Retro Singer

Vintage Singer North Wales, Vintage Wedding Entertainment

Remembrance Day Singer

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I had a busy weekend for last week’s Remembrance Day, performing my 1940s wartime show in Glasgow and Fife, Scotland.  It was a lovely sunny but briskly cold November weekend, and it was great to see such a large turnout for both events.

Remembrance Day, also known as Armistice Day, is a memorial day held every year on 11th November to commemorate the end of the First World War, when hostilities finally ended in 1918 at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.  It gives people the opportunity to honour the memory of the members of the Armed Forces who gave their lives in the line of duty.

My venue in Glasgow was the Kirkintilloch Rangers Supporters Club, a lovely friendly club with a really strong community spirit about it.  Everybody had turned out in force wearing their poppies with pride, and the band played a rousing selection of hymns and marches.

I sang my selection of old-time classics by Vera Lynn, Gracie Fields and many other wartime favourites, and it was great to hear everyone singing along.

At the end of the day a beautiful memorial bench was presented in honour of a local member of the community who had fought in the First World War.  What a beautiful gesture on a lovely occasion, and a privilege for me to be a part of.

On Remembrance Sunday I travelled across to Glenrothes in Fife to perform at the CISWO club.  Another fab club, CISWO host a broad selection of events for the local community to enjoy.  I was made very welcome by staff and customers alike, and enjoyed performing a wide range of music for the afternoon, beginning with my wartime show and ending with modern songs for dancing.

This will be my last opportunity to perform at this venue as they are moving next week to new premises across the road.  I wish them the best of luck, and look forward to returning to see the new club.

Corporate event in Inverness

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I headed up to the Highlands recently, to perform at a corporate event in Inverness.  Ardtalla House on the Novar Estate in Dingwall was the beautiful backdrop for me to sing classic songs in a vintage style for a group of American businessmen who were visiting Scotland.  They were guests of Glenmorangie, producers of finest Scottish malt whiskey, so of course they were treated to a tour of the distillery before their arrival at Ardtalla House.

We were blessed with fine weather, so I performed my first set outside on the terrace.  The guests were served aperitifs as I sang a mix of popular songs.  After that we made our way inside where the party settled down to a sumptuous meal, complete with traditional ‘Address to haggis’.  I provided some soft background music during dinner, and afterwards the guests were led back outside by a Scottish piper, to be treated to a rousing performance by a Military Band.

All in all it was a fabulous night, and the Novar Estates was truly a stunning venue.  That night I had the pleasure of staying at the wonderful Kincraig Castle Hotel, where the staff were lovely and the surroundings were gorgeous.  Here’s a video I took of the lounge in the morning before breakfast – it felt as though I’d been transported back to the 1940s – they were even playing one of my favourite songs!  I highly recommend this hotel if you’re ever travelling in the Inverness area.

On the way back home we stopped off at Chanonry Point and were lucky enough to see some dolphins!  We also had a look around the Loch Ness Exhibition Centre which was really fascinating.  Scotland has so much to offer, and I feel so lucky that my job takes me around and about this country, giving me the chance to visit so many beautiful places.

Many thanks to Sibilla and her team at Bright Partnerships who organised the event.

Las Vegas Tribute Show at Alea Casino Glasgow

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I had the pleasure of returning to the Alea Casino in Glasgow recently to perform at a glittering ‘Las Vegas’ style night.

The Alea is a great place in Glasgow for a night out, as not only can you try your luck at the Poker table or on the slot machines, but they also have a variety of live entertainment and tribute shows in their bars and restaurants.

Alea Casino prides itself on its Las Vegas style, located on the waterfront at Springfield Quay with stunning views of the River Clyde and the Glasgow skyline.  So it was the perfect venue for a Las Vegas style evening.

Las Vegas style entertainmentI performed classics from the 1950s and 1960s from stars such as Frank Sinatra (and his daughter Nancy!), Dean Martin, Judy Garland, Nat King Cole, and many others to keep us all in the Vegas mood.  The audience were really up for singalong after they enjoyed their dinner at the casino’s fantastic Face to Face function room.

Many thanks to Ford McGill at the Alea for organising such a stylish and fun-filled night.

 

60th Birthday party at Carnbooth House Hotel Glasgow

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I had the pleasure of performing at a 60th birthday party recently at the beautiful Carnbooth House Hotel in Glasgow.  This hotel is not so far from me, so I’m surprised I haven’t come across it before.  What a hidden gem though!  Stunning surroundings and lovely old-world charm, it’s a real touch of class on the outskirts of the city centre.

