Acoustic Club Information

Wednesday 6th October 2021

The Horn at the Half Moon
31 North Street, Bishop's Stortford. CM23 2LD

Hello Acoustic Clubbers

It has been a constant source of amazement that since we have re started the Club since the lifting of the lock down the level of sheer joy and enthusiasm of our performers has been amazing. Last time we had a brilliant Showcase from Anna Wells. 

This week we have the ever green and brilliant Sheri Kershaw Band which is a delight for all music lovers

Also it would churlish not to mention that on Saturday 9th October there is a memorial day to the Late Great Dangerous Brian Barrett at the Cock Inn at Hockerill Lights on Stansted Road, Stortford.

BRIAN FEST

Brian passed away last year after suffering a stroke and has been missed by us all in the Herts and Essex live music scene. He was an eager and popular member of the live music community playing with so many bands, groups and ensembles. He could always be counted on to turn up at a Blues Jam almost anywhere at the drop of a hat, host the legendary Stansted 02 Summer Festival at the Dog and Duck whilst dressed and performing as a magician and then fill in or headline any blues band being it Blues Export or Blues Inc, Bill, Dangerous and Brian the Bash and so many Bands in between.
 
It is fair to say that we all loved Brian and miss him enormously.
 
The 9^th October will be a day dedicated to Brian, his music and his personality by his friends, collaborators and band mates. Starting at 1.00pm and finishing "late" this is a smashing gesture organised by Mike Happenin’boy at The Cock, Stansted Road, Bishops Stortford


Bill

6th October 2021

THE SHERI KERSHAW BAND and 8 Floor spots
Sheri is a professional musician and has been over 40 years. She has toured around the world alongside artists such as Elton John and Paul Young and sung in many stadiums and large theatres. As a backing vocalist she has appeared on television (Top of the Pops, Jools Holland and others) and has had many radio appearances in Europe, Japan, the USA and Australia as well as at home here in the UK. Many memorable moments include singing vocals on stage at the Royal Albert Hall and being on stage in front of 4000 at the AccorHotels arena in Bercy, Paris.

A life lived with music at its core!

Sheri is a prolific songwriter whose styles have varied over the years. Writing since the age of 13, she was influenced strongly by songwriters such as Joni Mitchel and James Taylor.

These days she has moved into her own ground writing and performing her own songs, Blues, Americana, ballads, sometimes jazz influenced, often the Blues comes through but always following her creative inner world allowing her natural musical soul a place to fly and to be heard.

The current band includes Sheri herself (vocals and guitar), Martyn Hewitt (guitar) and John (guitar and bass). The only way that you can adequately descrobe the band is "tight". 
Sheri has three albums under her belt and a fourth on the way.

We also have a full list of supporting artists
Bill Tarran - Host and MC
Marcus Lamprell
Paul Booth
Laura Dannan
Colin Frid
Dan Starr

As usual doors open at 8.30, music starts at 9.00pm. Sheri and the Band will take the stage at about 10.30 and we should finish at around 11.00pm.

Admission, as ever, is £5 on the door (cash only please we are still in the dark ages!) 

Last time we were delighted to welcome back ANNA WELLS to the Long Room at the Acoustic Club

Dave Denny has been in touch and he tells us that due to the Covid situation St Clares Hospice is struggling with fund raising. Which in itself does not cause any surprise. The Hospice Network has been hamstrung over the past 18 months as it has been impossible to raise any money through the normal participation events. These event result in the necessary donations that help to keep them running. To try to assist in fund raising Dave has sent us some copies of his latest album, which was recorded live at the Acoustic Club. The Album is a real treat for the ears and at £5.00 is a bargains. 100% of the monies raised from this and Dave's previous 3 Albums have all been donated to St Clares over the years

WHATS ON SOON

20^th OCTOBER 6 Acts x 4 Songs
Line up to be announced

27^th OCTOBER TENNESSEE TWIN and 8 Floor spots
Tonight’s supporting acts are our Young Players
Tennessee Twin are a skillful acoustic duo playing original modern country music from their base in Cambridge, UK. Their original songs have quickly caught the admiration of British country audiences, blending memorable melodies, gritty yet thoughtful lyrics and delicious harmonies. Keren Morall - country commentator and podcast host, said of Tennessee Twin ‘These guys are exceptional. The emotion they bring with their songs is undeniable. Their story telling is second to none.

