It could be said that folk can, sometimes, be a bit of a backward-looking genre. What with all of that adventuring on the high seas, wandering off into woodlands and general knavish behaviour that goes on. This evening at Downend Folk & Roots was backward looking in a different sort of a way. There were times when SHERBURN BARTLEY SANDERS, an Irish flecked three piece, felt as though they'd stepped straight out of a 1970s folk club.
Chris Sherburn (concertina) and Denny Bartley (guitar) have been doing their thing for years and it is only, relatively, recently that Emily Sanders’ fiddle has been added to the mix. It all works brilliantly too because she is an absolute star.
As if to lay down their Irish credentials the trio start with The Pogues’ A Rainy Night in Soho. Bravely, they dispense with MacGowan's original tune and squash his wonderful words into their own arrangement. The guitar and concertina thrum gently, a counterpoint to Bartley's strident folk club shout, until Sanders’ fiddle swirls in. It's a glorious late St Patrick’s Day celebration, a celebration of good, old-fashioned, no-nonsense folk music.
Bartley's voice carries with it decades of pub sessions; it is as honest as the day is long, as strong as a pint of stout. On The Longford Weaver he is drenched in his homeland (he's from Co. Limerick), blurring words together as his guitar powers the song along. Sanders see-saws her fiddle to keep pace with him; it's a breathless, dizzying slice of joy and is, according to Sherburn “way faster than any of us was expecting”.
He can be gentle too, though. Bright Blue Rose is slower, more beautiful. The guitar and fiddle crooning and swooning around one another, just as Bartley and Sanders drip honeyed harmonies. On The New Rail Road an old-timey country buzz surrounds him as he tells of sweat and toil. Stabs of concertina and fiddle slash holes through his world until all three break loose into a delirious instrumental conclusion.
If Bartley's voice is traditional and Irish then Sanders is a perfect English complement. Adieu Lovely Nancy, taken from their latest album Be-guile, is gorgeous, despite the heartbreak that befalls the heroine. Bartley's guitar and Sherburn's concertina strum subtly behind her, allowing that voice centre stage. It is sweet but as clear and clean as a March morning. William Taylor is full of fol-de-rolls, expertly marshalled by Sanders while Bartley whips the tune along. The concertina adds whistles and cheeps until the uplifting crescendo of The Autumn Child sweeps away any vestige of trad-folk politeness.
There's a lovely feeling of family togetherness for much of the evening. A voice from the front of the stage continually joins in on choruses and, it quickly transpires, that that voice belongs to young Barney Sherburn, Chris and Emily's son. He comes into his own for the encore, lending high harmonies and “woo-woos” to Pete Coe's The Fireman Song. His enthusiasm is utterly charming - it is the very best of those Sherburn Bartley Sanders old-fashioned values.
The support act for the evening was Welsh singer PAUL LLOYD NICHOLAS and he had a bit of old school folk club about him too. His songs are very sweet indeed, taking little snatches of normal life and weaving them into little stories. Ernest & Adeline is a lottery-win-fantasy packed with heart tugging loveliness while Hold the Line is a love letter from the Verdun frontline. He is jovial company, rolling tales into one another, relishing an audience for the yarns he spins.
The only things that could have made this evening more of a celebration of a time gone by was a cheese and pineapple hedgehog and a keg of Watney's Party Seven but, every now and again, there's not much wrong with embracing a time when things just felt a bit simpler. Sherburn Bartley Sanders, and Paul Lloyd Nicolas, were simplicity itself, and all the better for it.
Words: Gavin McNamara
Photos: Barry Savell
Photos: Barry Savell
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We're all set to celebrate the week of St Patrick’s Day with a distinctly Irish flavour as we welcome SHERBURN BARTLEY SANDERS to South Gloucestershire to headline this month's concert on Friday 20 March.
Chris Sherburn (concertina) and Denny Bartley (vocals, guitar) have brought their unique sound to audiences across the globe since 1993. In 2016, they joined forces with Emily Sanders (fiddle, vocals) blending vocal harmonies and strings to their unique sound.
Their latest album Beguile is the first to feature Chris, Denny and Emily together, and also has some stellar guest performances from Martin Simpson and Andy Seward (Kate Rusby Band).
Now, their soul-stirring songs, exhilarating tunes and quick-witted banter ensures that no two concerts are ever the same. From festival stages to intimate venues, their performances are filled with warmth, laughter, and exceptional musicianship. Don’t miss this chance to experience their magic live!
Opening the evening will be PAUL LLOYD NICHOLAS. Paul is proud to call himself a South Wales singer-songwriter who’s fallen on his feet and has a brilliant time playing to terrific audiences.
