Events

Ropemakers Open Mic Night

Wed 1st MAy - 8:30pm

Pack your talent and leave the safety of the bedroom and come on down and strut your inner rock star so that all can enjoy. All types of musician and poet welcomed. Better come early to book yer space. Hosted by the talented Nick and Si from Behind Closed Doors

Behind Closed Doors

Fri 3rd MAy - 9:15pm

Behind Closed Doors, (consisting of one Cajon player/vocalist - Si Dew and one guitarist/vocalist - Nick Randall) formed in 2014 and have been entertaining the locals of Bridport ever since. They perform up-tempo acoustic covers with a slight heavy metal undertone with, at times, a comical edge

The Curst Sons

Sat 4th MAy - 9:15pm

The Curst Sons have been playing their powerful stripped back take on early American traditional music since 1998. Performing mainly original material with a few distinctive arrangements of traditional songs they have released six CDs -and one 10” vinyl EP on their own Curst Mountain label. Over the years they have played venues ranging from tiny country pubs to festival main stages, appeared on several local radio shows and recorded two live sessions on the much missed Mark Lamarr BBC Radio 2 show. They were runners up in the 2013 International Song Writing Competition, nominated for Best Alt Country Album in the 10th Independent Music Awards 2011 and for Best Americana Act in the British Country Music Awards 2010. Tim Dunkerley (slide guitar, mandolin, vocals). Tim’s interest in music was first awakened by his father’s tales of wild living in a harmonica band on the minesweeper HMS Hound. Loath to leave his nautical background Tim coast hopped east from his Portsmouth home and soon washed up on the beach at Brighton. He is also a teacher/ facilitator with Unified Rhythm, a samba/fusion marching band for young adults, including those with learning difficulties. Willi Kerr (vocals, percussion). Born on Mersea Island on the marshy fringes of Essex, Willi abandoned his agricultural roots and took to the sinful ways of the city. Diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma (an incurable cancer of the bone marrow) in 1998 he was given 6 days to live. Being a cantankerous old cuss he decided that this was the perfect time to re-launch his musical career, and The Curst Sons were born. Thanks to the healing power of hillbilly music he is now in the rudest of health. Dave (Specky) Simner (banjo, lead guitar, vocals). Raised in the Black Country on a diet of heavy metal and motorbikes Dave fled south till he hit the coast. He lost the long hair and leather jacket and soon became entangled in the Brighton music scene. He has played in more bands than he can remember and somehow took up the banjo. He also plays with his own 60’s R&B outfit The Spectones, and in his day job leads music sessions for adults with learning disabilities

Jim Reynolds

Sun 5th May - 4:00pm

Jim Reynolds is a guitarist and singer who writes and plays an eclectic mix of music. The individual pieces tap into blues, ragtime, rhythm and blues, music hall and folk traditions. Some are extremely sensitive songs about life, people and relationships, while others are tongue in cheek. His albums are also sprinkled with classics from the likes of J.J. Cale, Nick Drake, John Martyn, Roy Orbison, the Inkspots, Jelly Roll Morton and Jimmy Rogers. Having played abroad and in the U.K., especially in Bristol, the South West, Wales, the Midlands and recently the South East, at clubs, pubs and festivals, he has honed his singing and playing, creating a rich and cohesive sound. His finely crafted songs and guitar are a pleasure to listen to and live performances are always memorable. Despite the rarity of 'happy' tunes, the wry observations and descriptions of peoples' experience are somehow uplifting, delivering a sense of humanity and intimacy. Jim has chosen to play his own particular style of music producing albums appreciated and bought by listeners at live performances.

Ropemakers Cheese Club

Wed 8th May - 7:30pm

Six superb cheeses from the West Midland, all served with a selection of crackers and accompaniments. Tickets are available from the bar at £7.00 each. Get your tickets early for this popular night as we have limited spaces. Booking for this event is essential

The Mutter Slater Band

Fri 10th May - 9:15pm

Mutter Slater was the front man and flute player for the 70s cult band Stackridge (produced by George Martin, signed by Elton John): a group that established itself as a firm favourite on countless stages throughout the land and appeared regularly on BBC TV’s The Old Grey Whistle Test and John Peel’s radio programmes. After Stackridge, Mutter returned to a life of quiet domesticity in the South West of England. The songwriting and performing bug eventually got the better of him, leading to the formation of his band and a return to the recording studios – Love & Hate in 2006; Riding A Hurricane in 2008 (produced by Billy Bragg) and 2014’s Absobloodylutely.

