The songs of Phil Ochs

Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers (The Men They Couldn’t Hang) & John Kettle (Merry Hell) will perform a special set on Thursday 1st August at this year’s Wickham Festival.  Music is from their upcoming album ‘Far Rockaway (The songs of Phil Ochs)’.

Virginia’s vocals have been a key element of Merry Hell’s sound since the band’s inception a decade ago. Before joining her husband John, brothers-in-law Bob and Andrew, and sundry others in the eight-piece folk-rock outfit, she’d already established herself as a singer-songwriter in her own right. As “Virginia Barrett”, she released two solo albums: ‘The Quiet Bridge’ and ‘Sense of Human’ prior to joining the band.

Since Merry Hell began she released her first album, No Place Like Tomorrow.  It’s a more intimate affair than a typical Merry Hell album, both in terms of personnel and in terms of subject matter. The songs have far less of an obvious political tone than many Merry Hell songs and here Kettle tends to touch on more personal matters: love, relationships, family life. ‘Union Jack House’ is the most political song on the album but is structured and delivered in a way that has surprising echoes of Victoria Wood (with a little bit of Are You Being Served thrown in!)

Naomi Bedford is an English singer working in the folk and country genres. She has made four acclaimed albums; most recently ‘Singing It All Back Home’, a collection of Appalachian ballads which was a Guardian Album of the Month in 2019. Her previous albums have featured contributions from UK music legends such as Justin Currie, Andy Summers, Alasdair Roberts and Paul Heaton. She also regularly performs and records with Paul Simmonds, chief songwriter and mandolin player with The Men They Couldn’t Hang.

Naomi has toured widely throughout the UK and appeared at many prestigious Festivals including Glastonbury, Cambridge, Celtic Connections, Sidmouth and Wickham. She has also appeared in session for Mark Radcliffe on Radio 2 and on BBC Radio Scotland. Among her many supporters are; Iggy Pop, ‘Amazing. Naomi pulls no punches’, Shirley Collins, ‘The best singer of Appalachian ballads that I know’ and Del Amitri’s Justin Currie, ‘An English Emmylou’.

The Ramshackle Band are a revolving troupe of musicians that feature guitars, banjos, lap steel, harmonica, bass, percussion and rich harmonies, all of which combine to produce an entrancing folk/country/ceilidh hybrid that is all their own.

Naomi’s latest album, ‘Strange News Has Come To Town’, will be released in May 2024 and features regular collaborator Paul Simmonds alongside a full Ramshackle Band for the first time. They will be appearing across the UK throughout Summer and Autumn of 2024.

Founded in 1984, TMTCH evolved from the Shepherd’s Bush squatting and busking scene to make their debut supporting Poguemahone at the Electric Ballroom in Camden in the Easter of that year.

Swiftly their uproarious and engaging style, coupled with keenly contemporary songs, gained a passionate national following, leading to a 40 year career filled with much loved music, a dedicated fan community and high octane performances.

Touring continually throughout their career, TMTCH have crossed the globe by way of Europe, Canada, USA, Iceland, Egypt and Estonia. They have appeared at festivals such as Glastonbury, Roskilde, Reading, Pink Pop and Cambridge Folk and have appeared with a roll call of International artists such as David Bowie, Van Morrison, Bo Diddley, The Smiths, Elvis Costello and the Oyster Band to name a few.

Their recordings have been acclaimed in print, on radio and online; from their definitive version of the anti war classic Green Fields of France to the anti fascist anthem Ghosts of Cable Street and the epic historical ballads, Ironmasters and The Colours. Recent albums The Defiant (2014) and Cockahoop (2018) have seen TMTCH rise again into prominence; their vitality undimmed.

Devastated by the passing of friend and founder member Stefan Cush during the Covid lockdown, TMTCH are responding in the only way they know how; writing, recording and playing live to their ever loyal and growing community of fans. An anniversary tour is planned for 2024 when they will celebrate their 40th year of raising hell with special events and a ‘Best of’ release, then in 2025 they will be releasing a brand new album.