Members £16, Non-members £18
This will be a very special night from these true troubadours, who have plied their trade all over the world since the 60s.
Allan Taylor came through the social and artistic revolution of the nineteen sixties and carved out a career as a solo singer-songwriter. Born in Brighton, England in 1945 left home at the age of twenty one and became part of the vibrant folk music of London, and then to Greenwich Village, New York.
He embraced the issues, images and emotions of his time and used these experiences as the basis of his songs.
By the mid-seventies he returned to Europe to live and then started on the second part of his career, having now established his modus operandi – collecting the stories for his songs in the bars and cafes of Europe and throughout the rest of the world.
He is considered to be one of the foremost singer-songwriters and guitarists in his genre, with more than one hundred recorded versions of his songs by Artists in ten different languages. One song in particular, “It’s good to see you” was a hit in many countries, with over 100 cover versions of this song, including such diverse artists as Frankie Miller, Don Williams and Ken Dodd!
He writes most of his songs in cafes, bars and hotel rooms throughout the world, songs for the lost and lonely, for the unsung heroes of life, for those marginalised by society – they all find a place in his songs.
Each song has an integrity that tells you it comes from something real; characters come to life as people you know and places become as familiar as if you had been there.
Mike Silver was born in Uffington, Oxfordshire (then Berkshire) in 1945 and started playing guitar at the age of 15, joining a number of locally-known "beat" groups in the Croydon area from around 1964 onwards.
He was inspired to move to a more fingerstyle folk/blues approach after witnessing Gerry Lockran at a Canterbury folk club, and began performing himself in the folk clubs of London and Cornwall from the late 1960s onwards.
In 1971, he formed the trio, Daylight, with Chrissie Quayle and Steve Hayton, an American then resident in the UK, which produced an album for RCA. Following this, Mike signed to Elton John's Rocket Record Company as the first solo artist, other than John himself, and released the album Troubadour in 1973. Also in that year he toured in the US as support to Dory Previn and Ashford and Simpson.
Since 1976, Mike has concentrated life as a singer-songwriter on the UK folk scene, with frequent performing trips into Europe, and has released more than 12 further solo albums. His song "Maybe It's Just Love" was picked up by Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward, and included on his 1980 album, Night Flight.
Currently based in Camelford, Cornwall, Mike continues to perform around the UK folk circuit solo and has latterly with Johnny Coppin, including the release of a joint album, Breaking the Silence. Quoted by John Newman of the West Briton: "Mike Silver has a unique style, drawing from many influences including folk, rock, country and blues, all of which are evident, with an end result that is magical and should be a source of inspiration to songwriters everywhere. Mike’s introduction to Hitchin was as accompanying guitarist for Brenda Wootton.
Please note.
The venue is wheelchair friendly, with disabled parking places adjacent to the entrance, a lift and disabled toilets. Doors open 6.45pm (soundcheck permitting), concert starts 7.30pm.
Many of our concerts are "pay on the door". We have 140 capacity, so there is not generally an issue with being able to get in. Concerts that we are fairly sure are going to sell out are designated "Ticket only" events, for which tickets must be purchased in advance. However, tickets may be purchased in advance for any concert. Order your tickets by dropping us an email.
We now have facility to purchase tickets in advance by bank transfer, preferable to avoid contact with cash on the night. We will hold tickets on the door for you or post them for the addition of £1. We also now have a contactless card option for on the door purchases.
Order your tickets by dropping us an email.