A magical evening with the Growing Hearts and Minds Project at Northwood Parish Hall celebrating the turning of the seasons and the arrival of spring.
It all started with a lantern procession through Northwood park and ended up at the parish hall which was decorated with banners and lanterns. Here we had some wonderful food and were entertained with a shadow story, a rather strange ritual involving banging a nail into a man's head (don't try that at home), and the arrival of the snow bear to sweep away the winter – and everyone went home with a vegetable patch box of seeds.
Music was provided by a scratch band comprised of guitar, bass, ukulele, mandolin, fiddle, harmonica, percussion and vocals which performed songs written at a series of songwriting workshops run by Aidan and Steve.Two songs were written by young people from the Changes music group – Rattle, Hum and Strum! – which is how I became involved. We wrote down things we liked about living in Stoke and Aidan knocked them into shape to produce a song. This is what we came up with – Aidan's version was sung to a three chord rockabilly chugalug beat whilst Mary's was slow and dreamy.
It's No Joke, Living In Stoke (Aiden's version)
Morning duck, your dog's looking funny
Can you spare a bit of cash can you give a bit of money
For a big issue seller who's down on her luck
Thanks a million, morning duck
It's no joke when you're living in Stoke
And you can't pay the bills when you're stony . . . broke
The smog has gone, the jobs have too
We import china for the loo
Armitage Shanks isn't quite so flush
Doulton's winged it and Wedgewood's dust
Canals have dried up there ain't no barges
We just keep paying the community . . . charges
Chorus:
Do we recognise the faces, do we recognise the names?
Does the story change or does it stay the same?
Does the story change?
Or do we let it stay the same?
Stanley Matthews is smiling down
On the square with no fountain in the middle of the town
The Reginald Mitchell makes a pretty penny
Never was so much drunk by so many
The statues in the streets look pretty flash
But where is Lemmy and where is . . . Slash?
Chorus
If you ever plan to cycle west
Go round Forest Park, that's the best
Down the Trent and Mersey and the Caldon Canal
Cycle real quick or cruise dead slow
Eat those butties when you're rolling back
But don't get knackered . . . with a flat
Chorus
It's No Joke, Living In Stoke (Mary's version)
Memories all around in this great town
Which turns our frowns upside down
From Sir Stanley Matthews to the pits
From the past to the present and the other bits
It's not a joke living in Stoke
All the people are full of hope
Some are happy some are chatty
Some are funny some have money
From pubs to clubs
From parties to outings
Stoke is great
Even with all the shouting
Big issue man outside M&S
Sentinel man with his little nest
Loss of jobs, loss of money
But at least in Stoke it's always homely
It's not a joke . . .