The staff couldn’t have been more helpful, and the night went very well indeed, with laid-back easy listening classics to start the evening, and lively party songs for dancing later on.  Gwen, our birthday girl, was truly the ‘hostess with the mostess’ and was on the dancefloor all night.

It was such a pleasure to meet Gwen and her friends and family, and to visit such a gorgeous place.  Hopefully it won’t be my last visit.

 

Afternoon tea party at the Marriott Hotel Glasgow

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The Marriott Hotel in Glasgow was the venue for a vintage-style afternoon tea party I performed at recently.  Based in Argyle Street in the centre of Glasgow Scotland, the Marriott is a very popular choice for corporate functions and parties.

The event was hosted by a pharmaceutical company,  who had invited patients to an open day and wanted to finish off with afternoon tea and entertainment.  I came along with a mixture of golden-oldies to cheer up the visitors who had had a long morning taking in information, so they were glad of a little light entertainment with some tea and cake to refresh themselves!

Marriott Hotel Glasgow

Many thanks to Catherine Price from MPI for ensuring everything ran smoothly.

Wedding at Orocco Pier Hotel South Queensferry

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I recently paid a visit to South Queensferry to sing for a wedding at the gorgeous boutique hotel Orocco Pier.  What a charming place it was, set on a quaint little cobbled street in a seaside town near Edinburgh.  The bunting that had been arranged all the way down the street gave it a real vintage feel.

wedding singer orocco pier

Once I got to my room I was very pleasantly surprised by beautiful views right out over the Firth of Forth.

The function room for the wedding also shared these same views, making the balcony a very popular place as it was a lovely warm summer evening.

I was very impressed by the bride and groom’s first dance selection – they had put together a cool mash-up which started off with a romantic love song then blasted into 80s classic ‘The Power of Love’ by Huey Lewis and the News, as they invited all their friends up to join them on the dancefloor.  Great choice – that’s got to be one of my favourite 80s numbers!

As for my part of the proceedings, the bride had asked for a mixture of music from a variety of eras and genres, and specifically requested some theme songs from my James Bond/Casino show – including the famous Shirley Bassey classics ‘Goldfinger’ and ‘Diamonds are forever’ to add a touch of diva-type sophistication to the evening!  I was happy to oblige, and as the evening went on I added in some more upbeat numbers to keep everybody moving.

Julie, the bride, very kindly sent me some excellent feedback, which you can read on my testimonials page.

Wishing Mr and Mrs Ryan all the very best for the future!

James Bond Shows in Glasgow

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I’ve been performing my James Bond shows in Glasgow over the past couple of weekends, in some marvellous venues.

 

The first was for a fundraiser ball at Oran Mor, a stunning building right in the heart of Glasgow’s West End.

 

Oran Mor is a converted church, and this is evident in its beautiful architecture and unique setting, including the celestial ceiling mural by Alasdair Gray, which is one of Scotland’s largest pieces of public art.

Unique ceiling at Oran Mor

Unique ceiling at Oran Mor

Top funk soul and disco band ‘Funk Nation’ were also on the bill, looking and sounding absolutely fantastic. Here they are in action (I got a bird’s eye view from the gallery!)

 

 

The evening was compered by Glaswegian comedian Alan Anderson, and we were also joined by the fabulous opera singer Lucy Kay, who you may remember from Britain’s Got Talent.

 

A big thank you goes out to resident Stage Technician Ross, and also to agents Freak Music .

 

My next James Bond show was at the very plush Grand Central Hotel, right in the middle of Glasgow.  This hotel can be accessed directly from Central Station, so I was able to travel to the gig by train, which made a nice change for me!

 

For this event I teamed up with Richard Knight, a wonderful tenor who specialises in Opera and West-End show songs, as well as James Bond themes.

 

Richard has to be one of the most hard-working acts I’ve ever worked with.  He managed to look cool, calm, and collected, and remained in true charming ‘007’ style throughout the evening, despite having spent all day travelling all the way from Bournemouth to Glasgow.  He kept the audience thoroughly entertained from start to finish with his fast-paced show, and didn’t rest until he had the whole crowd up on their feet singing and clapping.  What a star performer!

 

It was nice to hear some happy feedback from the clients too:

 

“Dear Lisa & Richard

Just wanted to say a great big thank you to you both for a fantastic night.  I have feedback from other guests and people have said what fun they had – they loved your singing and the fact they could dance and sing along too.  Thank you once again and I hope we see you again soon.

Best wishes

Gillian, Colin & the team”

 

Big thanks to agents Masquerade Productions.

