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Description: | Folk singer Jack Elliott was born in Birtley, Co. Durham in 1907. He began work in the pit aged 13. This was at Harraton Colliery (Cotia), where he worked all his life and always lived in Birtley. As well as singing, he played jaws harp, guitar, mouth organ and banjo. An earthy singer with a ready wit, Jack's direct delivery was to influence the approach taken by many who participated in the early folk revival.Other singers in the Elliott Family included Jack's son Pete, daughter-in-law Pat, and his older brother Reece. Birtley Folksong and Ballad Club was begun in 1962 by the Elliott family, with a group of friends, and still runs today. A homely place with a family atmosphere, the club was dedicated to getting people over their initial shyness and then entertaining their friends and people of like tastes. From the beginning there was no musical policy except that of freedom and any songs could be sung. In the course of an evening anything from a children's three line ditty to a thirty verse ballad could be heard. This free and easy atmosphere nurtured the talents of Bob Davenport and many others.On this selection we hear Jack Elliott recorded with son Pete and daughter-in-law Pat at Whitley Bay Folk club on the 5th February 1966. The recording was made by William S. Butler, one time Director of Northumbria Tourist Board. It was later in 1966 that Jack died of cancer. The first edition of the magazine 'Folk Voice North East', several years later, published the following moving accolade - 'It seemed as if he had always been there and always would be there and there was a feeling, certainly at the Birtley club, of absolute disbelief that the lively happy man who had gone off to Canada a few months before would never be seen or heard again. He personified for many people everything that the Folk Club movement seemed to be searching for and things were never going to be the same again.'The word 'spuggy' as used in the title of the song sung here by Jack Elliott, is commonly used in the North East to describe a sparrow. The word certainly is not exclusive to that area. Children in Hull will typically divide birds into two categories - spuggies and seagulls; i.e. land birds and sea birds. The word is also known in Leeds and elsewhere in Yorkshire. The word has also given rise to the phrase 'to take a spuggy's ticket', this meaning - to climb over a fence to get free view of football or cricket match. ; Folk Club Recording ; Family members sing songs, tell stories and play music. | Publisher: | recorded at : Whitley Bay Folk Club, Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear | Rights holder: | rights holder : Elliott, Pat | Subjects: | birds & comedy micellaneous | Temporal: | start=1960;end=1970; | Source: | Folk Archive Resource North East | Identifier: | farne:H2000015 | Go to resource |
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