2. The Old Lone Gin Band

The Old Lone Gin Band are a Dover and East Kent based folk band playing mainly a range of English and Cornish traditional music and songs. Until Lockdown, the band would be playing out at pubs, beer festivals, concerts, festivals, barn dances and fundraising events across Kent on an almost weekly basis. It was great to see that the band were attracting quite good crowds to wherever our music was being played. The band had an extensive repertoire of English and Cornish traditiona dance music and most members could be called upon to provide a song when needed.

The line up of the band has changed over the last five years or so that we have been playing, but until recently consisted of the following, though quite often joined by other friends.

Colin Alanskas playing melodeon and vocals

Simon Glover playing drum

John Mills playing five string banjo and vocals

Phili Mills playing percussion and vocales

Nic Lucas playing melodeon, guitar and banjo and vocals

Bill Howarth playing dulcimer, mouth organ and vocals

Sadly for the rest of us, Jon and Phili returned to their native Cornwall at the end of 2019 and they are greatly missed.

However, we are pleased to have enlisted the skills of Eddie Higham on guitar and bass, and the new sound is progressing well.

For a better sense of the range of our activities, please take a look at the Old Lone Gin Band Facebook Page.

This is one of the last shots of the Old Old Lone Gin Band Playing at the Brogdale Apple Festival in August 2019. Thanks to Carol for the excellent photo.

This is the New Old Lone Gin Band (with Eddie on bass) playing at the Royal Cinque Ports Yacht Club for the Roger Marples Beer Festival, in March 2020 and shortly before the Lockdown. Thanks to the kind lady behind the bar for the photo.