This is my contribution to Radio 2's Cecil Sharp Collection. I learnt this song when I was little from my mother, I remember us discussing the story in it, and what a terrible person that Barbara Allen was. The tragedy in the song really struck me, I was quite young at the time, and it was the first song I learnt all the way through from memory. The words are different to Cecil Sharp's notation but they're the words I learnt from my mother, so they're obviously right. Just ask her. If you dare...

Barbara Allen sung by  Ingrid Plum

Hattie Cooke

Shut Your Mouth

Written by Louis MacGillivray

I'm not quite ready for Christmas Day
All my family are coming to stay

I've been rushing around from shop to shop
I wish I hadn't said that I would put them up

(But it's too late now...)

Will Mum think that this dress is nice,
Or will she guess I got it at half price?

(Oh, if only buying presents wasn't always so dear...)

I'm tired and fed up
I stare into my coffee cup

(And I'm lonely, but it's just that time of year...)

But then I realise
That I've never seen you at Christmas

I've been prepping these sprouts since the 23rd
I've got no clue what to do with this bird

(And I wonder where you might be right now...)

Now and then I just stare into space
I over-iced the Christmas cake

Will I be let down
If I let myself believe

That loneliness could touch your heart this Christmas
And bring you back to me?

I'll be happy
If you'll just come home this Christmas

And it's hard to believe
Another year has gone

(There's snow on the ground!)

Alone on Christmas eve
I'll open these cards one by one
And read them out loud

But I still believe

That loneliness could touch your heart this Christmas
And send you home to me

I'll be homeless
If you're not with me this Christmas

Up before dawn to get everything done
I'll cook and clean and wait for them to come

Stop and look out the window again
See my breath on the window pane

I still believe 
That loneliness might touch your heart this Christmas
And bring you back to me

I'll be happy
If you'll just come home this Christmas

Come Home This Christmas

If...

Pre-order 'Soroky' vinyl: smarturl.it/soroky

Press / Radio: info@wasylyk.co.uk

Andrew Wasylyk is the alias of Scottish writer, producer and multi-instrumentalist, Andrew Mitchell. Cinematic nostalgia, elements of baroque pop and the influence of classic 1970s songwriters come together in a diverse collection of ten songs which comprise debut album Soroky.

The record is the ninth to date on which Mitchell has featured; he joined cult Scottish favourites Idlewild in 2014, and has released six albums with ongoing indie pop group The Hazey Janes along with the acclaimed debut of psych duo Art of the Memory Palace. Previous tours supporting Wilco, and as a session player with Electric Soft Parade and School of Language further add to the rich mix of influences which shape his first proper solo work.

Soroky, the name of the village his grandfather Iwan Wasylyk hailed from in Western Ukraine, explores a range of themes – from the disillusion and anxiety of “Last Of The Loved” to the playful riposte “Mr White, It's No Trouble At All”. The songs convey warmth, but at the same time a spaciousness that makes them seem at home in the still of night: a feeling particularly apparent in "The More I Believe, The Less I Really Know”.

Recorded on the Isle of Mull in just five days, orchestral layers weave in and out of traditional guitar, piano and drum arrangements, creating a sense of haunting unease which is punctuated by Mitchell's powerful yet fragile vocals: reminiscent at times of early Scott Walker, Randy Newman or the late Billy Mackenzie.

Released November 6th 2015 through Empty Words, Soroky will be available on limited edition vinyl and digital formats.

Last Of The Loved

Thirty Pounds of Bone's annual Christmas ditty...
FREE DOWNLOAD - Christmas Must Be Tonight
Merry Xmas.

THIRTY POUNDS OF BONE - Christmas Must Be Tonight

These Electronic Horses

Dreamy Texture

As broadcast on Radio Reverb, Brighton, UK
Paola St George - Counselling training
Marian Pashley - Medical Role play
The Dedication Game with Mark, Alyson & Kit
(c) 2018 Avonside Television

MHM Jan 18 - Counselling training & Medical roleplay

Brighton-based label run by Thomas & Alfie White 

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