Dave Burland has retired twice in his life. In 1968 he left the Police Force to pursue a career in folk music, as a singer and guitar player. This particular period lasted until 1998 approx., when he took a proper job in which he had to wear proper trousers and, on occasions, a suit and tie. During the aforementioned period of thirty years, he visited quite a few countries, made quite a few solo records, quite a few of which are no longer available, played quite a lot of clubs and concerts and festivals, and made session appearances on quite a few other persons' records including Kate Rusby, Nic Jones, Richard Thompson, Mike Harding, Tony Rose, Bob Pegg and quite a few others. The period of 1998 to 2007 has been taken up by work with the very occasional engagement. However, in July 2007 all this changed when he retired for the second time. Hopefully, quite a few people will see this increased availability as quite a good thing. He is known to be quite looking forward to performing and seeing friends, some quite old and some quite new, and demonstrating his own controlled dynamism.

Using clever and imaginative lyrics, Reg has earned his reputation as one of the most talented folk/roots musicians around. From gigging in village halls to The Royal Albert Hall, Reg consistently delights his audiences with songs of life, love and injustice; soulfully delivered with melodic high-tenor vocals and exemplary guitar playing which draw you into his music. Armed with a performance collection of self-penned songs taken from six critically acclaimed solo albums, favourites include ‘Lizzie Loved a Highway Man’, ‘Drovers Road’, ‘And Jesus Wept’, ‘Fools Gold’, 'Angelina's Coming Home', The Man In Edward Hoppers Bar', ‘You Left Me Crying’, ‘Goodbye Hat’, ‘The Shoreline and The Sea’ and ‘Dragonfly’ to name a but a few...

Powerful, hugely moving, warm, humane, inspired, funny and gut wrenchingly honest. These are just some of the superlatives used to describe Vin's performance. This international, award winning, singer songwriter is completing his 42nd year on the road. This year sees the release of the biopic film "Teesside Troubadour" documenting Vin's life and career. Vin Garbutt is reputed to have said that he is not interested in becoming a big star in the accepted sense. Nevertheless in the area of music where he performs, there is no bigger star. He prefers to be a big fish in a small pond. This attitude means that his need for privacy and a balanced home life are safeguarded and satisfied. What the world realised long before Vin did, was that the small pond had grown over the years into a considerable lake. All this has happened without the hype from big Record Companies, and without the usual publicity from the mass media. He has performed all over the globe, and in parts of countries that the biggest stars will never see. This phenomenon has occurred solely by word of mouth, spread by people who have come across him, and felt the need to share this unique experience with their fellow countrymen. This will be Vin's third appearance at Ely Folk Club.

Al Parrish grew up singing in choir and playing in the high school band. Later, he played in many bands, in many genres. In 1989, Al entered the world of folk/roots music; he and three friends created Brean Derg Muc, a Toronto-based, pseudo-Irish group that took the Ontario festival scene by storm during two years of brilliant success. Over the next couple of years, Al freelanced in Ontario, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick with The Barnstormers, Strachan’s Cove, Sister Whiskey, October Browne, Kirk Elliot, Aaron Solomon, Dave MacIsaac, Jamie Snider and many others. In 1994, Al joined legendary Canadian roots icons Tanglefoot, beginning a 17-year career of touring across Canada, the US, and the UK. In December 2009, Tanglefoot played its final shows and disbanded. Al began playing solo in May 2010 with shows around Ontario and in Maritime Canada. In January 2011, he played a sold-out, solo concert at the Registry Theatre in Kitchener, Ontario. Legendary producer Paul Mills recorded that show on the Millstream Studio’s mobile, multi-track rig. From this, he and Al produced Propensity for Joy, Al’s first solo CD. Al is currently in the studio working on another solo CD. When he is not playing music, he has been doing commercial voice-over for clients such as Petro-Canada, Nokia, and Insano Productions. He is also writing a memoire and a novel.