ALL BLACKED UP

Lisa’s first encounter with all-things-folky was an evening in November 1985. A new history teacher at school mentioned something he was involved in at the Old Vic Theatre in Stoke, so a curious Lisa and friend went along to see. Turned out he was a Shropshire Bedlam, and the evening in question was a John Kirkpatrick & Sue Harris /Bedlams & Martha Rodens song and dance night. (And she’s still got the programme!)

Converted, Lisa found a North West morris side in Nantwich to join, and when their melodeon player went on holiday, she borrowed her melodeon and a John Kirkpatrick LP from the library, and set about learning a few tunes. On arrival at Exeter university in 1988, she bought a melodeon out of her 1st term’s grant (remember those?), and found both Wheal Sophia and Great Western Morris.
Somewhere along the line she also discovered All Blacked Up.
Stewarding at Sidmouth one year gave her the perfect opportunity to sit in front of them on the grass at Blackmore Gardens, and she was lucky enough to make it to their legendary Drill Hall ceilidh. (Did you see the length of the queue to get in?!)
A bootleg recording of a Ringheye ceilidh in Mobberley landed in her lap, so she learnt the tunes, and turned up at as many Broseley music sessions as petrol would allow. The band’s melodeon player Paul Havell decided he wanted to leave, and in 1995 asked Lisa if she’d consider taking his place. Naturally, she leapt at the chance!

Some years later, she introduced bass guitarist Ray to the band. Interesting fact: Lisa met Ray at Crewe & Nantwich Folk Festival, where she decided to talk to him only because she thought he looked like John Kirkpatrick!

Lisa works in the NHS as a senior information analyst. The others were collectively relieved when she made the switch from finance to health informatics, because it meant the end of bad-tempered accountancy revision in the band van. It hasn’t stopped her emailing excel spreadsheet giglists however...