live sessions

Collaborations! ‘Drink Me’ video session wt Grethe Borsum

oooh …..this song gives me the chills every time I hear it!

Me and the fabulous Grethe Borsum (Get Her Band) sat down a couple of years ago with some beers and whisky, my resonator and a means to record. The intention? to do some songwriting…

Approaching collaborations you never really know how it will go until it does. The best I bring to it is to focus everything I’ve learned as a musician and songwriter and try to stay focussed on getting something to come away with, as well as having an experience that nurtures the creative process….it needs to flow 🙂   Admittedly, I was a teensy bit nervous, mostly because I’m used to writing on my own and it feels so vulnerable doing that with someone else.

It turned out that we had a lot to talk about…as the evening passed we crafted and played, had a chat and beer break, repeated this countless times. The result of which is this beautiful, lullaby of a song I get lost in every time I hear. Drink Me.

Proud. Happy.  A genuine marinated shared creative experience.

When Grethe made a trip back to Liverpool last month we got together and recorded this video in Jacaranda, I’m so happy it’s here to share.  Thanks to Grethe for her amazing video skills as well as the experience of writing this song together! Also, shout out to Luke Moore who jumped in and did some videoing for us too.

Enjoy x

DSC_0777[1]

Luke, Me, Grethe

Bluebird at the Bluecoat and other creative catch-ups!

Hello!

The last few months for me has been very creative/collaboratively swayed and I’ve had a lot of fun in the process…

Here is a bitesize update of some selective things I’ve been involved in and more will follow!

The most recent venture for me is happening this Saturday at Bluecoat Liverpool.  I entered a songwriting competition a few months ago that was being run by Monkey Mind Productions in Nashville.  After putting forward 3 of my songs I was picked as a finalist for a masterclass and songwriting feedback session taking place at Bluecoat under the banner ‘Bluebird at the Bluecoat’.  We are given the opportunity to perform a song for the visiting Nashville songwriters/industry professionals and Bob Harris.  I’m very excited (and a teeny bit nervous….:) but good nerves for sure).  More to come on this……!

Check out the details here..  http://monkeymindproductions.net/the-bluebird-at-the-bluecoat/

BIG CLOUD:  Earlier this month I went to visit Big Cloud Productions to be interviewed and perform songs for their excellent podcast.  The man in charge is Steve Stroud.  We had a great time., he asked some really interesting questions and we chatted guitar and music geek for at least a couple of hours and over about 4 cups of coffee 🙂 We also discovered we were playing music in New England at the same time a few years ago!    I managed to squeeze in 7 songs.  Here is the vid for this, enjoy:

ROOTS & FUSION:  In the below link you can hear my latest session with Roots & Fusion.  Always a pleasure to work with Rick and Aaron.  Great session from June this year! (2015)

Roots & Fusion no.330, 17/6/15, from Todd Rundgren to Michael Brook via Jo Bywater in session by Roots & Fusion on Mixcloud

BREAK THE MAN: July saw the finished album that I had the pleasure of playing guitar, harmonica and backing vocals on, as well as designing the cover. This was ‘Break the Man by Kwalaparla’. A Western theme featuring gallows and heartbreak. Here’s a fab and deserved review by FATEA Mag.

http://www.fatea-records.co.uk/magazine/2015/KwalaParla.html

Coming up next week is my time to visit Bay TV in Liverpool and play some songs in their studio! More updates and links on that when it’s done and out.

I’ll be back with more updates as they come in and to fill in the blanks from the last couple of months 🙂

Bye for now.

Jo x

Folkscene & Bluebird Cafe comp!

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to go to Radio Merseyside and record an hour-long interview with Liverpool harp legend and all round good ‘un Stan Ambrose for his show Folkscene.  I always have a great and interesting chat with Stan on creativity and songwriting.

Here’s the link to playback for the next 3 weeks.  After that I will add it to my Soundcloud account..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02jv9j6

And and and…

I have also managed to be picked as one of the 20 songwriters invited to go to group songwriting workshops with visiting Nashville songwriters and music industry execs on their visit to Bluecoat, Liverpool for The Bluebird Cafe event on 29th August.

http://monkeymindproductions.net/the-bluebird/

Exciting, creative times!

 

UK Festival Dates

Festival season is upon us and I have some dates around the country newly added!

If you can make it to any of these they will be great fun.  I will be playing songs from Chasing Tales EP, some old ones and some very, very new ones too.   Fingers crossed for the sun.  I hope to see you along the way!

Gigs are constantly being added so you can get my up to date info at the Gigs page.

Jo Bywater Festival dates 2014On updated news I send out a big thanks to the Pure Musical Sensations team at BBC Radio Merseyside who invited me along to perform some live tracks for their show last week.  I will be putting the recordings on my Soundcloud account over the next week or so!

Jo x

many many things .. :)

Hello Feb……     ……!

Not really knowing where to start but I’m so happy with how Chasing Tales EP is going down and my songwriting generally is ticking the right  boxes.   Makes the hard work feel soooo worth it.

