GNUF Preview - Flea Bitten Dawgs

Another look forward to this years Grand Northern Ukulele Festival and a real treat for ukulele fans. The Flea Bitten Dawgs in their first UK mini tour and festival slot.

I've said many times before that one of the things that makes GNUF very special is their ability to get artists to the UK that haven't previously been over here. And that is to say, they create a bill that stands out from the multitude of other ukulele festivals where you tend to see the same names over and over. The breadth of the bill is astounding year after year. GNUF brought Aaron and Nicole Keim over for their first UK Festival last year (and they are back this year). GNUF is bringing Danielle Ate The Sandwich over for her first UK dates, and of course the GNUF organiser was responsible for the first UK tour of Jake Shimabukuro and the first ukulele festival appearance for the Ukulele Orchestra Of Great Britain. This year sees the appearance of another US outfit who are revered in ukulele circles - the Flea Bitten Dawgs.

Formed in 2010 by three musicians with MANY years experience in performing (and having shared stages with some seriously impressive names), Flea Bitten Dawgs consist of David Henry Spangler and Thom Pallozola on ukulele and vocals, with percussion provided by Lee Kram. These are real players players and have opened for / shared the stage with some of the ukulele worlds biggest names, such as Gerald Ross, Stuart Fuchs and Cali Rose. Their style? 'Ukulele Jazz Americana'. Sounds great to me!

Their slot at GNUF this year marks the end of a mini tour of the UK and Europe also being organised by GNUF. It sees them perform in Brussells, Bradford, Reading, Belper (with Phil Doleman and Ian Emmerson) and Liverpool.

Take a tip from me - this is an act to watch. Take a look at their 'hello' to the UK!



And have a tune!



Nice huh?


The Grand Northern Ukulele Festival takes place on 27-29 May at Huddersfield, UK.

http://northernuke.com

http://fleabittendawgs.com

© Barry Maz