Local Group Report – Worthing – Wednesday 2nd January 2019

Unfortunately Emily was unable to join us for our first session of 2019, but she was included in our toast to wish one and all a very Happy New Year. Our evening was filled with a pleasing mixture of requests from the SDFS repertoire interspersed with some occasional others offered for our interest and entertainment. We managed 21 songs in total as well as time for chat, refreshments and a few notices (including a reminder about the SDFS “Winter Revels” social on 2nd Feb). Many of the songs we sang together related to the winter but a few enabled us to look towards warmer times in spring and summer. We began with a selection of wassails: Sugar Wassail, Here We Come a-Wassailing and the Gloucestershire Wassail. From the SDFS favourites we sang The Fields Lie Silent, Where Stormy Winds do Blow, The Woodcutter’s Song, The Magpie, The Lark in the Morning, Brisk Young Ploughboy, Farmer’s Toast and Country Life. The songs shared with us were Remember the Poor,The Poor Ditching Boy, Snow Drift and Icy Cold from Brian; Jackie Frost and The New Year Will Rise Up Again from Dave and Monksgate from Alan. Steve A led those of us who knew it through most of the verses of Valiants All, and reprised his role as captain of The Mermaid ably assisted by Steve W, Keith and Dave with everyone else joining in the chorus. We finished off with Rolling Home before thanking all contributors for making it an entertaining evening and a good start to 2019 – we’re only sorry Emily couldn’t have been there too. See you in February!