2015/16

Mark Radcliffe Interview BBC Radio 2 - December 2nd 2015

Check out the Radio 2 website to hear John's fabulous interview with Mark Radcliffe last night (December 2nd) and to hear him being award the EFDSS Gold badge.
Thanks everyone for the congratulations and the good wishes.

 

2013

 

Tams and Coope at National Forest Folk Club 10/Oct/2013
Don't forget - Friday October 11th John and Barry will be appearing at the National Forest Folk Club at Moira in Leicestershire....the Moira Miners Welfare, Bath Lane, Moira DE12 6BP For tickets call 01676 540219 or 07881 558158

 

BBC East Midlands 25/Feb/2013
Watch Inside Out tonight (Monday Feb 25th) at 7.30pm....John was filmed at home, talking about lovely young Derbyshire singer Lucy Ward.

HITCHIN FOLK CLUB January 20th 2013
18/Jan/2013 Due to severe weather forecast for January 20th, please check before setting off for this concert. DECISION WILL BE MADE ON JANUARY 19TH. Keep safe and warm xxx

 

2012

 

Tams performs at Horse Guards
07/Jul/2012
An amazing evening at Horse Guards. Last month John performed for members of the Royal Family at Beating the Retreat. WarHorse Joey was there, along with the Life Guards, the Band of the Blues and Royals, the Sultan of Oman's Cavalry and Wynn Evans (Gio Compari!) John sang Only Remembered accompanied by these massed bands. Truly memorable.

WarHorse - the movie
23/Jan/2012
If you go to see the movie then listen out for John singing Scarlet and the Blue. You could also be the last person in the cinema and wait for his name to come up on the roller- it's shortly after catering and goose trainers!!

WarHorse - the movie
23/Jan/2012
The film opens on Friday, January 13th 2012. John is hosting a premiere at The Quad in Derby and introducing the film. He will be talking about his work on the film, visiting the Wiltshire location and being asked to contribute ideas and music. He worked alongside Spielberg and composer John Williams. Of course, John is the Songmaker for the show - a major hit in the West End, on Broadway and due to open in Toronto in February. The event is now SOLD OUT.

Home Service
12/Jan/2012
Home Service is nominated for two Folk Awards - Best Band and Best Live Act. Very exciting and the results will be announced at a ceremony at The Lowry in Manchester on February 8th.

 

2011

 

Radio Nottingham guest
18/Sep/2011
John is the studio guest of John Holmes on Sunday September 18th between 11am and 1pm on BBC Radio Nottingham. He has selected his (current) favourite 8 tracks and will play them and discuss their importance and relevance to him. Radio Nottingham can be found at F.M. 103.8

 

WarHorse Gallops On
14/Sep/2011
WarHorse continues a hugely successful run at the New London Theatre on Drury Lane in London and is now booking until November 2012. A new production opened on Broadway, New York on April 14th with Seth Numrich leading the 35 strong cast in the role of Albert. This production scooped six Tony Awards in May including Best Production. The show also opens in Toronto on February 12th 2012.

Home Service Five Star reviews
14/Sep/2011
Since the release of Home Service Live 1986 in June, the album has gathered a stunning collection of five star reviews, including one from the Financial Times. It is a brilliant album, an essential addition to any collection. Enjoy. Thanks to the thousands who have already bought the album - it outsold every artist's album at Cropredy. Thank you also for the support at festivals over the summer - we've had the very best of times.

 

Home Service

13/Aug/2011 Home Service has now played six shows, including Cropredy and Cambridge and has received an amazing, at times overwhelming response. The band was filmed by Sky Arts at Cambridge Festival and their appearance will be shown on Monday 22nd and Wednesday 24th August at 0pm on the Sky Arts Channel. The director of the show said Home Service were 'magnificent'....so treat yourself and set it to record.

 

Song of Steel Radio Ballad

03/Feb/2011 Good news. The Sony Gold Award winning cd, Song of Steel is now back in stock. We also have copies of The Ballad of the Big Ships. Both cds are from the 2006 Radio Ballad series.

 

2010

 

GUESTBOOK INFORMATION
29/Nov/2010
Thank you for leaving your messages for John. He is unable to reply to queries or suggestions left on the guestbook. If you want or need a reply from John then use the Contact button and your email will come through to him.
 