<<WHATS ON SOON>>

COVID COMMONSENSE AND THE HORNS

In conjunction with our Landlords please read the following information from them. It just makes sense!

Following the announcement by HM Government that all legal restrictions for social contact measures will be lifted from Monday 19 July. It's been 16 very long months since our last gig without any restrictions, and we can't wait to welcome everyone back to gigs without social contact restrictions, and we will continue to make them as safe as we possibly can. Covid isn't going away anytime soon and we are committed to keeping everyone - you, our team members, our crew and all the artists, safe. We see this as a partnership with you, our friends and our community, to try to keep everyone safe from the risk of Covid infection. So please read these...

Six ways to enjoy a safe visit to The Horn at the Half Moon.

1. Please don't come if you have Covid symptoms, or believe you may have been exposed to infection. If you are suffering from Covid symptoms or fear you may be an infection risk and therefore shouldn't attend, we will be able to offer you a refund for your ticket.

2. Before coming to one of our events, we recommend that you do everything you can to make sure that you personally are not infectious. You can do this by:
-Getting vaccinated
-Taking a lateral flow test
-Registering that you are immune (due to previous Covid infection)

To be clear; we don't believe that we should operate a policy of excluding you from our venue because you haven't done those things. We will NOT be operating a certification or passport model to enter our shows. There are lots of reasons to not do this, not least the large numbers of people who have not had the opportunity for both vaccines and vulnerable people who cannot be vaccinated. But you, personally, can make sure you aren't adding to anyone's risk by keeping your record of immunity up to date, getting vaccinated when you are able and taking a free lateral flow test before you come. No one is forcing you to do this. We are just asking you to be kind and thoughtful and do it for the safety of everyone else and for our team members.

3. Some of our team members will be wearing face coverings during events. They are doing this because face coverings work. We aren't going to have a big social media debate with anyone about it, wearing a face covering inside an enclosed space like OUR VENUE reduces the risk of direct droplet transmission, so our team members may choose to wear them. If you want to reduce your contribution to the risk of droplet transmission, you can choose to wear a mask whenever you like during the event.

No one will force you to wear a mask, you can be kind and thoughtful and choose to wear one when it isn't inconvenient. If you are vulnerable, we strongly recommend that you wear a mask if you are able, and avoid close contact with gig goers who have chosen not to wear a mask.

4. The Half Moon is an intimate venue and whilst the operating margins for our events are very tight we will be reducing the number of tickets we sell for gigs to allow for increased comfort when in attendance. If at any point you don’t feel comfortable with being in an enclosed space with multiple people without restrictions please let a member of our team know. We also ask that you consider that other audience members may be anxious about returning to these environments, please help us ensure that everyone’s experience is as safe and enjoyable as it can be.

5. Service from the bar will return, however due to the great feedback that you’ve given we will continue to offer service using the app to order food and drink directly to your table. We are also planning to have collection points on the bars including collection only in the venue bar on all shows.

6. We will be deep cleaning the building very regularly including wiping down all surfaces. There are hand sanitiser stations around the building, and we ask you to please play your part in keeping the building clean from contact risk by regularly washing your hands and using the sanitiser.

We are a Grassroots Music Venue, we are also a community. Please always think of the safety of others and look after yourself at the same time.

TO ALL OUR PLAYERS

We are now starting to book for next year.
We will publish the dates for 2022 very shortly but we are trying very hard to avoid any other evenings of acoustic music in the locality.

If you would like to be considered for a Headline Spot or an invite to play at our 4 songs 6 act evenings please contact Geoff as soon as possible.

To help identify the evenings we are running and whats on please click the link below

Acoustic Club Programme to December 2021