With a musical heritage of playing bass guitar in 90’s rock bands, Steve discovered folk music later in life and by stumbling into a folk session at his local pub (Kimpton), he felt immediately at home with this community. The storytelling song writing and the energy and passion of fellow musicians playing together was something that lit a spark within that has never left him.
Doing the hard yards of folk sessions, floor spots, open mics, support slots, busking, pub gigs, coffee shops, wine bars and playing on London underground, Steve slowly developed his song writing skills and learned how to play in front of crowd (who rarely listened) but always clapped politely. Eventually the gigs got bigger and crowd less rowdy with support slots at Cambridge folk club, Hitchin folk club, Redbourn folk club, Watford folk club, Royston folk club and appearances at Ely folk festival, Balstock, Kimpton Folk Festival and the Great British folk festival.
Working closely with producer Dan Wilde at Gladeside Recordings and multi musician/arranger Phil Sheldrake at Vicarage studios on two EP’s and recently released album ‘The Corran Ferry’ Steve has had radio play on BBC Cambridge, BBC Essex, BBC 3Counties, Cambridge 105 and a host of internet based international stations (America, Australia, Canada) with the Invisible Folk club, Blues and Roots. Short listed two years in a row for Folk and Roots International song writing contest, as well as Watford Folk club song writing competition.
Laura Dannan is a singer songwriter from St Albans. She loves writing songs and her unique style & quirky insights into subjects such as having a midlife crisis, being addicted to chocolate, and a love of romantic stories, makes for entertaining listening. When she’s not writing songs Laura enjoys playing the drums and has a highly regarded drummer series on YouTube called Drum Quest where she chats to top players in the industry. She has interviewed some of the best, including Steve Gadd, Simon Philips, Steve White, Richard Bailey & Andy Gangadeen to name a few. She is also founder and host of The Flying Squirrels Club that promotes local singer songwriters & original artists.
Growing up in the far corner of Cornwall, Abbey Thomas had to travel far and wide to
find the music she loved. She soon bought a mandolin and began to focus on American
folk genres including bluegrass and old-time music, and now her mandolin playing is
confident with a rich tone, and a style heavily inspired by the likes of John Reischman
and Joe K Walsh. Mandolin in hand, she performs regularly with multiple bluegrass
bands including Blue Lass, Old Baby Mackerel, and Flats and Sharps. Abbey also loves
exploring British folk music, enjoying learning new tunes on the mandolin and
melodeon, singing unaccompanied traditional ballads, and drawing attention to
feminism through traditional music. Abbey’s performances are dynamic and varied,
including a mixture of traditional and contemporary music alongside original pieces
often inspired by the nature where she grew up.