Leigh Acoustic Night

06/06/2026

Police Dog Hogan - originators of our beloved Sh*tty White Wine - will be at the Band on the Wall next Wednesday, June 11th. They're well worth seeing 😆

18/05/2026

TONIGHT - We have another packed line-up planned for you tonight, Monday 18th May. There's a relatively new band on the North West Folk circuit, and they're our main guests. They're called LITANY, and they're already creating waves from the first few gigs they've performed in this area and beyond. The line-up is Ed McGurk on guitar/cittern, Julie Proctor, violin, Nick Caffrey vocals, and a familiar face to us, Dave Howard on mandolin/bouzouki. They're all experienced players, previously coming from outfits like Bandersnatch, the Riot Band, and the Oldham Tinkers. Expect a lively mixture of trad and modern folk, strong stories, delivered with deft musicianship and well-crafted harmonies.

Also on the bill for Monday are, in no particular order, Jan and Garry Harney, Josh and Tyler, Grass Roots, Ed Harris, Mike Brereton, and not one, but two duos who go by the name of Nick & Dave!

All the usuals apply - doors open at 7, the rush to get a seat by 7.30, music starts at 8, no talking when the turns are on, it doesn't stop until 11... and it still only costs a mere £3 to get in.

Hope you can make it 😁

Nick

21/04/2026

Great night on Monday, and I'm delighted to tell you that the collection for the Trussell Trust charity raised around £150, which Hedley and Bev were bowled away by! They're booked to come back next year!
Thanks to everyone for your generosity ❤️

17/03/2026

Pelican Babies were on top form last evening, playing to a packed house at Leigh Cricket Club. They’re just getting better - superb, intricate arrangements of guitars and harmonica, and excellent harmonies. Good choice of material - a mix of covers and original songs. Ending with a tour de force didgeridoo finale!
Fab!

Thanks to the supporting cast too - Alan Richardson, Harry Unsworth, Carole Dunnington, Josh & Tyler, Paul Grant, Jan & Garry, Bram Taylor, and of course, The Over-the-Hillbillies.

Next guests, on April 30th - from Liverpool … Mullarkey!

14/03/2026

Since we last gathered, the lunatics have really taken over the asylum on the other side of the Atlantic, so who knows whether anyone will be able to afford a gallon of petrol to get you to our venue at the Leigh Cricket Club in Beech Walk 😳. I'd advise car sharing if you can or walking, but when I tell you that the main guests are Pelican Babies I'm sure you'll crawl on your hands and knees to get there!

Pelican Babies - Lea Nixon and Mark Connelly - are two of the most innovative guys on the local music scene. Whether it's an original song of theirs, or a cover of an existing classic, their arrangements bring out the best of their harmony talents and instrumental dexterity - and that applies to Lea's playing of the didgeridoo!

Here's what Damian Liptrot had to say about them in his review of the recent UK West Coast Festival:

"The Pelican Babies delivered a thoroughly entertaining set of both songs and self-deprecating commentary, finishing with their recent single Judas Goats, with their intro drawing approving applause from the crowd, whilst their concluding self-titled song, featuring the (previously mentioned instrument) filled the room with deeply reverberating sonorous tones underpinning a harmonious finale. Excellent – currently resurgent around the folk clubs of the North West – catch them if you can!!"

They've been to Leigh a few times before and are two of our most popular guests. There are other talents on the bill on Monday - and they're all special - including Bram Taylor, Carole Dunnington, Paul Grant, and a stanza or three from Harry Usworth.

The cost?..... a mere £3. Doors open at 7.15 and music starts at 8. You'll be sharing a car.... or crawling on home... just after 11 😆

15/02/2026

We’ve got a great night lined up for you on Monday, February 16 - a band who I’ve been trying to get to visit us ever since people started to recommend them a couple of years ago... They’re called First Light, and they’re three talented local musicians with years of experience making good music - two of the three started in brass bands and went on to move into the pop, folk, rock and jazz world playing a range of instruments. They are Bernie, Steve and Tony, and they cover songs by, among others, Lindisfarne, the Strawbs, Paul Simon , and some originals.

There’s another couple of newcomers - to us - too who are making waves on the local live music scene - they’re called Grass Roots, or Paul and Pat to their friends, and they sing and play a variety of string instruments including banjo and ukulele, doing country and bluegrass - so they’ll fit in well with the Leigh Acoustic Night eclectic mix!

I can promise lots of good harmonies going around on Monday, from the above mentioned artistes, and from The Over-the-Hillbillies of course!

Plus I’m going to squeeze in even more talent from the floor - all to be fitted in from 8 to 11pm! Phew!!

Three quid as always…

04/02/2026

Those clever chaps at Paper Boats have come up with a very nice video...

Barco De Papel (born 1921, La Mancha, Spain – died 27 March 1948) was a Spanish-born jazz composer and musician who became associated with the Paris jazz sce...

09/01/2026

We’re kicking off 2026 with an Acoustic Night that’s a week earlier than usual. We aim to fill the 3rd Monday slot of the month normally, but for various reasons we’ve brought it forward to the 2nd - and that’s next week. Dunno about you, but we’re still only just recovering from the excesses of the festivities!

We’ve got a special appearance from our favourites aQuoStick - they’ve not been down for a while but they’re back, and with a new face in the line-up. Expect the best of rock n’ roll - they’re still crockin’ all over the world!

There’ll also be some songs from the full line-up of The Over-the-Hillbillies, and a guest appearance from a close harmony duo called Loctup Together - Chris & Ian from Ormskirk way, who visited us a couple of years ago. And that’s not all…. plenty more familiar faces.

Doors open at 7.15pm, music starts at 8pm and still only £3 to get in!

01/01/2026

Blowing in the New Year!

31/12/2025

Happy New Year Everyone 🥂. Thanks for your support this year. We have some great singers and players lined up for 2026!
Keep music live 😄