ONE WEEK TO GO!!!

Tickets here >>!

Prepare yourselves for Love, Libation & Liberation from…

The Cut Throat Razors

with special guest Miss Irenie Rose

Saturday 11th June 2016 8pm

Tickets here >>!

Oh my goodness me!  We have waited a long time to bag ourselves some funk at Letham Nights and lo and behold we have finally done it – and in style!  For your delight, we have booked one of the most funky, soulful, dancetastic bands in the land – The Cut Throat Razors.  Based in Glasgow, this 11-piece (yes, I know – ELEVEN piece) band, deliver a big punchy sound, evoking ska, funk, soul and blues. Their self-penned songs of love, liberation and libation are theatrical, comical, political and melancholic. With a fantastic energetic live show they have graced the stages of Wickerman Festival, King Tuts and 02 ABC Glasgow.

Winners of the Sunday Herald’s Best Unsigned Band 2014 , The Cut Throat Razors new EP – Motown’s Lost Its Soul – was launched on Fri the 27th Nov 2015 at Stereo, Glasgow.

Just picture the scene at Letham Village Hall – All 11 band members on that stage, complete with funky horn section, and everybody – yes, EVERYBODY! – up on the dance floor.  You won’t be able to stop yourself!  Listen to this clip and tell us we’re wrong!

Opening the show will be the wonderful Miss Irenie Rose…

Miss Irenie Rose, a young artist from the Isle of Lewis, has always been surrounded by music and musicians and was raised in a strong Scottish folk tradition.  While rooted in this background, her songs and style transcend folk, reaching out to other influences and genres.  She has the feel of Joni Mitchell and her creative use of loops brings a richness and depth to her performance.  She has supported both local and touring artists, played festivals across the country, and made multiple radio and television appearances.  In early 2013 she took part in a documentary about Celtic Connections presented by Julie Fowlis and was nominated for best newcomer in the Scottish Alternative Music Awards. Irenie also reached the semi-finals of the Radio 2 Young Folk Musician of the Year Awards 2014.

We know you will love her!

So there you go – another fine line up for Letham Nights.  Get booking!

Tickets here >>!

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds !

The Best Small Gigs In The World!

www.lethamnights.org

The first Letham Nights of 2016!

AND IT’S A SELL OUT!

PLEASE DO NOT MAKE ANY FURTHER ONLINE TRANSFERS OR SEND CHEQUES UNLESS PREVIOUSLY AGREED.

Don’t despair – there is still a chance someone won’t make it so if you wish to be added to the waiting list for returns please use the contact details on the home page to let us know. 

Saturday 23 April is just around the corner! All the way from Boulder, Colorado, we bring you the magnificent…

The Railsplitters

Saturday 23rd April 8pm

Tickets here >>!

This magnificent alternative Bluegrass fivesome spent 2015 ripping up stages all over the US as well as fitting in a UK and Ireland tour, in the process winning the Rockygrass’ Best New Band Competition.  This year they are back and we are lucky enough to have booked them for your delight and delectation on Saturday 23rd April.

What the reviews say…

“With their new album, The Faster It Goes, The Railsplitters, are using these new influences to break the bonds of bluegrass and unleash tradition. Lauren Stovall and the rest of the ‘Splitters suggest that using your roots to evolve is really at the heart of the genre as, Bill Monroe himself was an innovator. With their finger on the pulse, The Railsplitters are pushing the genre forward with an adventurous spirit, carrying in the tradition of breaking boundaries with their innovative sound.”  Mindie Lind, Hearth Music

“The Railsplitters are one of the most exciting bands to come on the scene in a long time. The complexity of their arrangements, the beauty of their vocals, and excitement in their performance should put them right in the center of your radar. Catch the Railsplitters, you’ll dig ’em!”  Stephen Mougin, Sam Bush Band

So for goodness sake, get booking!!  There’s plenty time of course but we think this is going to be a busy one

Tickets here >>!