The Wessex Pistols

Sat 11th May - 9:15pm

All the Punk Hits (and more) Hillbilly Style ....guitar/mandolin/squeeze-box/double-bass/fiddle/stand-up drums

Danny Adams

Sun 12th May - 4:00pm

At the age of 27 Danny's art of performance and production has already helped him achieve some of his dreams and aspirations including making his first EP with Tribal Law at Abbey Road Studios with living legend Eddie Kramer in 2010, to being 1 of only one hundred singers chosen out of 180,000 to Audition For the first Series of BBC's The Voice UK 2012. Performing to live to audiences ranging from hundreds to thousands since the age of 6 and cutting his teeth gigging from age 13, Music and the love of music is as much a part of Danny as the love he has for his family and friends. With the release of his first album with "The Black Mariahs" in 2013 and constant work live and in the studio with up and coming talent of all genres, Danny hopes to make an impression on the world of music and its listeners with his unique style, performance, sound design, and song writing

Bridport Folk Festival Music Quiz

Thu 16th May - 8:00pm

Fundraising quiz for Bridport Folk Festival held every third Thursday of the month until summer. Come and enjoy the music

The Skarlatans

Fri 17th May - 9:15pm

Bridport based Rocksteady band with a little Latin infusion

Hobo Jones and the Junkyard Dogs

Sat May 18th - 9:15pm

Hobo Jones & The Junkyard Dogs are one of the most original bands that you will find on the pub and festival circuit today. They are 3 guys Wino Tyrone, Miser Bill, and Davey Malone who are from Maidstone in Kent, who at first sight look like three dusty old tramps busking on a stage. These three guys are all very rich with talent and skills in entertaining any crowd young or old, with their skiffle style of reworking old classics. Their story starts when they bunked over then fence at the Levellers Beautiful Days festival in Devon where they busked their way around entertaining all onlookers. They impressed Levellers front man Mark Chadwick so much he invited them to support his band on tour. Their popularity has just grown and grown with lots of performances at large prestigious festivals, such as Cambridge Folk Festival, Bearded Theory and Glastonbury, as well as invitations back to Beautiful Days.

Ben Morgan-Brown

Sun 19th MAy - 4:00pm

Ben Morgan-Brown is a singer/songwriter and accomplished finger style guitarist – named by FATEA magazine as one of the ‘Rising Stars of 2018’ and described by Tom Robinson of BBC6 Music as ‘the brilliant Ben Morgan-Brown’, his intimate and often highly personal songs and performances have drawn comparisons to Bert Jansch, John Smith, Nick Drake & Ryley Walker. Since the release of his debut E.P. ‘Cold Rooms’ in December 2017 Ben has been performing extensively across the South West and beyond, with appearances at ‘How The Light Gets In’, ‘Bridport Folk Festival’ and ‘Cornwall Folk Festival’ amongst others, and has opened for established and upcoming artists including John Bramwell (I Am Kloot), Harbottle & Jonas, Daria Kulesh, Hannah Sanders & Ben Savage and Tim Jones & The Dark Lanterns.

Sunset Cafe Stompers

Mon 20th May - 8:15pm

The Sunset Cafe was a top night-spot on Chicago’s infamous South Side. Al Capone owned it, Louis Armstrong starred there. The Sunset Cafe Stompers do play the music of that period... great tunes from Scott Joplin, Irving Berlin, Jelly Roll Morton, Duke Ellington, Fats Waller... but the band’s wide repertoire also features songs made famous by artists as diverse as Patsy Cline, Marilyn Monroe, the Inkspots, Fats Domino... even Elvis. Beneath it all, one can sense the elusive, shifting, pulse which defines the sound of New Orleans. In that city, ever since the 1900s, bands have been hired to attract a crowd, or to add spirit and generate excitement for all kinds of occasion. Throughout the last twenty years we have followed in that tradition: playing jazz clubs, concerts for churches, arts centres, village dances, weddings, festivals, funerals, garden parties..

TBC

Fri 24th May

The Freeborn Brothers

Sat 25th May - 9:15pm

We bring this band all the way from Poland just for your delight. Live music performance connected with crazy theatre and weird circus, those things are dragging everybody into it, if you think thats it... NO! add insane gypsy dancing, endless energy and fun than you will get just a draft of FBB live show. Every show is different from the other, never doing the same routine, you can see them hundreds of times and you not gonna be bored. Freeborn Brothers are Niko Soszynski, Mateusz Plesniak and Pawel Kus. Love to music and need to be on stage and entertain people put them together to hit the road and create this amazing orchestra! Everytime when you wonder how to describe the band or what label put on it and you don't know how to do it cause variety of music is so wide and different that means you've got something unique and special

Andrew Hurst

Sun 26th May - 4:00pm

Andrew’s varied musicality includes composing and performing music for theatre, presenting solo recitals in a variety of venues – with music including mediaeval and renaissance lutes, archlute, classical guitar, and steel-strung 12 string guitar, reaching out to wide audiences by giving bar, pub and street performances of classical guitar repertoire and arrangements,

The Jimmy Hillbillies

Fri 31st May - 9:15pm

Dorset's finest Rockabilly Stomp outfit. They specialise in a heady mix of old time Hillbilly and well known tunes mashed up with a driving beat.