Cuckoo's Nest - English Ceilidh Band

Early memories of dancing and playing for dancing

Collin originally started as a caller because of his total inability to master any of the instruments he picked up. His renditions of "Abide with me" on the melodeon, concertina and guitar were (and still are) unbelievable.

So the band that started him off, " The Original Glebe Pit Orchestra" asked him to learn some dances and he hasn't looked back since. That band morphed over the next 20 years through Band of Hope & Glory, Redhot Polkas, Bottle Lodge into Lounge Lizard which eventually stopped working at the end of 1998. At the end only Roger Boydon and him were remaining from the original members and had been continuous members from 1974.

Prior to Lounge Lizard finishing as a working band, Collin had been asked to call for Cuckoo's Nest a few times when their regular caller was out of the country. When Lounge Lizard folded, he became the joined Cuckoo's Nest as their full time caller.

In the 1970's he was not a big fan of the Folk Dances he attended with Stafford Morris. But he was inspired by the sounds created by bands like Oak, Old Swan Band, Umps & Dumps, Flowers & Frolics, New Victory Band amongst others. Also, when in 1983 he joined The Ironmen and Severn Gilders he met many others who shared his favouritism for the new genre of English Ceilidh including Dave Hunt, a leading light in the design of the dance style.

Other bands and musical work

Over the years he has called with a number of other bands (he does describe himself as a tart who will dance with anyone good) including All Blacked Up, Boldwood, Hekety, Jabadaw, Moody Food, Cut the Mustard (ex Hodges Dump), The Whole Caboodle and the Staffordshire version of The Woodsiders.
His preferred music to listen to is everything except most opera, all rap and most crooners (except Andy Williams, Dean Martin and Pat Boone). He inherits his Dad's love of New Orleans Jazz and its offshoot Trad jazz. Bands and artists that appear in his playlists are Black Sabbath, Billy Fury, Rolling Stones, Runrig, Led Zepellin, Tickled Pink, Animals, Hollies, All Blacked Up, Them and Van Morrison, Ceilidhography, Wolfstone, The Blasters, Pretty Things, De Dannan, Deep Purple,