And announcing our opening acts for the evening…

Sleeping Gypsy

Sleeping Gypsy is the alter ego of veteran shyster Bob Honson who is in turn the alter ego of our beloved Letham Nights friend, the one and only Robbie Ward (formerly of Luva Anna and Anderson, McGinty, Webster, WARD and Fisher!) His new album, Zen and the Art of Jollification (2015) is a jolly tapestry of witticism and wisdom featuring some astonishing textures, impassioned vocals and superb instrumentals. And it’s out now. Here is how he describes the album:

“It’s unconventional but very traditional. Lets just say I grew up inside a shortbread tin – my father playing fiddle tunes late into the night and my mother by his side, quite the dramatic spoon player. I left home young enough to blag my way into some folk band or other but I dun got fired for wearing double-denim. I hog-tied myself to a pair of headphones in some old studio down on Long Lane and next thing I know I’ve lain a pure egg with all these hip young things telling me to ‘represent’.” – Bob Honson

Sleeping Gypsy will open the evening with a selection of these songs for your delectation.

For more information please visit the homepage: www.jollification.uk

Mark Richardson

And for our first foray into spoken word performance we present Mark Richardson, urban poet from Dundee.  This will be one of Mark’s first public performances.  His poems are heartfelt reflections drawn from everyday life and delivered with an affecting, emotional energy and at times an edgy, hard-hitting street vibe. We are so delighted he has agreed to perform for us.

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds !

The Best Small Gigs In The World!

www.lethamnights.org

Letham Nights 44 – The Review – Kirsten Adamson

The nights were getting colder but down in the hall things were as hot as ever with the realisation of Letham Nights 44 (The Boom Boom). Dancing, drinking, cavorting and exhorting were the watchwords as the heady brew of music and mischief was bottled and drank off almost simultaneously if you can imagine such a thing.

First up we had Cupar’s own Tom Beaver with his beautifully written eulogies to getting drunk in Dundee, dogs chasing badgers (or vice versa, I’m not quite sure) and gigs going bad. Tom’s nice simple picking and quirky little thumb bass runs counterpoint to his vocals charmingly as he flits between his own stuff and covers such as a sublime Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone by Bill Withers. Mr Wrong by California alt rockers Cracker was less expected but no less a stompin’ triumph for all that. Nice one, Tom!

Kirsten Adamson is part of Scotland’s musical aristocracy, coming, as she does, from the loins of Big Country’s Stuart Adamson. Here she was, the six-string purebred, complete with her pedigree chums, kicking out the jams, grooves and licks a la boom boom. From opener Born to Die Kirsten belts out her lyrics like a cross between Kate Bush and Beth Ditto, all the time keeping things moving on guitar and keys. Phil (Guitar) Hopwood must have broken a few tremolo arms in his time and here he was throwing some seriously dangerous guitar shapes while maintaining a reputation as the happiest man in Guitarland. Ru Stewart kept things pounding along nicely with flip-hot drum fills and some solid squalid beats while bassman Steve Whitlock (late addition to the band and only two gigs under his belt, folks!) kept things thrumming along like a well-tuned automobile. On the strings of love, Diana de Cabarrus filled the spaces with some proper tidy cello and guitar action while backing up on vocals to boot.

And as if all of that wasn’t enough, a party set encore complete with The Bangles, The Sweet and even a bit of Ike and Tina. Bish, bash and, oh why not, bosh!

Check out Kirsten here: www.kirstenadamson.com

And Tom here: https://soundcloud.com/tom-beaver-1994

To round off the year in style…

ON… Saturday, December 12th

AT… 8pm

IN… Letham Village Hall

We’re gonna RAISE A STORM!

Tickets here >>!

Like a fine single malt from her native Scotland, Lindsey Black’s music is a slow-matured distillation of flavours and influences, uniquely mingled and delectably potent. Previously best known to Letham Nights Lovers as a founder member of sassy harmony trio The Bevvy Sisters, Lindsey now launches her solo career with an outstanding all-original album, Raise A Storm – which is set to do just that. And we get to hear her live in our village hall!  Not only that, but just recently Lindsey supported the phenomenal Alex Cornish in Glasgow and she has only gone and enlisted him to play piano for her at Letham Nights!  Have some sense won’t you?  Click that ticket link and get booked!

And, as usual, we will not stint on quality for our support act – another silky-toned singer-songwriter, Zoe Graham.

