I'm well aware that I haven't posted anything in absolutely ages - the past couple of weeks have been a bit manic with work etc so I haven't had the time to sit and think about what I want to write! I've had a few ideas now though so hopefully I can devote a few hours over the next week :)
So...!
Something has happened that I am REALLY excited about. I'm a singer and have been since I was 6, mainly singing choral music and show tunes. When I was 14 I joined a group called 'Ye Essex Baebes' (I know, cheesy name right?) who sing medieval and Tudor music - and dress up in medieval and Tudor dresses!
This is a picture from a quick Google search that shows a dress really similar to the one I wore.
It is actually really fun, we have such a good laugh and have loads of lovely feedback from people who come to watch us at our gigs. After a name change to Sweete Harmonie, Nikki our sort of 'choir mistress' recently decided to go in a different direction having felt the Tudor and medieval stuff had run its course and decided to concentrate on a different era...the 1950s!!!!
We are learning some of the music sung by girl groups in the Fifties such as The Beverly Sisters, The Chordettes and some later ones such as The Chiffons and The Marvelettes. Amazing!
The earliest one we are doing is one of my favourite songs - Rum and Coca Cola by The Andrews Sisters. We're also thinking of learning Don't Sit Under The Apple Tree as well.
It's so catchy and makes me feel summery!
My next favourite is It's Illegal, It's Immoral Or It Makes You Fat by The Beverly Sisters. This song is absolutely hilarious, the lyrics are genius! In addition, we've included Long Black Nylons and a few others I can't remember the names of right now.
This is a recording from 1962, I love how giggly they are.
And of course, our 50s vocal set just would not be complete without a rendition of Mr Sandman by The Chordettes, the ultimate 1950s song. This has been the hardest one to learn of the entire set as the harmonies are really hard to pick up and gel together as a group. Lollipop is another classic we're going to add to our repertoire, and also a slower one called Eddie My Love.
I love how glamorous they are!
After the music itself, I'm ridiculously excited about our styling! Obviously we are gonna deck ourselves out in 1950s gear. I for one am going to wear my lovely Vivien of Holloway dress, and I'm pretty sure the other Charlotte in the group is going to purchase one sometime soon as I've converted her! We're all going to set our hair before every gig and wear a staple red lipstick but we're going to wear different dresses. Mine is black with a red and pink rose pattern. Its a circle skirt with a halterneck so its quite dressy! This is a photo I've nabbed off their website. Lush ain't it!
We have a few gigs lined up over the summer, mainly fairs over Essex but after we rehearse some more we're hoping to approach some more fairs across London - including vintage ones!
So, I hope you've enjoyed reading about my singing exploits and listening to the music of the 1950s. Are any of these songs your favourites? Would you enjoy and appreciate a vocal group singing this music live?
Much love! x
I am so jealous! This sounds amazing. I would love it if there was something like that here in my part of Essex. Tell me when your doing a gig sometime =) I would love to come see you guys. The rokabilly scene is really growing here, and you would certainly fit in at local events. xxx
ReplyDeleteAhhhh this is so nice what a lovely comment! It's good to hear that someone thinks what we're doing could work and wants to hear us! I definitely will tell you when our gigs are :)xx
Deletethanks! I told my sister yesterday about this blog post @neuroticlullaby (you have each other on twitter I think)and she generally thinks that this is amazing! I think she was a little jealous too ;) xx
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