Last week I went along to BBC Radio Merseyside to record a session with Dave Monks for BBC Introducing.  I’ve been wanting to get on the show for a while and we finally managed to sort out a date.  Brilliant!  The show was aired on Saturday and can be listened to again for the next few days so if you get chance, I recommend.  I played Chopping Wood and This Garden and did a bit of an interview.  My bit is at 30.39s but  if you want to chill for a bit long I’d say have a listen to the whole show.  Thanks BBC Introducing!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p001d7td

Reviews – wise.  I’ve just managed to pick up a copy of R2 magazine that I was told had a short review of Chasing Tales in.  Here it is!

R2 review - Chasing Tales 2014

R2 review – Chasing Tales 2014

BBC 6 Music! I has some awesome news this month too in the form of BBC 6 Music MIXTAPE.   My song This Garden was picked by Tom Robinson for inclusion on his show a couple of weeks ago.

http://freshonthenet.co.uk/2014/02/mixtape20140210/

Tour –

I have many dates lined up for far for this year.  This weekend brings  :

Fri 21st Feb – The Basement, York.  Supporting Mulholland

Sat 22nd Feb – Songbook Sessions @ The Zanzibar, Liverpool

Sun 23rd Feb – Beerfest @ St Bridgets Church, West Kirby

For upto date gigs head to GIGS

Hope to see you there!

Jo x

Gigs with wet feet #1 – Beverley Folk Festival

There’s nothing like rolling up to a well organised busy festival where people know exactly where you need to be and what time… I have to thank Beverley Folk Festival for this 🙂 Adorned with passes and maps we headed off to our accomodation (a little tent) and after surveying the land and carefully selecting a spot we put up the tent and headed off to see what was going on… It was busy, great!  We stuck around to watch Gretchen Peters and then I went off to warm up for my gig.  As every British festival experience (mostly) there is always a chance that it will rain..it rained a lot and in the space of watching a gig inside by the time we returned to our tent it was half on a puddle  :/  My new trainers were now a little bit wet and no longer green 🙂

My performance was on the Area 2 Stage in the Wold Top Marquee.  There was a really chilled attentive vibe in there, a great stage and bails of hay for people to sit on…and it was warm.   I met some great guys running the stage – Sam Pirt and Vinnie Whitehead, who were also performing and it just was a really nice gig.  I played, and spoke to some lovely people afterwards who came to buy my CD and chat about blues.  I also met the host of The Fox’s Den Show – Bill, who came to say hi and I’m very much looking forward to my now booked live session in October.

After this it was time to chill with some real ale and watch the rest of the days music.  I have to say I was a bit gutted I wasn’t here on Friday because the Proclaimers headlined and that would’ve  been a good end to the day…but I seem to have survived.  Even though me and Blythe had to shimmy our tent off a puddle in high wind a good time was had…

Check out my gigs page to see what’s going on next this summer!

Here is a vid of my performance of Scratch the Surface from said gig –

First festival gig of the summer!

Whilst patiently and creatively spending the last few months immersed in writing new songs and playing with new guitars I haven’t been out as much as usual on the old gig scene…it is however,  time for the summer to begin 🙂

Next stop….Beverley Folk Festival

This has been booked for some time now and I’m very excited at my first festival of the summer..camping, beer, music 🙂

I was invited to play on the Area 2 stage..this is a dedicated section for up and coming developing acts…honoured!  I’ll be there with my new tunes on Sunday 23rd June at 7.40pm…I hope to see youthere! 

Until then have a little listen to the live version of Woollen Hearts I recorded for Billy Kellys Radio show in Liverpool last month..  Jo x

‘This Garden’ a song to bring in summer – free download

Hi all,

Well for as much as I’ve been having a hibernate and writing lots so far this year I also appear to have done much! 2 new songs under my belt all good and strong: Last month I set free ‘Woollen Hearts’ into the ether and this month I have my newest ‘This Garden’.

I had a play around with some new textures on this one and added some harmonies and a sprinkling of flute, thanks to my fab Blythe Cooper.   The song is about having somewhere that brings you back to your recharged state.  Somewhere that reminds you of home (where ever that is) and who you are when things my shake you away for a bit.  I wrote this on my newest acoustic guitar (Taylor 314) and as it was crying out for some finger-picking that is exactly what happened.  The guitar has been beautiful to play on and I’m very much looking forward to doing much more writing on it 🙂

You can listen to the song here! It is a free download at the moment so feel free to sing along, upload it to your Ipod etc….

Over the last month I did my first gig at Threshold Festival, Liverpool and was filmed over the weekend by Addistock and Liverpool Live TV performing Woollen Hearts.   You can see both of these vids on my Videos page.   I had a wonderful review of my gig thanks to Ian @ Liverpool Sound and Vision. 

For April….well,  tomorrow I head to finish my session with Addistock by playing a cover song that will be revealed soon enough 🙂 I shall also be live on The Tillerman Show (www.liverradio.co.uk) 4pm – 6pm from The Lomax, Liverpool.

More updates to come soon! 🙂 Until then enjoy the music and create!

See you soon

Jo x