Festive greetings to you all! I just wanted to take the time to wish you all a happy Christmas and New Year and thank people for their continued support throughout 2011.
It's been a varied year for music and I've really enjoyed playing new music in new lineups. This year saw the birth of Sweet Dixie Dreams, a new project founded by my friends Katriona Gilmore and Gerry McNeice whose love for modern country and bluegrass music brought together the seven piece we are today.
It all started in February, with a few Dixie Chicks songs in a rehearsal room in Leeds and before we knew it, we'd got a full show together and we were out on the road. We've all had so much fun doing something totally different and playing the music we've loved for years and we're set to play Kork's in Otley again next year along with festival dates to be released soon. Watch this space and keep up to date with us on www.facebook.com/sweetdixiedreams.
Harriet Bartlett and I travelled up and down the country this year to play festivals and folk clubs and were so pleased with our second year playing as a duo. We're currently working on some new material, which we'll release in 2012. You can listen to tracks online at www.barkerbartlett.com.
The big one for me was the release of my second album 'Ghosts & Heroes' in November, after working closely with Tom Sweeney, Chris Thornton-Smith and Jim Molyneux on the music and Jake Oakley and Matt Thompson for the photography/ graphic design.
It was a wonderful experience spending so much time with the guys in the new band line-up and the highlight for me was standing on stage at the Lantern Theatre in Sheffield in November for the launch, playing it all live. I'm so proud of what we acheived on the record. It is a darker, matured sound; different from the early days and first album released back in 2005.
Visit the shop on www.charliebarkermusic.com to pick up your copy from various worldwide retailers. We'll be seeing more of you in the New Year, so until then enjoy yourselves and take care.
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