal and life affirming! Next year I’ll book in advanced and see the full show.

Saturday afternoon, Danny Kyle open stage…I’ll have to try and get on there next year!

Saturday evening: The Canny Band!! Heard their Celtic Connections performance last year on the radio and was blown away, so it was really exciting to see them live. LOVED IT!! After them was the Irish band, Notify, who I hadn’t heard of before. They were excellent. I liked how they used plenty of interesting time-signatures. They were joined by two exceptional young Irish speaking musicians from Galway (?), who were very charming, and sang some beautiful songs in Irish.

Then I went to meet an Edinbrugh pal of mine who was in the sold-out Trecherous Orchestra gig. Luckily, I managed to get in for the last few numbers. Had a lovely reunion with him and another friend I’d met on Ethno who I hadn’t seen for AGES! One of their mates is a person I used to play in a klezmer band in London with. It was great to see him again, too! Some of their other friends are good friends with one of my coursemates. So many connections there. Small world!

We all headed to the Glee Club for the festival party night. I saw my new favourite folk band, the Canny Band again! Next up was Orkey legends, Saltfish Forty, with a full band (loved it)! Then the Canny Band were back with an newly created band called Trimp (?) which included an up-and-coming Irish fluting champion and some ace fiddle players. I hope they play more gigs with that combo, they were top-notch.
We were dancing to trad music til 3am.

Sunday: fancy breakfast in the West End of Glasgow, then to a trad session in the Drum & Monkey! Saw lovely friends. Ate delicious Eritrean/Etheopian food in Mosob Bar & Restaurant. Its quitea hidden place, but your Glasgow pal, Kat, recommended it to us. If you ever go to Glasgow, I can confirm that this restaurant is excellent! The staff are lovely too.

Finished up playing a few songs in a very friendly pub in the South Side.

Hwyl am y tro,
Liam

Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! Happy new year!
Got a few gigs coming up...

25.1 - Popty Clai, Machynlleth
31.1 - Paper Dress Vintage, Hackney, London - tickets

6-9 July, Treehouse Festival, Uffington White Horse, Oxfordshire

More to be announced!

+ working on new material :D

Dwi'n chwarae gig ar nos Fercher, 8yn, yn y Bank Vault, Aberystwyth, gyga Nicolas Davalan ar bas dwbl
***
I'm playing a gig on Wednesday evening, 8pm, in the Bank Vault, Aberystwyth, with Nicolas Davalan on double bass

Gigiau nesaf/next gigs:
25/11/22 - Lo-fi Jones & The Sunshine Project at Y Llew Coch, Machynlleth
08/12/22 - Bald Welsh Fairy (Liam, Ailsa & Nic), Bank Vault, Aberystwyth
09/12/22 - Mach Dance Band - Noson Balfolk Evening, Canolfan Owain Glyndwr, Machynlleth
14/01/22 - Lo-fi Jones a Nic Davalan, Noson y Fari Lwyd, Y Llew Coch*, Dinas Mawddwy

*yes, we are playing at both of the Red Lions!! :D

Dwi wedi bod yn gweithio ar project newydd efo fy mrawd, Siôn.
Rydan ni'n rhyddau ein EP gyntaf, "Llanast Yn Y Llofft" ar 22/11/22.
Rydym wedi rhyddhau sengl oddi ar yr EP.
Mae'r cân wedi'i ysbrydoli gan yr amser pan roeddom yn byw yn Llundain, a'n trafferthion yn trio i neud bywyd a bywoliaeth yna.
Mae'r fideo wedi cael i gwneud gan ein chwaer, Ciara.
Mae hon a sawl trac arall wedi cael eu chwarae ar Radio Cymru!
****
I've been busy working on a new project with my brother, Siôn.
We are releasing our debut EP "Llanast yn Y Llofft" on the 22/11/22.
We released a single from the EP.
Its about the time when we lived in London and the challenges of trying to make a life and a living there.
The video is by our sister, Ciara.
This and several other tracks have been played on Radio Cymru! :)

Thanks to everyone who came to see us in Camden Club supporting Hull band Goodnight Vincent on their UK & Ireland tour! It was my first gig in London for a long while. We had a great time. Wonderful to see old and new friends there in the audience.

I really enjoyed playing with the latest London lineup - Ffion Aynsley on keys & flute, Michael Ekeghasi on cajon, and MJ Moon on bass. And all of them singing backing vocals! They smashed it.

Here's an awesome video of us filmed and edited by the talented Oleg Katchinsky:

Of course, I also loved the previous lineups as well, such as the Treehouse band and the Festival of Jim band.
It would be epic if we could play a big stadium and have the whole ensemble onstage all at once.

Which lineup was your favourite?

Dyma rhywbeth nes i neud yn y cyfnod clo! Here's a project I did in the Lockdown

Diolch yn fawr i fy ffrinidiau yn y Muzikantenhuis yn Gent am y wahoddiad  / Massive thanks to my friends at the Muzikantenhuis in Ghent for the invitation.

Mae fy sengl diweddaraf, Tori Jaaun re Jaaun, wedi bod yn neud yn reit da! Mae wedi cael ei chwarae ar Resonance FM, Radio Cymru, Exile FM a BBC 6 Music, ac wedi cael ei cynnwys yn "Fresh Favs: batch 435" ar y blog poblogaidd cherddoriaeth newydd, Fresh on the Net.

Radio appearances so far for Tori Jaaun re Jaaun re:

DJ Ritu, A World in London Unlocked 82 - January 26th 2022, Resonance FM - https://www.mixcloud.com/djritu/a-world-in-london-unlocked-82-january-26th-2022/

Georgia Ruth, 01/02/22, BBC Radio Cymru - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m00140t1

Jon Read, The Monday Night Ride-Out, 14th Feb 2022,  Exile FM - https://exilefm.com/podcasts/the-monday-night-ride-out-17

Tom Robinson, BBC Introducing Mixtape, 21/02/22, BBC 6 Music - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0014n1g

Also, "Community Garden: Lockdown Version" got played on "The Ska Show With Beefy, Jan 30th 2022" on Southern FM (Australia!!) - https://embed.sounder.fm/play/241126 

The Worldwide Welshman Radio takeover continues!

More international & local collaborations to come...