Tickets for the concert, which takes place at CHRIST CHURCH DOWNEND on Friday 20th March 2026, are available online HERE or from Downend Cards and Gifts (cash only). They are priced at £14 each in advance or £16 on the door. Doors open at 7.00pm and the music starts around 7.45pm. For information on getting here and parking, please click HERE.
There will be a bar, stocking cider, soft drinks, wine, hot drinks and real ale from Bristol’s HOP UNION BREWERY. Audience members are encouraged to bring their own glass/mug/tankard, as well as reusable bottles for water; there is a 50p discount for those that do. Sweet treats at the bar are courtesy of Radstock-based THE GREAT CAKE COMPANY.
For further information, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or find us on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, BLUESKY, YOUTUBE or TIKTOK.
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In some parts of the South West, it has rained for more than 50 days this year. It certainly feels as though Bristol has been drenched for most of 2026, and it's all been a bit miserable really. What we need then, more than anything, is a bit of sunshine.
There's probably some kind of ridiculous irony that it takes a four-piece from Newcastle to bring some warmth to Downend, but that is exactly what Bluegrass northerners, THE OFTEN HERD, do.
And there is nothing that invokes the last rays of a sleepy summer sun quite like the duel between mandolin and fiddle, the frog-on-a-log ribbit of a double bass and a guitar that simply sings. The Often Herd have all of these and magical harmonies too. The darkest days are instantly brightened.
This is the first date of a nationwide tour and it seems to be an opportunity to try out some new, yet to be recorded, songs and re-visit an old favourite, or two.
Casablanca is a recent-ish single and dust motes dance through sunbeams straight away. Evan Davies’ mandolin and Niles Krieger's fiddle link arms and do-si-do effortlessly while Rupert Hughes' voice is all laid-back '70s ease. It's the sound of well-worn denim, soft to the touch.
Krieger's fiddle floats gently over so much of this evening. It's lazy and gentle on Remember My Name, nudging a bitter-sweet Davies memory into the light. Eventually it sweeps in, shoves any hint of melancholy to one side, and wipes the slate clean. On Sycamore Gap it is plaintive, aching with loss, while it swoons over the waltz-y Hold On.
It is the perfect mix between American, country-tinged good times and the lush green of an English pastoral idyll (maybe not that surprising as the American Krieger has lived in England for fifteen years). A version of Bill Monroe's Working on a Building is flecked with sawdust while raising gospel rafters. The fiddle carving light and hope. Solos from everyone else add gorgeous decoration and Hughes sings his heart out. Bluegrass magic in the most English of churches.
Dylan's You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go bounces along to Sam Quintana's bass, the perfect foundation for more intricate solos from Davies’ mandolin, while Inner Peace struts along a high wire, mandolin and fiddle recklessly chasing one another, just for fun.
A cover of Lindisfarne's Meet Me on the Corner is comforting like an old friend. Hughes almost shimmers in '70s heartthrob soft-focus, singing from the hazy pages of Look In. The fiddle and mandolin are simply astonishing as Americana invades Englishness, once again. Each player steps forward to show what they've got but this isn't to show off, it's more a celebration.
New songs, many of which go un-named, show that The Often Herd aren't satisfied with just (!) being a Bluegrass band. There are hints of “proper” country music, of swirls of folk and gauzy pop. Evergreen Blues, for example, is a stately waltz, filled with wit and charm, that explodes as Krieger pushes against the canopy overhead, letting in so much light.
By the end of their set there's dancing in the corners, whooping and hollering and dazed smiles on every face. And maybe, just maybe, there's some sunshine on the horizon.
The support for the evening was local duo GREEN TREE. Abbey and Rory from high-energy Bristol Bluegrass foot-stompers, Old Baby Mackerel, thank us for coming to see “weirdo American folk music” and then play a lovely set of, um, weirdo American folk music. Except, of course, it's not that weird at all - unless you consider writing a Bluegrass song about queueing in the Tesco in Staple Hill as strange (I Always Back the Wrong Horse).
Abbey's voice is wonderfully sweet, on Take me to the Sea, while her mandolin chugs away, allowing flash guitar solos from Rory. There's infectious exuberance and an assuredness that only the very best duos have, the ones that really know about this stuff. The instrumental, Where the Gnomes Live, taken from their latest EP, is just great. Two instruments, gloriously inter-locked, playing for the sheer delight of it. Another band finding light in the dark.
If the time since Christmas has been water-logged and miserable then a hefty dose of Bluegrass is exactly what is needed. Downend Folk & Roots, as it so often does, delivered in spades.
Words: Gavin McNamara
Photos: Barry Savell
Photos: Barry Savell
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