By Barry Flynn

THE PROSPECT OF SOME FINE MUSIC attracted a capacity audience of enthusiasts and musicians to Melling Tithebarn on the evening of Saturday 3rd May - they were not to be disappointed (even if the bitter did run out at 9.30 p.m.!)

The line up was an impressive one :- Sharon Cort, vocals and guitar, Jeff Wisor, fiddle and vocals, Ernie Sykes, vocals and bass, Jefferson Louvat, mandolin and guitar, and Bill Keith, banjo.

Unfortunately, Sharon Cort was suffering from a throat infection and only sang a few songs, the most notable being Many Mansions, an original from her fine Highway To Here CD and a superb duet with Ernie Sykes on the classic Once More.

Ernie Sykes took the responsibility for most of the singing and announcing and proved himself to be well equipped for that task, being not only a fine bass player, but an excellent singer and bandleader in his own right. His powerful voice and masterful delivery gave memorable performances of many well known, and some not so well known, songs, including:- My shoes Keep Walking Back To You (Ray Price), Sea Of Heartbreak (Don Gibson), Smoke That Cigarette (Phil Harris), Kentucky Waltz (Bill Monroe), I’ll Never Love Nobody But You (Jim & Jesse) and many more.

Jeff Wisor played excellent fiddle throughout but featured particularly on Dixie Hoedown, Salt Creek and an encore version of Fire On The Mountain .

Bill Keith, Jefferson Louvat, Jeff Wisor, Sharon Cort, Ernie Sykes

Having been brought up to believe that the only good thing to come out of Belgium was Django Reinhardt, I was absolutely amazed to hear the young Belgian virtuoso mandolin player Jefferson Louvat sharing breaks with such skill and confidence, even though it was only the third time he had played with the band! As well as his sparkling mandolin playing, he also turned in an impressive Alabama Jubilee on guitar. If this is what we can expect from Belgium, I can’t wait to hear more.

Completing the line up was the superb Bill Keith on banjo who played tastefully behind the vocals and masterfully in shared breaks with both fiddle and mandolin. He demonstrated to good effect the famous ‘Keith Tuners’ on Earl Scruggs’ Flint Hill Special and his version of Devil’s Dream sounded just as fresh and innovative as when he first recorded it with Bill Monroe on 20th March 1963, having been with the Bluegrass Boys for less than a week.

This was a great show from a great band. It is a tribute to their professionalism and ability that they could put on such a magnificent show when Sharon was so clearly ‘out of sorts’. The band at full strength must be truly awesome!

The support band on this occasion was Prestwich’s Rainy City Bluegrass Band , who were requested to open the first half of the show as a trio, adding fiddle and bass to give a much fuller sound for their second spot.

Again special thanks and congratulations must go to Dave Bresnen for bringing us such a fine show.

Barry Flynn, Litherland, Merseyside

Updated 23rd Jan 1999