06-Sep-09 Evening Of Celebration

We wanted to invite friends to help us celebrate our marriage - but we didn't want a formal reception-type event. In the same way that the wedding and its location reflected our music we were looking for a venue in keeping with the same ethos. Having attended some performances at the Seaton Delaval Arts Centre, and having headlined a concert there we thought it would be ideal ... this Salvation Army Hall is being turned into a great venue for performing arts and we give it all the support we can.

They did the catering (superb food, great choice, and plenty of it too), and the wedding cake iced in jiva colours with purple flowers and piping, set the place out in cabaret style, candles on the tables, attentive staff, and created a wonderful friendly ambience for a super evening. Friends came from far and wide, and it was smashing to see people enjoying the food, the wine, the company, the music... everything.

There was an initial 30 or so minutes for guests to arrive, find themselves a table, settle in and have a bit of a chinwag. Then jiva took to the stage amid cheers and applause as we picked up guitars and walked up to the microphones - wow! We started with both playing 6-string guitars and sang:

• Love At The Five & Dime (Nanci Griffith)
• Two Old Friends (Chris Simpson)

Then, as Jimmy recounted the day at Taylor Guitars in California, Val swapped her 6-string for the latest addition to our Taylor collection - the gorgeous custom build 12-string (Chalise). There had been some singing along to our first two numbers but, once we got into the self-penned songs the audience/guests really let fly with their voices filling the hall with multiple harmonies... better than many folk clubs! The songs were:

• Different Dreams (jiva)
• Some Way Home (jiva)
• One More Song (jiva)

jiva - 'One More Song'

After our set we had a few words from Terry Ferdinand, did the cake-cutting bit and then everyone tucked in to the superb buffet, followed by jiva taking the stage again to toast the happy (very happy) couple.

Top of the bill for the evening was Allan Taylor - we're very fortunate to count Allan among our friends, and he readily accepted our invitation to join us for the evening as well as agreeing to sing for us too! He had written a song especially for us as a wedding present (we played a recording of it during the actual wedding ceremony). Allan was superb - and we especially loved the clarity of his sound through our Bose L1 system ... it's not often we get to sit in the audience and hear it - and this was something special! Naturally, he sang our song, and some requested favourites too.

There were cries for more and he duly obliged with an encore - he persuaded us to join him for 'It's Good To See You'... wow! Incredible! Jimmy picked up the new 12-string and he and Val shared a microphone for the choruses. A fabulous way to end the evening's music.

What a magnificent, unforgettable night - we extend our thanks to everyone who accepted the invitation to join us and to the volunteers at Seaton Delaval Arts Centre for 'doing us proud' - thank you, thank you, thank you one and all.

Links
jiva website
jiva MySpace
Allan Taylor
Seaton Delaval Arts Centre