Music to feed the soul and warm the heart at Under Ground Theatre

Damian Clarke is bringing his mission to the UGT as he plans to re-introduce the ancient Dulcimer and the fascinating, medieval Hurdy Gurdy. During the last couple of years he has received much acclaim for his playing and audiences have been won over wherever he has performed. Damian’s latest solo CD album is Paths of Desire, a collection of 12 songs played mostly on the Hammer Dulcimer along with the Hurdy Gurdy and Celtic Harp. There are haunting instrumentals from Ireland and self-composed tone-poems that connect to his recent paintings. After the break expect a complete contrast with the music of Rich Somers who is described as slick, soulful, confident, composed and visionary, whether live or in the studio. Rich Somers has a new album, Back on Bourbon Street, which is music to feed the soul. Born in Brighton, Rich picked up the guitar at the age of 11 and has since performed in countries the world over including Mexico and Sri Lanka. Early influences were Wilson Picket and the Eagles. Bourbon Street has many inspirations including Little Frat and Ray Charles. Throughout their performance, Fairtrade coffee and tea and home-made cakes will be on sale in the Under Ground coffee-bar – which will stay open until 4pm for viewing of the latest foyer art exhibition. The second Blues Under Ground gig of the year will be on Thursday February 18 at 7.30pm with the soulful Jim Crawford. Jim is something of an enigma - a shy and retiring man who has however toured much of Europe and the US captivating audiences with his intimate folk/blues style. Softly spoken, Jim has “a richness of voice you can only be born with.” For years he has been revered among professional musicians as a consummate finger picker and slide guitarist. He first came to the attention of a wider audience when invited to record a session for the BBC’s Paul Jones Show. Jim has finished his new solo album Roots & Originals which is available along with his previous albums Blues Boy and When the Rains Came.