Zoe, who is from Glasgow, is just embarking on her musical career but her songwriting and mature and diverse vocal tones belie her youth and herald an exciting and successful future!  With an eclectic mix of musical styles within her covers and originals from indie folk to lively swing/blues, Zoe’s music appeals to all tastes. Having supported acts such as Brooks Williams, Iain Mathews and Jen Grant her reputation and success is continuing to grow. Zoe has a powerful voice and a dynamic personality to match; her enthusiasm, witty humour and charm make it impossible not to warm to this young musician. We are very excited that she has agreed to play for us.  Listening to her songs on soundcloud sends a shiver up your spine so we know that the atmosphere in the hall is going to be amazing when she plays.

Tickets here >>!

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds !

The Best Small Gigs In The World!

www.lethamnights.org

The next Letham Nights is just around the corner and yet again we offer you another absolute CRACKER!  Because… Kirsten Adamson is back!

Saturday 10th October 2015 8pm

Tickets here >>!

Kirsten Adamson will be showcasing material from her soon-to-be-released, much-anticipated crowd-funded album.  From the snippets we have heard it marks a new chapter, and a magnificent one at that, in her development as one of Scotland’s foremost musical talents.  Kirsten is a class act and the last time she and her band played Letham the crowd went wild and demanded more, and more again.  “You lot are mental” she said.  And we were – crazy for her music!

Kirsten comes from an historical musical background in Scotland. Growing up, her two main influences were Kate Bush and her father, Stuart’s band, Big Country. In 1998 her father relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, where she would spend her summers and it was here where she first picked up a guitar. Classically trained in voice from a young age, Kirsten has grown to become a wonderfully diverse singer songwriter and her forthcoming album encompasses her eccentricities with class and originality. She is an undiscovered artist that must be heard!

The new album is simmering nicely but will not quite be ready for October so there will be limited edition EP’s available at the gig and free downloads of the latest single can be streamed up until the show https://soundcloud.com/kirstenadamson/stay-like-this

Support will be provided by talented local boy, Tom Beaver!
Tom is a 21-year-old singer-songwriter and guitarist from Cupar in Fife, whose repertoire includes a mix of atypical covers and self penned songs. These are inspired, among other things, by personal experiences of drinking misadventure, local characters, feelings of isolation and the general oddity of life! His wide variety of musical influences include bands and artists such as Sparklehorse, Camper van Beethoven, J.J. Cale, Modest Mouse, Seasick Steve, Nick Drake and Neil Young.

From a residency in a St Andrews bistro, Tom has moved to play several venues across Scotland, most notably at the Wickerman festival in July. This will be his first appearance at Letham Nights and we can’t wait to hear him! Come along and support him and in the process bag yourself a stonking show!

Tickets here >>!

Get booking!

https://www.facebook.com/kirstenadamsonmusic/info?tab=page_info

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds !

The Best Small Gigs In The World!

www.lethamnights.org

If music be the food of love then what a careening cacophony of carefree corpulescence we must have made. Yes, fatty bum bums all, in the gluttonous gloaming of the hall. And were we satiated? [burp] Oh, mightily, thank you kindly.

Steve Dempsey is more used to having his musical chums up on stage with him but tonight he took his talent in both hands and jumped right in to give us a glimpse of his (not inconsiderable) musical charms. Uncomplicated structures and simple guitar strumming allowed his heartfelt love songs and anthems to broken romance to shine through, unpolluted by the tyranny of lead guitars and crashing cymbals. And it sounded pretty good for it, you have to say. But it was on his penultimate number, ‘Brothers and Sisters’, that the fire in his belly became a roar and he belted out his moving protest song showing us all a startling set of pipes and nearly taking off the roof. Nice moves, Steve!

So, to The Coal Porters!

Instant charm, musical affection and Bluegrass dynamite exploding forth from every tensioned length of steel and catgut. Good vibrations wobbling their way through the dense night air, setting each hair a shivering and a quivering, each hair passing it along and down, down, down into the roots and into the blood, round and round into those deep, deep sensory centres where the physical blossoms into the emotional and then…. BOOM! THE DANCING FEET! Here they come now, some whirling, some twirling, others just going up and down. Some are going from side to side, hypnotised by Sid Griffin’s merry band of banjo wielding (Paul Fitzgerald), fiddle searing (Kerenza Peacock), bass tearing (Jonny Bridgwood), mandolin worrying (Sid, the man himself), guitar bustin’ (Neil Robert Herd) gods and goddesses of good-time Americana. Hot diggety, what a night of music and chatter.