 

Glenburn Hotel Cabaret Shows

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1950s tribute show

I will be visiting the lovely Scottish Isle of Bute quite a few times over the coming year to sing at the Glenburn Hotel in Rothesay to perform some of my shows, including 1950s Rock n Roll, Swing and James Bond show.

 

One of the best things about the Glenburn Hotel is the fantastic staff there – especially the wonderful entertainment team.  Host Gary MacKean is a great favourite among all the guests, providing lots of laughs plus a very popular Elvis tribute act.  John and Marianne form the talented duo ‘Limited Edition’, supplying a wide variety of music for all the guests to enjoy.  They all made me feel very welcome when I appeared there last week performing my 1950s show, so I am very much looking forward to my future visits to the Glenburn this year.

 

Fancy a weekend away on a beautiful island off the western coast of Scotland?  Then come along and join us at the Glenburn Hotel.

 

Phone the hotel on 01700 502500 to check what dates I’m appearing and which show I’ll be performing.  Looking forward to seeing you there!

 

PS, check out the stunning views from the hotel.

(Thanks to John Martin for the beautiful picture)

Glencoe Hotel View

The view from your room!

 

Vintage Weddings Scotland

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Vintage weddings are becoming more and more popular around Scotland these days, as people look to the 1960s, 1950s, 1940s, 1930s and even back to the 1920s for inspiration for their special day.  There are some fabulous vintage wedding suppliers in Scotland, so I thought it would be a nice idea to make a video to showcase their creations.

And what better day than Valentine’s Day to spread a bit of retro romance!

For a suitably vintage musical backdrop I chose the 1930s song ‘What a difference a day makes’.  Dinah Washington won a grammy award in the 1950s for her bluesy take on this song, and so I chose to perform this version (as opposed to the more disco feel of the 1970s Esther Phillips version) as I thought it provided the perfect romantic sentiment.

The video features some wonderful suppliers of vintage weddings from all over Scotland, including the following:

Gavin Macqueen – an outstanding photographer from Glasgow whose unique, creative style is very much in demand at weddings all around Scotland.

La Belle Epoque – beautifully unique hair adornments reworked from antique pieces by the very talented Miriam Davies-Cole.

Make Believe Events – an extensive range of gorgeous chair covers, linens, and event hire items, together with free design consultation.

Fairy Dust Celebrations – deliciously pretty, these bespoke wedding cakes and favours are all homemade and freshly baked, using the finest of ingredients.

Miss Dixiebelle – Vanity Thrills is head stylist at Scotland’s award-winning vintage hair and beauty parlour.  Hair, makeup and nails, together with stunning reproduction dresses, make Miss Dixiebelle your go-to place for that complete vintage look!

Ribbons & Lace – a bridal boutique with a friendly, cosy atmosphere that makes you feel right at home as you take your pick from a stunning array of gowns created by top designers.

A Vintage Tea Party – vintage crockery hire to give your wedding that charming finishing touch!

A big thank you goes out to all the fabulous vintage wedding suppliers for contributing their beautiful images to be featured in this video.

 

Hogmanay in Perthshire

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Lisa-Martin-New-Years-Eve-rsHappy New Year!

Well it’s been a busy time for me over Christmas and New Year.  I’m just about settling back to normal routine and quite amazed that it’s nearly the end of January already!  

I managed to get back home to see the folks for a couple of days over Christmas, so it was lovely to have a little break.  New Year’s Eve saw me performing up north again, in a beautiful little Perthshire village called Alyth, where I celebrated Hogmanay with a mixture of locals and visitors. 

Alyth must be a very healthy place to live, as there was a lovely gentleman at the bar in his 90s, still looking very fit and active, who had served in the distinguished ‘Black Watch’ Scottish regiment in his younger days.  Him and his wife enjoyed the whole night and stayed well into the wee hours!  

As it was Hogmanay I included several Scottish favourites, including the essential Loch Lomond and Auld Lang Syne at the stroke of midnight.  I also added in some more contemporary Scottish songs by artists such as Rod Stewart, Frankie Miller, Eddi Reader, Paulo Nutini and Emeli Sande. 

It turned out to be a very romantic night, as one young man proposed to his girlfriend just after midnight.  I think that’s the first time that’s happened at one of my gigs – as soon as she said yes I launched into the traditional Scottish song ‘Mairi’s Wedding’ to get everybody in the mood!

I am booked to sing at quite a few weddings over the next few months, plus a few of my friends are also planning to tie the knot this year – looks like 2014 is going to be a very romantic one!

So, let’s get in the mood with this sentimental swing classic by Ella Fitzgerald: ‘I only have eyes for you’.