Band Bios

Nigel Wakelam

Nigel's career began back in 1971 at the age of 17 at the Galleon Folk Club in Stourport-on-Severn in a three piece band called Pigskin formed with a school pal and his girlfriend. This featured songs he wrote himself which are long forgotten now. After college he joined a band called Daybreak after a chance encounter in the pub with the bass player who he had met when taking guitar lessons together at evening classes held by Terry Holland. Within a week they were on their way to Vicenza in Italy picking up a female singer in London on their way and after one day's practice together were playing there for the whole month. Gigs followed in Germany on the way back but bad organization led to it splitting up soon after. After getting married and starting a family the music took a back seat until meeting an old musical friend,
John Freemantle, in town in 1989 and together with Nigel's wife Heather on
vocals and Steve Lench on bass they formed a supposed electric folk band called Rivendell but after a few weeks it started to develop into a very traditional folk act as Nigel started to play 5 string banjo and mandolin and together with John's whistle and flute playing and four part harmonies it reawakened his earlier love of folk music. The next musical venture was in 1994 again with his wife Heather and teaming up with his old drummer Dave Bodley and Geoge Krystic on bass they performed new country under the name of the Prairie Dogs. The period after was quiet musically with their marriage breaking up and working in the States driving 18 wheelers interstate for over two years. On his return he met up with a guitarist called John Januscewski with whom he worked with for two and a half years mainly recording original material. From very diverse beginnings it gradually became very acoustic and they started on the folk circuit. Whereas Nigel was in his element with being back playing live again John was happier in the confines of his recording and Nigel split at the beginning of 2004 and went out to play solo. But as a fully fledged Ridge Top Mountain Boy now the influences are getting more diverse and he is able to develop his guitar, mandolin and harmonica skills.

In the late 70s Trevor was playing guitar and mandolin in a duo called Cap and Feather with Alison McKee they toured many folk clubs and played at festivals.Then in the early 80s Trevor ran the "Old Bush Folk Club" at Coseley in the Black Country with Brenden King, It was here that he met fiddler Wilf Vickers and form an Irish folk band called "Shindig" they were to play Clubs, Festival and also had a short tour of Germany and played the Towersy Festival. Trevor was be this time playing Tenor Banjo, Mandolin, Bozouki, Fiddle and the Whistles. Then with the "Shindig Ceilidth Band" he played at all the major Barn Dances. In the late 80s Trevor was playing Tenor banjo with the "Mason's Apron Ceilidth Band" and played barn dances with Gay Butler a well known guitarist in the area. He was also running folk sessions with "Drops of Brandy" members of this band included Jack Courtman and in the band Scartaglen Anthony Round and Graham Pugh. By the early 90s Trevor was teaching fiddle and classical guitar at Elmfield Rudolf Steiner School near Stourbridge. The Albion Bands production of "Larkrise to Candleford" at the Roundhouse Theatre in London, inspired the music for a school production of Richard Aldreds's "The Loveknot and the Sword" for which Trevor played Celtic Harp in 1996.Trevors earlier influences were Bob Dylan, The Incredible String Band and Joni Mitchell Major influences after that were Martin Carthy, The Albion Band, Planxty, Robin Williamson, Dereck Bell and Sean Keane fiddler with the Chieftians. In recent times Trevor has been into Eliza Carthy, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, Donald Thibodeaux, The Magnolia Sisters, and all things Cajun. Trevor enjoys his playing as one of The Ridge Top Mountain Boys, being an Old time and Bluegrass band, it set him certain goals to play in that style,
and I'm glad to say he surpasses them all.

Trevor Bowen

Paul Hamilton

Paul  first started playing guitar at the age of fourteen at school.  For the first twelve years of his marriage to Margaret and building up a business he did not play at all. Then he started playing one off gigs around local pubs and clubs. Though a news paper add he met Ray Williams and formed "Rapau"  as Ray was a drummer this formed an unusual duo and they  played for a few years in most black country clubs. All the time they were singing sixties and rock and roll,  Paul had been writing songs on a daily bases, and still believes if you can write a song a day,  by the end of the week you should have one that stands out from the rest. His first CD called Bigtree was released 1998, a mixture of ballad's, blues and folk. Being a Brummie lad he was interviewed on the Carl Chinn show (Radio West Midlands) in April 1999 about a song on the "Bigtree" album called  "The Brummagem Boatmen" Next came Blue Eyes CD in 2000 the title track was written for his wife Margaret's birthday, and although Margaret has never believed it Paul swears its true. In 2001 Paul started writing material for a country CD called Memphis Moon. This led himself and an accompanying guitarist Steve Hadley going to play at the Nashville Festival in May 2003.The schedule also included the famous Bluebird Cafe and short tour of Tennessee, Kentucky and north Georgia. While in the States, Paul bought some Bluegrass CDs and old time stuff from Earnest Tubbs on the Broadway in Nashville, and soon had a keen interest the early music of the southern states. Paul bought his first Mandolin in the Valley Arts shop in Nashville, something to play with when he got home he thought. he then bought a  1922 Gibson Banjolin which you may see him playing today .Some 8 months went by after his return, and Paul was getting together with Pete Bodiss and Kevin Pugh at Paul's home. They were playing old Hank William's numbers and the like. An old acquaintance of Paul's Al Boden asked Paul if he would play at a charity function at Kidderminster Town Hall, he of course accepted, and set about forming a band to play the gig, then he met Nigel Wakelam and a firm friendship soon formed. While at a Friday night gathering at The Eagle and Spur at Cookley, Trevor Bowen (fiddle) was asked if he was interested, Paul thought Trevor would see it as a bit of a challenge, and a change to be playing Bluegrass, a style none of them had played before. Nigel and Paul had discussed finding a Bass player, (a bit like looking for rocking horse ****) then a few days later Nigel (who is a self employed decorator) rang Paul and said "I've just come to price a job up and guess what is stood in the corner of the room".  No it wasn't Harry Whale, but it was his Double Bass. Nigel inquired if Harry would be interested in joining the band, and said  "great when can I audition"  Well when Harry had told us he had passed the audition, we were well pleased.  If it had not been for Harry's commitment  to pressure us on every occasion he could about trying to  play to the strict rules that are bluegrass,  we would have probable turned into a swing band by now.  Paul has written some new Bluegrass songs for the band, and hopefully this year will see them at the festivals and folk clubs performing them.