LOVE FAREWELL - charity cds in stock again
29/Nov/2010
We now have a fresh stock of Love Farewell cds...last year's official Help for Heroes single. Every single penny now goes directly to the Rifles Regiment charity. If you would like a copy then send a cheque made payable to the Rifles Regimental Trust (Care for Casualties) for £6 which will include post and packaging. Thank you for your support. Send your cheque to John Tams Limited - Love Farewell Burgin farm 39 The Brook Nether Heage Belper Derbyshire DE56 2AP Your help is much appreciated - please tell your friends and assure them that not a penny of the money raised goes anywhere but directly to the charity.

BBC News in the East Midlands
29/Nov/2010 As part of the ongoing success story of WarHorse, John and two other East Midlanders, Roger Wilson and Howard Ward will feature on a story on tonight's East Midlands News with James Roberson. (March 4th 2010)

The First Christmas
29/Nov/2010
THE FIRST CHRISTMAS from the Wakefield Mystery Plays in a version by John Tams. Come to Derby Cathedral on Tuesday 21st or Wednesday 22nd December at 8pm and see this wonderful version of The First Christmas, with musical director Peter Bullock, singing from the Sheffield Folk Chorale and with actors,musicians and traditional sword dancers. For tickets call P R Promotions on 01773 853428. Don't delay - it is sure to be a sell-out.

WARHORSE - London Theatre vote... Olivier AwardsHELP.......
23/Feb/2010
There’s a new category this year at the Olivier Awards: the Audience Award. War Horse has made it through the short-listing voting to the final round! We think it has a really good chance...... Please vote yourselves, and encourage other people you know to go to the following link: http://www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk/olivier_awards/vote/

 

2009

LOVE FAREWELL - THE BAND AND BUGLES OF THE RIFLES AND JOHN TAMS
31/Dec/2009
Good news.... The Help for Heroes single has sold out and will be pressing again in January. Singles and downloads have added up to almost 20,000 sales in just a couple of weeks. Thank you for all your support - please though...tell your friends and colleagues. It is a great single and a great charity to support. Happy New Year to all.

HELP FOR HEROES CHARITY SINGLE
17/Dec/2009
John has been working with the Band and Bugles of the Rifles on a charity single for Help for Heroes. He was approached by Winchester based Rifles Bandmaster WO1 Adrian Kingston a couple of months ago as the band had been playing Love Farewell, a traditional song that John had taken and reworked with additional lyrics for the Sharpe series. The single was released today, 12th December and is available from the Help for Heroes website as a download or as a cd. The single has been adopted by Help for Heroes as their official Christmas release and all the money raised goes towards repairing the minds and bodies of servicemen and women. John has the honour of singing with this band of hugely talented musicians under the baton of Captain Mark Purvey, Director of Music, The Rifles. So....please buy yourself a copy, buy a friend a copy...buy several and give them as christmas presents, safe in the knowledge that your generosity will have a very tangible and clear affect. The single Love Farewell is absolutely stunning, it will break your heart, make you cry and then......you will probably just keep on playing it.

LOVE FAREWELL - ON BBC EAST MIDLANDS TELEVISION
17/Dec/2009 Tune in to BBC East Midlands News tonight (17th December) to see John Tams talking about his work with the Band and Bugles of the Rifles and the charity single, LOVE FAREWELL, for Help for Heroes.

Love Farewell on Facebook
17/Dec/2009
Go to the Facebook site of The Band and Bugles of the Rifles. You will find some great photos of the members of the band, the recording of the single and you can also hear a snippet of the music....then maybe you can spend your £1, safe in the knowledge that every penny goes to Help for Heroes. Thank you to all who have supported this great cause.

Happy Christmas - Read more Derby University-An Evening with John Tams
02/Dec/2009
Having received an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Derby John will be spending an hour so in Conservation with the Vice Chancellor Professor John Coyne on the evening of Friday December 11th at 7pm. where he might preview the release of a much anticipated charity single..... For further information and tickets contact Anne Wake at Derby University on 01332 591187 or go to www.derby.ac.uk/tams ....light refreshments are included in the £5 ticket price!!!

