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Johnny Collins
Pedlar of
Songs
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Johnny Collins, a native of the county of Norfolk but now
based in London, England, is a well travelled performer
specialising in the singing of shanties, sea songs and maritime
ballads.
An internationally acclaimed performer and recording artist,
Johnny has organised Folk clubs and topped the bill in concerts
around the world since the mid-fifties: his vigorous style and
his supreme ability to persuade audiences to join in choruses is
unrivalled.
Johnny is a familiar and welcome figure at many of the
world's foremost maritime venues and festivals, and has guested
in the U.S.A. at Maine Maritime Museum, Kendall Whaling Museum
and Newport News Maritime Museum. He has also delighted audiences
with several concert appearances at Mystic Seaport (U.S.A.) and
was resident shantyman at Expo '88 in Brisbane, Australia.
1983 was a highpoint in his singing career when, in
partnership with Jim Mageean, he was a winner of the Intervision
Song Contest in Rostock, GDR, with a medley of English sea
shanties. In 1987, Johnny was invited by the government of the
GDR to appear at the Berlin Shanty Festival which was organised
to celebrate 750 years of that city.
Regular forays into Europe continue to be part of Johnny's
yearly itinerary. He has been a main guest at the annual
Liereliet at the Strontrace in Workum, Netherlands for the past
21 years. He also sings regularly in Belgium, Brittany, Germany,
Holland, Poland and France.
Nearer home, he has been acclaimed as a shanty supremo at
many of the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Race venues, including
Southampton, Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne, and other U.K.
maritime festivals at Hull, Lancaster, Bristol, Dundee, Maldon,
Portsmouth, Gosport, Greenwich and Chatham.
Some Special Forthcoming Appearances
As well
as regular appearances at U.K. folk clubs, Johnny is booked at
the following festivals in 2008:
23rd to 26th May - Chippenham Folk Festival (U.K.)
30th May to 2nd June - Cobh Maritime Festival (Eire)
27th to 29th June - Braunston Canal Festival (U.K.)
1st to 4th August - Millrace, Cambridge, Ontario (Canada).
5th to 8th September - Sosnowiec (Poland)
12th to 14th September - Bromyard Folk Festival (U.K.)
20th September - Deal Maritime Folk Festival (U.K.)
10th to 12th October - Harwich Shanty Festival (U.K.)
17th to 20th October - Workum International Shanty Festival (Netherlands)
Appearances in 2007
11th January - Maidenhead Folk Club - 'The Seven Stars', Knowl Hill, Berkshire (U.K.)
26th January - St Mary's in the Marsh Folk Club - 'The Star Inn', St Mary's in the Marsh, Romney
Marsh, Kent (U.K.)
27th January - Essex Singers' Club - 'United Brethren' pub, Chelmsford (U.K.)
23rd to 25th February - Chicago Maritime Festival (U.S.A.)
11th May - An Goilin Folk Club, Dublin (Eire)
18th to 20th May - Kielce Shanty Festival (Poland)
25th to 28th May - Chippenham Folk Festival (U.K.)
1st to 4th June - Cobh Maritime Festival (Eire)
6th to 8th July - Two Rivers Folk Festival - Chepstow (U.K.)
24th to 26th August - Romanshorn International Maritime Festival, Romanshorn (Switzerland).
For further information, visit: www.seafolksong.ch
14th to 16th September - Bromyard Folk Festival (U.K.)
28th to 30th September - Whittlebury Song & Ale (U.K.)
12th to 15nd October - Workum International Shanty Festival (Netherlands)
27th October - Kielce - Joseph Conrad Memorial Festival (Poland) -
9th to 11th November - Vlieland Shanty Weekend - Masterclass Leader, Vlieland (Netherlands)
23rd to 25th November - Bedworth Festival (U.K.)
Appearances in 2006
14th to 17th April - Lancaster Maritime Festival (U.K.)
28th April to 1st May- Rochester Sweeps Festival (U.K.) - cooking on Julia of Faaborg
26th to 29th May - Chippenham Festival (U.K.)
2nd to 4th June - Deil (Netherlands)
9th to 11th June - Cobh Maritime Festival (Eire)
28th June - Banbury Folk Club (U.K.)
7th to 9th July - Swansea Maritime Festival, South Wales (U.K.)
20th to 23rd July - Bay City Michigan Festival (U.S.A.)
24th to 27th July - Minneapolis (U.S.A.)
28th July to 3rd August - Toronto (Canada)
4th to 8th August - Millrace Festival, Cambridge, Ontario (Canada)
18th to 20th August - Enkhuizen (Netherlands)
25th to 28th August - Shrewsbury Festival (U.K.)
8th to 10th September - Bromyard Folk Festival (U.K.)
11th September - The Grand Union Folk Club (U.K.) - The Soar Bridge Inn, Barrow upon Soar, Leics. Contact: jen-bill@sileby.fsworld.co.uk
13th September - Bedworth Folk Club - The Conservative Club Bedworth (U.K.)
16th September - Deal Shanty Festival (U.K.)
22nd to 24th September - Whittlebury Song & Ale (U.K.)
20th to 22nd October - Workum International Shanty Festival (Netherlands)
17th to 19th November - Stan Hugill Memorial Weekend, Liverpool (U.K.)
24th to 26th November - Bedworth Festival (U.K.)
Johnny is available for
bookings and can be contacted on:
Tel. No. +44(0) 208 866 1635
Mobile Tel. No. +44(0) 7970 174316
Fax. No. +44(0) 1923 245440
Links
Some interesting related sites.
This List was last updated on 12th March 2008.
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