Jaywalkers seen at the Valley Folk Club

By Gareth Cornfield

Don’t worry, I don’t mean that there were people walking illegally; I am referring to the band.

The Valley Folk Club has been going for over forty years now. It is held in The Ivy Bush, Pontardawe. The first Friday of the month is the singer’s night where anyone can get up and sing, play or recite poetry. The third & fifth (if there is one) Fridays are guest nights.

Last Friday we were entertained by Jaywalkers, purveyors of fine Bluegrass & Folk. They were BBC Young Folk finalists in 2009 and have gone from strength to strength. They are: Jay on vocals, fiddle & guitar; Mike on mandolin, guitar & backing vocals & Lucy on slap bass. Mike is also the main songwriter of the band, although the girls do apparently help with the titles of some songs. Unfortunately, the titles are too rude to say!!!!

They have an authenticity to their sound that can only come from being immersed in the culture from an early age, listening to bluegrass from the womb onwards, living in the mountains of Kentucky, breathing the air of Appalachia. How they managed to get that in Chester & Lancashire, I will never know!

Mike, Jay & Lucy, (from their Facebook page.)

It is true. They are not American. You would never know it from their playing though. They brought out their first album, ’16 Miles’ in 2011 whilst a duo, Lucy being on the album as a session musician. She permanently joined after this and they have just released the follow up, ‘Early for a Thursday’, on the 101 Records Label, distributed by Proper Records.

I have both albums and can confirm that they are fantastic. Jay’s singing of the classic, ‘Poor Wayfaring Stranger’ is beautiful, whilst Mike’s mandolin playing on ‘Lonesome Fiddle Blues’ is excellent. Both tracks from ’16 Miles’.

The Valley Folk Club is a small, intimate venue. The night is as for many folk club guest nights: Floor spots followed by the guest, an interval, more floor spots, a raffle and the guest to finish. Jaywalkers kindly donated a copy of their CD as a prize, which was gratefully accepted. I had the great honour of MC’ing the night, so I had the chance to speak to the band, who were lovely.

They exude the confidence in each other that comes from being together for so long. They joked about the journey down & the perils of Sat Nav, before launching into an evening of sublime music. I had a close view of them and so had the opportunity to see Mike’s mandolin playing at close quarters.

He is good! Jay is no slouch on fiddle either, but for me the revelation was Lucy on slap bass. She was relaxed and effortless yet was getting the Double Bass to be a drum as well. Her hands were a blur as she put in triplets of rhythm whilst playing a walking bass line. Mesmerising!

Jaywalkers (from their Facebook page)

The standards of musicianship on display were of the highest order. The club was packed. There were representatives of the thriving Bluegrass scene, including Roland Emmanuel, who gave us a floor spot, and other clubs in the area, from Llandeilo & Newport, all of whom are looking to book these guys if they haven’t already. I would recommend seeing this band at your earliest opportunity.

Even if you don’t like Bluegrass that much. They also perform songs that are more from the folk tradition. There is a storytelling in their songs that I really appreciate and a lyricism in their delivery. Yes they can play fast, the default Bluegrass setting, but they also play sensitive. A fantastic night. A pure delight.

I cannot wait to see them again and to playing their albums for you on my radio show, FRWT Salad, Radio Tircoed, 106.5 fm, www.radiotircoed.com.

Jaywalkers can walk this way again, any time they like.