Sid’s been doing this a good while now, both in this current incarnation and previously with the brilliant Long Ryders, and his well-honed low-key showmanship shine through with homely banter keeping it humming along in between songs. And how about those songs? Great original compositions such as ‘The Old Style Prison Break’ and ‘Barefoot On The Courthouse Lawn’ sit tightly alongside brilliant (and unexpected, perhaps) covers of Bowie, The Stones, The Only Ones and even The Undertones. And let us not forget the stormingly ace homage to New York’s finest, ‘The Day of The Last Ramone’ (“gabba gabba hey, 1,2,3,4 they did say”, oh yes indeed). So not your average Bluegrass bandits, although there might well have been mention of a foggy mountain in there somewhere near the end of the night, but by that time the heels were oiled and context was the last thing on our minds.

The encore saw Letham Nights first stage invasion, sorry, dancefloor invasion as the spirit of Jimmy Shand took hold (not for the first time) and the band finished sans amp in the heart of the reveller’s pit. Almighty stuff, just almighty. When can we do it again?

Check out The Coal Porters here: http://www.sidgriffin.com/the-coal-porters/

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds !

Letham Nights – The Best Small Gigs In The World!

The Coal Porters led by Sid Griffin

Saturday 5th September 8pm

“A sumptuous bluegrass spread impeccably served”
Uncut Magazine

Tickets here >>!

So! After a long and mostly cold and wet summer, what better way to brighten up the onset of autumn than by making your way down to the village hall on 5th September at 8pm for some of the hottest, most accomplished, toe-tappingest bluegrass you will ever experience from the amazing, incomparable, utterly marvellous Coal Porters.  The Coal Porters are an exciting and dynamic bluegrass combo with a DYNAMITE LIVE ACT featuring Kerenza Peacock – fine fiddle and vocals; Paul Fitzgerald – banjo and vocals; Sid Griffin – vocals, mandolin, harmonica and autoharp;  Tali Trow, bass; Neil Robert Herd guitar, sporran and vocals.

The Coal Porters claim to be the world’s first “alt-bluegrass” act, demonstrating the power of fiddle, mandolin, banjo, acoustic guitar and doghouse bass matched with four-part harmonies and memorable melodies. They have taken this sound around the world and have featured on NPR’s Morning Edition in the USA as well as recording a live session for Bob Harris on BBC Radio 2.  They have wowed audiences at numerous UK and European arts centres, done no less than four North American tours and performed to tens of thousands at festivals such as Glastonbury, HebCelt, Stagecoach (USA), Larmer Tree, Didmarton, LaRoche (France), Cork Midsummer Fest (Eire), Wombwell and Hultsfredsfestivalen (Sweden).

The Coal Porters have five albums available. Their most recent, Find The One, was produced by folk-rock legend John Wood, producer of Fairport Convention, Nick Drake, Squeeze and Beth Orton.

“Not your average fish & chips bluegrass, the Coal Porters have expanded their music with broad strokes and fearless execution.”
Chris Hillman (Byrds/Flying Burrito Bros)

“Sid Griffin was playing Americana long before it was called that with his Long Ryders and his pioneering spirit lives on in his work with the Coal Porters.”
Billy Bragg

These guys really are at the top of their game!  What a steal to have booked them for Letham Nights!!  Yeeha!!

So the word is out and tickets are beginning to disappear.  This band are uniformly loved by young and old alike so make sure you bring along the whole family – babies, children, teens, big kids (aka adults), grannies and grandads – ALL WELCOME!!Don’t be disappointed – get your booking in!

Tickets here >>!

Familiarity breeds contempt? Not on your nelly, felly!

For Letham Nights No. 41, we were lucky enough to see the return of some of our favourite balladeers in the shape of Scott Cook and Jez Hellard with support (although it felt like more of a double-headliner) from Dave Webster and Stevie Anderson of Sinderins.