Thank You - Sally's father. RIP
22/Nov/2009
Sally's father passed away on morning of Tuesday 10th November in the brilliant Ashgate Hospice after a mighty and courageous battle with bowel cancer. Thank you from his family to all who wished him well through his arduous treatment and to the many who have sent kind thoughts at this sad time. Alan Ward - 30th March 1930 - November 10th 2009. He is irreplaceable.

The Making of WarHorse
04/Nov/2009 A documentary entitled 'Making of WarHorse' will be shown this Saturday on More 4 at 8pm. WARHORSE WEST END RUN CONTINUES 14/Oct/2009 The record-breaking run of WarHorse continues in the West End. Currently it is booking until February 2010 but there is every chance it will continue until September 2010. John has written the songs for the show which opened to stunning reviews at the National Theatre in 2006. Alongside Adrian Sutton and Chris Shutt, John was nominated for an Olivier Award for his work on this show.

Sharpe Cooks signing
14/Oct/2009
The Sharpe Chefs continue their charity fundraising with the launch of the second Sharpe Chefs book. Come along to Waterstones in Bridlesmithgate, Nottingham this Saturday (17th) between 1pm and 3pm and meet some of the Chosen Men from the Sharpe tv series....John will be there.

 

GRAPES OF WRATH
09/Jun/2009
John is currently working on the music for Grapes of Wrath, which opens at Chichester Festival Theatre in July and then goes on a national tour. More details to follow.....

 

2008

Under One Sky 2008 tour and album
16/Oct/2008
John was part of this project, masterminded by John McCusker, and which premiered at Celtic Connections in 2007. Featuring twelve extraordinary musicians and writers it was immediately a festival success. It was repeated at Cambridge Festival last year and is touring England and Scotland in November and December. The show’s cast reads like a ‘Who’s Who’ including John McCusker, Idlewild’s Roddy Woomble, Julie Fowlis, Andy Cutting, Iain MacDonald, ex-Blur guitarist Graham Coxon, Emma Reid, Ewen Vernall, Ian Carr, James Mackintosh, Jim Causley and John Tams. Many of you have asked about the song John sings called ‘Will I See Thee More’. It was written with John McCusker for this project. The album of Under One Sky will be launched at the start of the tour. See the gigs page for the dates of the tour.

WarHorse on BBC Radio 2, with Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn and Bob Hoskins
16/Oct/2008
John Tams and Sally Ward have done the adaptation of WarHorse, at Michael Morpurgo's request. It will be broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on Saturday 8th November at 7pm. John has directed and John Leonard has produced. It stars Timothy Spall as Joey, and includes Brenda Blethyn, Bob Hoskins, Geoffrey Hughes, Jasper Britton, Gawn Grainger, Paul Slack, Angus Wright, Luke Treadaway, Paul Slack, Jack Leonard and Ben Adams. It also features John's singing alongside Coope, Boyes and Simpson and the stunning playing of John McCusker, Andy Cutting and Andy Seward. On hearing the completed work, Michael Morpurgo called it 'sublime'. Judge for yourselves.

War Horse -SHOW SOLD OUT
02/Oct/2008 This show has just returned to the National Theatre. The original opening night show received stunning reviews, a standing ovation and the audience cheering long after the cast had departed the stage. The return of WarHorse in September was just the same. Of course this means that once again tickets for the show are pretty difficult to obtain - it is a sell-out until the end of January. John has worked as Songmaker on this world premiere production in the National Theatre’s Olivier Theatre. This new epic is based on the celebrated novel by the former children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo. Actors working with magnificent, life-sized puppets by the internationally renowned Handspring puppet company lead us on a journey through this epic story of a farm horse sequestered into the army during the Great War.

Getting in touch - for Concert promoters and Folk Clubs
21/Sep/2008
If you are wanting to contact John regarding a concert or folk club appearance then would you use the following email address... sally at sallytams dot fsnet dot co dot uk (obviously it will work better if you replace dot with an actual dot and at with an @!!) It will be good to hear from you

 

OLIVIER AWARDS - the theatre Oscars
10/Mar/2008
John was delighted to have been nominated in the Sound Category (in the absence of a music category)for an Olivier Award - considered by many to be the theatre equivalent of the Oscars. John shares the nomination with Sound Designer Chris Shutt and fellow composer Adrian Sutton. The nomination is for their work on WarHorse at the National Theatre.

