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Kimber's Men Telephone: 01422-833659
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Left to right Dave Buckley (Ship's Captain); John Bromley (Ship's Cook); Neil Kimber (Ship's Bosun); Gareth Scott (Powder Monkey); Joe Stead (Ship's Doctor). Kimber's Men were formed in the summer of 2001 and in those early days they comprised Neil Kimber - ship’s bosun, John Bromley - ship’s cook, Joe Stead - ship’s doctor, and Roger ‘Tonky’ Hepworth the ship’s cabin boy. But in the summer of 2004 Roger was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and sadly he passed away in April 2005. Kimber’s Men realized they would never sound the same again. Roger is missed not only for his wonderful harmonies and guitar playing, but for his friendship and advice always warmly given. Neil and Roger had been singing together as a duo in West Yorkshire since 1966 whilst John burst upon the folk scene a little later in 1972 as a member of Hebric. John, who has a voice similar to Paul Robeson has also sung with the local operatic society in Halifax and is now an occasional member of The Bradshaw Mummers who can be seen in quaint outfits throughout most summers at various festivals acting out the important chapters of English history. John sang lead bass with Northern Ballet at Leeds Playhouse for the winter season of Mozart’s Requiem. Meanwhile Joe Stead had begun a professional career in London in 1966 which eventually took him to various parts of the world and more recently to the first Valparaiso Festival of the Sea in Chile. Joe has performed in concert in America with Pete Seeger twice and also sung at a garden party with Paul Robeson in London in 1958. Neil also sang in concert with Pete Seeger when he and Joe crossed the Atlantic with Paul Downes to perform in a concert in New Jersey to raise funds for the Delaware Valley River Project. We now have two new member in the group. David Buckley joined Kimber's Men at the end of April 2006. David is an actor and a singer who has performed in musicals and with the Halifax Operatic Society. When we found him he was playing the part of Captain Smith in 'Titanic the Musical'. We managed to grab him by his shirt tails before he went down with the ship. David sings tenor harmony. He has recently written two songs; 'I will always be there' and ‘Stan the Shantyman’. In June 2007 we increased our number to 5 when Gareth Scott joined the quartet, increasing our numbers to five. The addition of both the new members has given Kimber’s Men a much rounder sound with two new harmonies. Our
new compact disc (a double) ‘Kimber’s Men in Port’
has now been released to critical acclaim. It was recorded live
in concert and includes the entire two 45/50 minute halves of the
show. This release along with the two other Kimber’s Men CD’s can
be seen and heard in their entirety on the Link above marked ‘Discs’.
Kimber's Men in rehearsal with Banda Celtamericana
From
the very West of West Wales to South and East England, and from Cumbria
and Northumberland in the North to Jersey and Portsmouth in the South
audiences have raved over Kimber’s Men.
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What
a superb evening! A
friend said; "It was a really good night. I hadn't seen anything
like that before and went along with an open mind, not knowing what
to expect. It was great. I loved the songs, the humour and the atmosphere.
When are they coming back?" The
weekend Kimber’s Men spent in Jersey showed what a versatile bunch
of lads they truly are. They went down a storm on stage in the concert
inside the Maritime Museum and outside on the quayside at the Fête
de la Mer - but from a purely selfish point of view the spontaneous
set on board the Charles Marie as we sailed out of St Helier harbour
under a clear blue Jersey sky is one of life's great memories. If
you get the chance - book them! In
my humble opinion Kimber’s Men are the finest shanty group in Britain
today. Brilliant harmonies, they took The 2002 Portsmouth Tall Ships
Event by storm. After one 45 minute set they sold 43 CDs to an audience
hardly versed in the music. You were absolutely
awesome I thought you
were fantastic in the Marquee on Sunday lunchtime. Quite brilliant
in fact.
Press the 'Joe Stead' button top of page for Photographs and Ramblings
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