Geordie Dialect Songs
I have a longstanding affection for our dialect songs. I was born in Blaydon and that's where my interest started as the 'Blaydon Races' Geordie anthem is the most famous of a quite amazing, immensely varied repertoire of local song in dialect. It's a tradition of which Geordies worldwide are rightly proud. I think they uniquely encapsulate our culture, humour, history, emotions and language in a delightful way. This heritage of Tyneside and Northumbrian dialect songs goes back over centuries. They range from old folk songs handed down aurally, to Victorian Music Hall. From songs from the 1950s radio program 'Wot Cheor Geordie' to recent folk idiom and pop songs.

Jazz Musician and Blaydon Jazz Club
I played guitar in my teens and eventually became very interested in jazz guitar alongside a love of jazz music generally. I left my office job to study music 1992/95 after which I taught guitar until I retired in 2006. I helped start and still help to organise things at Blaydon Jazz Club which has run continuously since 1984. The photograph just under the top left is from the jazz club in the early days and shows (l to r) John Barnes, Bill Smith and myself. Happy times.

Local History
Our local history and culture is something to be proud of. The history of my home patch, the Blaydon and Winlaton locality is, in several aspects, remarkable and it is no exaggeration to say that. I have some Blaydon area historical information on the website which I hope you might find interesting. Check out the history of the keelmen and early coal mining, Sir Ambrose Crowley III and Crowley's Crew, The Cowens, Blaydon Burn, the Lead Road, Axwell Hall, The Spike, The White City, and, last but not least, the history of the Blaydon Races. The photograph top left is of the delightful Path Head Mill at Blaydon.

YouTube/BlaydonAces channel
I have examples of my interests on my YouTube BlaydonAces channel. I've put my videos into 'playlists' which you may wish to check out. They are about my music (both dialect songs and jazz repertoire), the jazz club, local countryside walks, aspects of local history and natural history. I've included some informal music renditions recorded at home during and since the covid lockdowns.