The Definitive Collection
18/Feb/2008
NEW to buy from this website are John Tams - the Definitive Collection and The Albion Band - Lark Rise to Candleford: music from the celebrated National Theatre production of the 1980s. Both are essential additions to your cd collection.

John's Birthday Cake
18/Feb/2008
Saturday 16th February - John's nnnnnnth Birthday. Huge thanks to the organisers of Cheltenham Folk Festival. They surprised John with this fabulous birthday cake on stage following John and Barry's terrific set on Saturday night. Thank you to John Shorter, Joanne Heatley and all the great staff and volunteers at the festival. A remarkable event which deserves...and seems to receive massive support.

Clare Set re-issue
18/Feb/2008
The Clare Set (Free Reed), recorded by John, and Neil Wayne in the 1970s was described recently in the Sunday Times as the ‘must-have re-issue.’ Critic Stewart Lee wrote ‘these reissued results sound as strange, mysterious and exotic as anything John and Alan Lomax pulled out of the Deep South in the 1930s’ and concluded by writing that the diversity of approach within an essentially narrow field will astonish you.’ www.free-reed.co.uk/anclar-06

 

TAMS AND COOPE WIN DUO OF THE YEAR AWARD
07/Feb/2008
John and Barry were delighted to receive the award for BBC Radio 2 Duo of the Year at the Brewery in London on February 4th. At a star-studded evening where guests and presenters included Phil Collins, Graham Coxon, Bob Hoskins, Brenda Blethyn, KT Tunstall and John Paul Jones, it was a huge thrill when Sean Bean stepped onto the stage to present the award. Describing John as one of his dearest friends, he went on to say what a honour it was to present John and Barry with the accolade of Duo of the Year.

 

 

2007

Welcome
19/Nov/2007
Welcome to the new John Tams official homepage. Visit the Guestbook and leave us a message.

Tams on TV
19/Nov/2007
Highlights of Cambridge Festival 2007 were shown on BBC 4 on November 9th. There was an interview with John alongside Graham Coxon and music from the extraordinary Under One Sky band. See news item below for more information about this project.

Doctor Tams
19/Nov/2007
John received an Honorary Doctorate from Sheffield Hallam University on November 14th 2007. It was presented by Chancellor Lord Winston and is being bestowed upon John for his work in the Performing Arts. Thanks to the many of you who have sent messages and cards of congratulations. John's closing words ....'If this is all a dream - please don't wake me.'

Thanks to the RAC
13/Nov/2007
Thanks to all at the Nettlebed show on Monday 12th November. Nine miles from the show, the gearbox went on the car. Huge thanks then to Mike Sanderson and the very calming 'Nettlebed' team. Thanks also sound engineer, Paul Smith and his partner Ann - the fourth emergency service! Enormous thanks to the RAC - if you aren't a member then join. They really did make a catastrophe seem like a fairly minor blip. Being relayed 140 miles back up north after the concert was all in a day's work for Patrolman John. Thanks guys - one and all.

New MP3 samples
05/Nov/2007 Have a listen to MP3 samples of John's music on the albums page, click on 'music' in the menu to get there

Holding Fire!
20/Oct/2007
John has recently completed work as Music Consultant at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, on this new play by actor Jack Shepherd. It has now ended its run. - Read more

Sharpe
20/Oct/2007
There is a strong whisper circulating of a further Sharpe adventure. We will let you know as soon as we know ourselves. Currently, ‘Over the Hills and Far Away – the Music of Sharpe.’ is in the top ten Amazon Bestsellers chart. You can order here – either online or by downloading the order form and using snail mail. The Sharpe album includes a young Kate Rusby, even then an outstanding singer. John is eager to recommend Kate’s new album, Awkward Annie to you.

Radio Ballads 2006
11/Sep/2007
John was also thrilled to be Executive Music Producer of the Radio Ballads 2006, which took a Gold and a Bronze Award at the Sony Radio Academy Awards in May. John, and Series Producer John Leonard accepted the gold award, for the Song of Steel, at a glittering evening and accepted the award on behalf of all the team and dedicated it to the people of the Lower Don Valley. - Read more