Lewes Local Group Report – Mondays August 18th, September 15th, October 20th 2025

In August there were fifteen singers (including a welcome return visit from four Worthing singers who used to come regularly before we had to change the meeting night and had made a special trip to go through the songs for upcoming Lewes Priory event), and we sang 19 songs. In September we had 7 singers and 17 songs. The October session was almost cancelled as storm conditions with heavy rain and wind had been predicted, and I was getting over the tail end of an illness with very little voice. In the event the weather improved during the day, and I croaked my way through the session with 8 singers and 20 songs. 

  

In total there were 16 different singers but not everybody could make all the sessions and several more were ill, on holiday or at competing musical groups including Early Music and Morris sessions. I send out the list of suggested songs for each session, as well as for upcoming events, and when not able to get to Lewes our singers are good at practising alone or in small groups at home. 

  

Some of the songs were sung in more than one session, particularly when preparing for events or trying out harmonies, and we covered the following: 

  

• Current seasonal: "All Among the Barley", "Fields Lie Silent"," Lammas Carol", "One for the Rook", "Poor Froze Out Gardeners", "Seasons Turn", "Where Stormy Winds Do Blow"
• Remembrance: "Home Lads Home", "Ladies go Dancing at Whitsun", "My Boy Jack"
• Christmas: Ditchling Carol, Field Mouse Carol, Friendly Beasts,
• Wassailing: "Apple Tree Wassailing Song", "Wassail the Silver Apple"
• Sea: "Brave Eleven", "Constant Lovers",
• General: "Ale Glorious Ale", "Brisk Young Plough Boy", "Country Life", "Ebernoe Horn Fair", "East Sussex Drinking Song", "Farmer’s Toast", "Fields Lie Silent", "Ha’nacker Mill", "Hard Times of Old England", "Jolly Woodcutter", "Lark in the Morning" (Coppers version), "Life of a Man", "Magpie", "Michaelmas" (Amaryllis Gunn’s updated words), "Nightingale", "Old Adam", "On Sussex Hills", "Our Captain Cried All Hands”, "Parting Song", "Pleasant and Delightful", "Rosebuds in June", "Run of the Downs", "Smuggler’s Song", "Song of the Sussex Downsman", "Summer is a-Coming in Again", "Sussex Wedding Song", "Thousands or More", "Twanky Dillo", "West Sussex Drinking Song"

The next session is on Monday 17^th November and we hope to see as many singers as possible, new members always welcome at any time. 

  

Then in December we will be meeting as usual on the third week Monday 15^th December when we will start our session in our upstairs room before going downstairs to lead some carol singing in the pub (exact timings to be decided) so hopefully most of us will be there to swell the festive sound to the rafters. 

  

Tina