3tynespodcast

Dean Parker is a musician, songwriter and producer. He first appeared on the podcast in June 2024, when he talked about his career as a guitarist and session player and the development of his inventive musical style. Since then, he has been working mainly as a producer and in this episode he talks about how he helps musicians realise and even surpass their ambitions for their work. His down-to-ear...

Frankie Archer is an interpreter of traditional folk songs whose debut album The Dance of Death has won high praise from music critics. As I write this, it is in the top ten of the UK folk album charts. After some festival performances over the summer, Frankie is touring the album, beginning with a gig at the Glasshouse Gateshead on September 27th. The exceptional success of the album is down to t...

Today, my guest is Yaryna Kvitka, a singer, artist and performer whose upbringing in western Ukraine has created a love of tradition in both folk music and her country. She has been a prominent musician in Ukraine as part of the band Folknery, and she spent several years cycling through different countries, collecting and performing local traditional music. Four years ago, she came to Hexham for a...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

Hels Pattison is a singer and songwriter who has recently made a big impact on the local music scene with her sweetly sad songs and personal lyrics, delivered in a distinctively melodic voice. In 2026, Hels toured the UK and she has played at the Vault and the Bandstand Sessions in Hexham and at Alston Live Festival, in addition to many gigs elsewhere in the region Hels’ songs have been compared w...

Gareth Davies-Jones is a singer-songwriter who lives in Tynedale. His many albums and the long list of his collaborations and achievements in music are evidence of his skill at capturing story in song. In 2025, Gareth walked from Holy Island to Durham Cathedral, following St Oswald’s Way and the Way of Light, one of six trails based on ancient pilgrimage routes that lead to Durham. He took his gui...

Photo: Richard Durrant Richard Durrant is an indie-classical composer and concert guitarist who plays guitar with great enthusiasm and skill. The word ‘passion’ is much overused these days but, as our episode today shows, it’s an apt description for Richard’s relationship with all forms of music. He is a connoisseur of the guitar, playing a bog oak, nylon-strung guitar made by Northumberland luthi...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

Aaron Duff is the singer, songwriter and the driving force behind one of the North East’s most successful bands, Hector Gannet. He has sold out Hexham’s The Vault three times in a row. Aaron’s work is strongly identified with his hometown of North Shields and he writes about aspects of his life there and the area’s history. But his songs are far deeper than those words suggest – carefully written,...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

My guest today is Rupert Hughes, guitarist, singer and songwriter with the bluegrass band The Often Herd, and also a guitar tutor, sideman for the likes of Martin Stephenson, and someone who has been known to knock out the occasional classic in his other band Rupert Hughes and the Old News. The Often Herd are one of the North East’s most successful bands. They’ve taken their brand of bluegrass all...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

Today’s episode is the second in which we take a look behind the scenes at the practicalities and challenges of providing music in grass roots venues. This time, I’m talking to Richard and Eileen, the proprietors of Mr Ant’s Bar in Hexham. Mr Ant’s has been a success through several years in which business has been difficult for the hospitality industry. As part of their strategy to create a stron...

Today’s episode takes a look behind the scenes at the music business you’ll encounter on a Friday night in the pub. Matty J Erskine talks about how he came to be a pub DJ, MC and quiz host, charting his career from his early, try-anything days at sports events to MC-ing festivals like BAAFest. He reflects on the lessons he’s learned over many years of making sure that people enjoy a good evening o...

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

Streaming has failed grass roots musicians, which is why most also upload their music to an online platform called Bandcamp. And because we mention it so often on the podcast, and ask you to use it, I thought it would be worthwhile giving you some background to it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcas...

Andrew Cadie is a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer who grew up in the North East and learned his craft busking and in the local folk clubs. He is a seasoned performer both solo and as part of the duo Broom Bezzums. Andrew now lives in Germany but I spoke to him on his recent return to tour the UK, when his appearances included gigs in Nenthead and Gilsland. We talked about hi...

The Hexham and District Music Society has been arranging concerts of classical music for 75 years. Like Music in Allendale and the Corbridge Chamber Music Festival, the Society works hard to bring a high standard of classical music to the area through live performances by accomplished musicians of both familiar and less familiar pieces. I’ve made no secret in this podcast of my recent discovery of...

Political songs are alive and well and being performed every day here in the North East. If you go to a small gig or an open mic session, you are likely to hear mention of issues such as social deprivation, poor mental health, lack of employment, poor working conditions and post-industrial malaise. Some singers are known for their political activism; others may include political commentary in a se...

Peter Aldcroft and Craig Atkinson tell us about the 2026 festival - an amazing variety of music, free workshops and spoken word, open mic, delicious food, the ceilidh and the spectacular burning of the wolf on Allendale square. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit 3tynespodcast.substack.com

Today, we visit Let’s Sing, a group led by Julie Finch that’s held twice a month in the West End Methodist Church in Hexham. The group is for anyone who enjoys a good sing and meeting friends. We’ll hear from Julie and some of the regulars who attend and we’ll join them in some popular songs. Everyone is welcome at Let’s Sing. If you’d like to find out when the group is meeting, check on the Faceb...

This is one of an occasional series of bonus episodes in which I invite people who’ve been guests on the podcast to tell us about their newly-released music. Today, I’m talking to Jason Arnup, whose EP Live Session from the Old Church Studio features six classic Rock n Roll and country songs from his band’s set list. Thanks for listening to this bonus episode. Please have a listen to Jason’s album...

Today, 3tynespodcast pays tribute to the Tynedale songwriter and singer, Terry Conway. Terry died of mesothelioma in 2013 and he is sorely missed by his fellow musicians in the North East, who regard him as a writer of great warmth and wit with a distinctive vocal style. This is a shortened episode that includes two of Terry’s most famous songs, Hawkhope Hill and Fareweel Regality. There is a long...