Stevie and Dave are becoming firm friends of Letham Nights having performed here numerous times in various incarnations from Luva Anna through Anderson, McGinty, Webster, Ward and Fisher and will be back on Sat 4 July to rock us like a hurricane with current set-up Sinderins. Tonight they sported just acoustic guitars and voices and it was a rare pleasure to hear two of our favourite musicians unplugged. Dave is one of the greatest singers you will ever hear (believe it) and from the low-key thoughtful ballad of Little Brown Boy to the wailing heights of You Will Find, we were open mouthed with awe at a simply stunning vocalist at his peak. His cover of Tim Buckley’s Phantasmagoria in Two had our very own Roy practically melting with appreciation. Stevie’s guitar work is no less dazzling and he slid, picked strummed and soloed his way through a sizzling set which culminated in the slap-picked rhythmic behemoth of blues funk juggernautery, Trust In Me. What an opening act!

There is no place for hyperbole in these pages so when I say Scott Cook is one of the best songwriters you will ever hear, you had better believe it. From his opener, Song For The Slow Dancers (a lament for the loss of individuality and authenticity in music) he spins his web of charm and folksiness inviting us all to come along with him on a journey through his passions, pains and rivers of consciousness, making everyone feel like they’ve been part of his world, if only for an evening. His ode to his local Driftpile Festival (as local as Scott gets, anyway – he’s a fully paid up rambling man!), Going Up The Country is a hoot with its jaunty Mississippi John Hurt guitar lines and lyrics like ‘We’re gonna leave behind our phones and watches, slip into our beards and moustaches’.
Jez Hellard joined Scott on stage for the pretty as all hell Song For a Pilgrim, and it was as the haunting strains of his mouthwatering harmonica version of Atlas Tango began, that two ghostly figures glided onto the floor. But who were these two entwined tango titans gracing us with their pristine prowess? None other than our very own Ron and Janey. Wow! The first set finished with the sublime (unofficial Letham Nights anthem) Pass It Along. Sweet!

With Jez moving into the ascendency for the second set we were further bewitched by his moothie magic and glittering guitar. A wise man once said there are no such things as protest songs, just songs with conscience and they don’t come much more conscious than McDonalds For The Mind. Jez’s harmonica playing is a good as you’ll hear and Miner’s Picket Dance is a stomping romping round of righteous reed-wrangling that only dead Prime Ministers could fail to enjoy. The ballads, jigs and tomfoolery continued well past our bedtimes with such interactive delights as Tax Free Money ensuring everyone was left humming and swaying as the hall emptied and we all dispersed to our hearths and homes, clutching our CDs and reflecting on a charming, moving and all round good feeling night of romance and rhyme.
Triumphant!

Keep up with Scott here: scottcook.net

And Jez here: jezhellard.com

And you can check out Sinderins here:http://www.pledgemusic.com/projects/amwf

SOLD OUT SOLD OUT SOLD OUT SOLD OUT SOLD OUT SOLD OUT

Hot on the heels of their storming show at the Newport Festival 2015, The incredible Sinderins will be appearing at Letham Village Hall on Saturday 4th July 8pm

SOLD OUT – CONTACT DETAILS OPPOSITE TO GO ON WAITING LIST FOR RETURNS

PLEASE DO NOT MAKE ANY FURTHER BANK TRANSFERS WITHOUT CONTACTING US FIRST!!!

One of our most keenly anticipated Letham Nights is almost upon us!  Just two weeks to go until ‘THAT band’ are back at the village hall weaving their magic spell with their enthralling repertoire of music (sorry, we refuse to put a label on their diversely beautiful sound). Sinderins, formerly known as Anderson, McGinty, Webster, Ward & Fisher, are embarking on a new phase in their upward trajectory with a new identity and a new album. As many of us know, this extraordinary collective of musicians are probably the best band in the whole world! It is hard to pin down the way in which they craft their vocal and instrumental talents into such a beautiful soundscape but it is a combination of brilliant individual songwriting with a deep respect for each others creativity and the sheer joy they take in playing together, especially for a live audience.

We are also delighted to present the amazing Ed Muirhead as support, together with a short set from new songwriter Euan Stamper, one third of an innovative new theatre company called Yellow Magpies Productions. You will be impressed!

Tickets on sale NOW!

www.letham.org.uk/lethamnights/tickets

Don’t forget that the Clap and Tipple bar will be on hand to quench your thirst and tickle your tastebuds

Letham Village Hall is on the A92, 5 miles from Cupar, 9 miles from Glenrothes and 16 miles from Dundee.

Finding us is easy.  Just check our ‘Where We Are’ page for details.

Letham Nights – The Best Small Gigs In The World!