Monday, 6 June 2011

Hippie legends It's a Beautiful Day take a trip to the Trades Club on Friday sprinkling some of their West Coast magic along the valley

Formed in San Francisco during the infamous 'Summer of Love' of 1967, It's a Beautiful Day were contemporaries of The Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and Quicksilver Messenger Service.

The brainchild of unusual five-string violinist David LaFlamme their sound created a unique and pioneering blend of rock, jazz, folk, classical and world beat styles.

They are best known for their signature song 'White Bird', which is a slice of psychedelia as resonant and evocative today as the day it was written in 1968. High quality support comes from Hebden's own psychedelic warriors The Electric Brains.

An old friend returns on Thursday when folk troubadour Pete Morton returns singing songs rom the heart that tell compelling stories and speak of the human condition from a very unique perspective.

Pete's passionate, strong voice and strident guitar style combine in a set where traditional songs often rub shoulders with Pete's current tunes with remarkable ease.

His songs are famed for being an unruly mix of humour, politics, love and social comment, wrapping their way around the folk tradition. Pete will be onstage at 8pm so his fans can the last trains home.

It's a completely different vibe on Saturday when the people behind What The Freak and Into The Valley come together as Raze to raise funds for the club's refurbishment.

Local stars Flash Atkins and CP will be filling the floor with deep house and disco beats on the Grass Roots Discoteque sound system for heads and feet to get busy to.

The dance theme continues on Sunday when DJ Heidi hotfoots it back from her Manchester residency to spin a combination of club classics and top pop tunes. DJ Heidi has already built up a strong local following with her high energy sets, and you are advised to turn up early.

"The Trades have been chasing It's a Beautiful Day, who are one of the great lost bands of the last 40 years, and we're delighted they are finally joining us to play an extremely rare Yorkshire gig," Trades Club spokesperson Paul Clarke told the Hebden Bridge Web .

"Raze is one off night featuring the best DJs along the valley, and we're grateful to them for helping us take another big step towards our refurbishment target."