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Agiotfest '10 - Lineup

Joe Brown	One Drop Forward	4Square	Laura Zakian	Kuriri
Omega 5	The Good Ole Boys	Jemma Bartlett	Sonia Grammatikos	Ethel the chicken

Agiotfest '10 - Performance

Agiotfest '10 - Report

After months of uncertainty and preparation, Agiotfest 10 suddenly happened. Joe Brown and his entourage and separately, Laura Zakian, flew in from the U.K. Kuriri came over by ferry from Igoumenitsa, 4 Square flew in from a Prague gig. One Drop Forward slid in almost unnoticed. Jemma Bartlett and newcomers the Shires for their maiden outing also flew in from the UK, as did Laura Doss from Germany. Local groups Omega 5 and The Good Old Boys and songstress Sonia Grammatikos were our island representatives. All was set.

The Friday could not have got off to a worse start. The state-of-the-art M7 mixing desk brought over with the Joe Brown Group did not like the journey or the Corfu conditions, or maybe it was a duff machine. Anyway, it did not work from the start. So Digital had to give way to Analogue, and Bill worked his magic on rearranging the various acts with available channels to produce a Saturday show. But first Friday had to be sorted. Sound-checks were severely delayed following the M7 glitch and were still going on at opening hours. The crowd started to drift into the New Cactus Hilton, pleasing in an odd way to think that the hallowed spot had never before seen such activity. What a pleasant place this is. Chairs were laid in neat rows but a grassy olive knoll allowed people to relax with their picnics, as an alternative to the good-value simple fayre offered next to Villa Theodora. There were lots of children coming in, no charge helped many parents with their decision as to whether to come or not. A few stalls were in the approach lane, a modest first try to what we hope will become a thriving opportunity.

Just when things seemed as if they could get no worse, they did. The village lost one of its three phases of electricity power. Lights along the Agiotfest trail were extinguished, a communal groan escaped the lips of the audience. Power was redirected to the stage area and two hours behind schedule the show started. Luckily, there had been not too many people up to that point, so the steady stream that followed were blissfully unaware of the erstwhile hiccups. During this mayhem it was the hard luck to be on stage for the Shires, the Good Old Boys and Laura Doss. But they coped very well with this setback. Steve Dell, especially, commended the professional ethic of young girls Alice and Aliyah, who sang on unperturbed as the technology around them sputtered and flickered. Omega5 can always be relied on to get things going. Again, they did not disappoint. The Fest was off! No Paul Stenton this year, but Adonis showed his skill was no less, if differently-styled. Steve doubled as compere, when not rocking out his songs. He was in for a long two days with a roundtrip to Acharavi sandwiched between.

Kuriri from Serbia were unknown to Corfu before this night. "Kuriri from Serbia" They will not be unknown now. It is not without good reason they are so highly-regarded across the Balkans. Their musical ability and unorthodox presentation were a perfect match. I can give no better tribute to them than that given by our own musical Dr.Mann. 'Kuriri were superb, they really know how to play their instruments', this rare recognition from a musician who recognizes little post - 1890 worth a mention. Well done Kuriri and well done Lionel. The night ended with a group much better known in these parts; One Drop Forward. They delivered as they always do, a brilliant presentation of reggae with people dancing and swaying to their rhythms on the improvised 'dance floor' before the stage. Thus ended the Friday night, saved from possible disaster by some quite wonderful sounds.

The Minstrel slept on the stage overnight and was bitten to death by mosquitoes, but ably encouraged by Andy (the four-legged one) who barked at any stray sounds. Bravo Andy, we could not have afforded to have any of this gear nicked! In the dawn the other non-human caretaker of the New Cactus Hilton, Ethel the chicken-who slept under the stage, sometimes during the performance- strutted her stuff among the olives, seemingly unphased by the goings-on.

Frightened into super-action by the power failings of Friday, the Saturday morning saw activity beginning a little past eight in the morning. By nine o'clock Joe Brown was doing his sound-check and the other acts followed, almost by the time-table. Things were looking hopeful. The catering side was also better-shaped and prepared for the evening. And so it opened, and on this night there were to be no repetitions of the early Friday failings. The show started at 6.45 pm, only fifteen minutes behind schedule. The first act on was Laura Zakian, with her musically talented trio. Great stuff from Laura. Her act is not a typical turn for hereabouts and thereby the reaction was uncertain, which is why it had been decided not to have the set too long. Now we wish we had, for she was well-received by the growing audience. Sonia Grammatikos is a local lady with huge talent, singing soulful ballads with her own guitar accompaniment. She had not played on a stage for nine years. We tempted her from retirement and what a gutsy performance she gave us. Short, but sweet. The Good Old Boys featuring Jemma were back for a second showing; they have a growing fanbase in Corfu. This time they did not have to compete with the technology. Tommy Cooper kept appearing on stage. Just like that.

4Square. I don't really know what to say. I will leave it to better music critics than I to write here and elsewhere on later dates. Suffice it to say they probably even outshone the illustrious top-of-the bill, in terms of audience appreciation. Four very likeable young people from Rochdale. Gracie would be 'prideful'. John Taylor, manager for Joe and his band was impressed, and that in itself is impressive. Towards the end of their act Ocay had arranged for a glittering firework display over their stage, maybe a tad loud…..sorry 4S. Then came Joe Brown. I had to sit down to this one. I could hardly believe this was happening at last. Joe Brown in Agios Ioannis. On stage. And delivering brilliantly, superbly backed by his son Pete and the rest of the band. What an exponent of so many instruments, a true musician's musician. It was all worth the months of finger-biting. Thank you Joe for an unforgettable debut at the New Cactus Hilton.

Agiotfest '10 - Photo Gallery

Agiotfest '09 - Lineup

Steve Gibbons (Dylan Project)	Dave Pegg (Dylan Project)	PJ Wright (Dylan Project)	Phil Bond (Dylan Project)	Brendan Day (Dylan Project)
Richie Henderson (East of Memphis)	Sheila McWhirter (East of Memphis)	The Good Old Boys	Jemma Bartlett	Omega 5

Agiotfest '09 - Performance

Agiotfest '09 - Report