Al Collingwood & Friends in association with Art Plumstead

Eclectica Nights in association with Art Plumstead is proud to present The Al Collingwood Connection and Kate and Bob

Friday 14th June 

Doors open 7:00, music 7.30pm - 10.30pm

Tickets £6 in advance from https://www.trybooking.com/uk/60179 £10 on the door. 

Al plays piano by ear and has been writing music since he was 10. He’s composed for TV (French & Saunders, BBC Saturday Night Live, How Clean is Your House?) and theatre (incl. West End) and played 100s of gigs and live shows of all sorts. He is currently touring and co-writing new plays and songs with Dogwood theatre company. He’s composed for live shows (Mel and,  Sue, Nigel Planer, Jackie Clune, Dana Gillespie, George Melly). His theme tunes have been sung by Amanda Holden, Jamie Theakston and Rhona Cameron for various BBC sitcoms. Al has had a varied recording career, been signed with Carrere, A&M and MCA Records and released dance hits with Global Underground and Plastic Fantastic.

But Al has never played singer/ songwriter sets showcasing his own songs…. until now!  Prompted by recording a solo album he’ll be performing songs he’s written himself and songs written with lyricists met along the way. Guests tonight include long-term collaborator Graham Humphreys on drums/ percussion.

Kate studied piano at the Royal Academy of Music and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She was a founding director of 'PianoCircus', an international touring group of six pianists. PianoCircus provided contemporary new music, innovative performance, occasional flying pianos and recordings with Decca's 'Argo' label. She has provided music in educational and therapeutic settings for many years. Kate has recently re-launched forth from her base in Plumstead on adventures new, exploring different styles of music and performance, Ocean sailing in a classic wooden boat created the obvious opportunity to master Celtic music and sea-shanties on the anglo concertina. 

Following an inconsequential early career playing floor spots in folk clubs, Bob played incomprehensible electric guitar in a number of dreadful pub bands in the hope of being supplied with free drinks by enthusiastic landlords. This rarely happened. His later work includes performances at the ICA, Jazz Café, Secret Cinema and topping the bill at one of the main stages at the London Olympics as one of the much lamented ‘Fabulous Whelk Brothers’ duo, all of which included free drinks and occasional stale pizza. Latterly returning to his folk roots (the Catford One-Way System) and fascinated by the depth and intricacy of Celtic folk music, Bob decided to follow the call to accompany Kate’s concertina on his Irish Bouzouki.

https://www.alcollingwood.com/