September News

JENI HANKINS HAPPY SEPTEMBER EVERYONE! Just a quick note to say that I will be playing the Barnsley Folk and Acoustic Night in one week on Wednesday, 12 September. I've been playing for the folks in Barnsley for nine years now and can hardly believe so much time has passed since I wrote to them very tentatively back in 2009 to ask if they would book Jeni & Billy at the Folk Club. They always have great singers and a listening atmosphere, so come along and sing along. At the end of September, I will be flying over to California to play three shows. I will be back at Fiddlers Crossing in Tehachapi on Saturday, 29 September, and at The Pasadena Folk Music Society on Saturday, 6 October. There's also talk of a house concert in Huntington Beach on Friday, 5 October. So, please stay tuned by checking the website and I will send another newsletter out to confirm that Friday date just before I leave for California. I apologize to folks on the Central Coast and in the Bay Area and beyond for not making it up to your area this time around. Perhaps you fancy an excursion to the south and I will see you in Pasadena or Tehachapi! I have two new videos for you to enjoy. The first is a new song that I wrote for my Dad, Greg Hankins, over the two year anniversary of his death from leukemia. The song is about strenght and resilience in the face of grief and includes references to several of the songs that he and I loved.   The second video comes from my performance at the Gardeners Rest in Sheffield during the Tramlines festival in July. My friend Alison Wild drove up from London on the day in order to sign in British sign language for two songs. Here is our version of Miner's Reward. I think she does a beautiful interpretation of the song. There is talk of house concerts in Preston and Huddersfield in October or November when I get back from California and a show of my photographs from great-great-granddad's cabin in Sheffield sometime in the fall or early next year. So, stay tuned for further adventures! You can always find me on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, or you are welcome to write to me at jeniannhankins@gmail.com. I send you kindness and happiness, Jeni

The Roses of California

Fridays in the Studio – a new series of videos leading up to the release of our new record – “The Roses of California.” Back in the 1950’s, one of my Aunts went out to California with a fella who thought she looked like a movie star. And she did. And she was glad to escape being a miner’s wife. But, eventually, she ended up peeling potatoes in Idaho. Much of this song is true. I like what Billy’s Dad, Bill Jr, had to say about it: “These things happen.” And they do.

Thanks very much to Peter Knipe, our great friend and chief archivist in Britain, for capturing our process as we recorded songs for our upcoming CD, “Heart of the Mountain.” Here we are last July in All Saints Church, Barwick-in-Elmet, West Yorkshire, England, by invitation of Si McGrath of the fabulous band King Courgette.

Bye bye California

Report from I-15 heading east toward New Mexico: Bye Bye California! Thank you to all

of our friends who made our adventure so extraordinary!

Rumor has it we may have topped off our visit with a day at Pepper Peg studios with friends, Craig & Ali! New record is coming along!

Silly Folk Summit

Report from Los Osos, California: You know what's great? Having a folk summit of two and being silly with Amber Cross​. One of my favorite tour photos ever. I love you to pieces, Amber!

Frank's pizza & more sites so far in the newsletter

First of 5 LA Dates tonight! New newsletter says it all! I also tell you about Frank's Pizza & give you the scoop on other bits of our tour so far. Tickled to pieces to be here! 

Tue, 10/6: Aliso Viejo Library, Aliso Viejo, CA

Fri, 10/9: Coffee Gallery Backstage, Altadena, CA*

Sat, 10/10: Sun City Library, Sun City, CA

Sun, 10/11: Cinema Bar, Culver City, CA**

Sat, 10/17: Shirley Family Concert, Huntington Beach, CA*

Fri, 10/23: SLO House Concerts, San Luis Obispo, CA*

Sun, 10/25: Brickyard Theater, Atascadero, CA*

Sat. 11/7: Four Corners House Concerts, Farmington, NM

*with Very Special Guest, Craig Eastman

**with Rick Shea and the Losin’ End plus The Good Intentions

http://tinyurl.com/jeniandbillyCAdates2015

Way Out West 2015

Announcing our Way Out West Tour 2015 and our most recent Newsletter:

Thurs, 9/24: Conway Public Library, Conway, AR

Tue, 9.29: Fort Stockton Public Library, Ft Stockton, TX

Thurs, 10/1: Hardscrabble House Concert, Westcliffe, CO

Tue, 10/6: Aliso Viejo Library, Aliso Viejo, CA

Fri, 10/9: Coffee Gallery Backstage, Altadena, CA*

Sat, 10/10: Sun City Library, Sun City, CA

Sun, 10/11: Cinema Bar, Culver City, CA**

Sat, 10/17: Shirley House Concert, Huntington Beach, CA*

Fri, 10/23: SLO House Concerts, San Luis Obispo, CA*

Sun, 10/25: Brickyard Theatre, Atascadero, CA*

Sat. 11/7: Billy and Jeni Hankins at the Four Corners House Concert Series, Farmington, NM

*with Very Special Guest Craig Eastman

**with Rick Shea and the Losin’ End plus The Good Intentions

http://tinyurl.com/jbwayoutwestnews2015

My new book is now for sale!

I'm very happy to announce that my collection of tour reports “Reports from Out West: On Tour with Jeni & Billy, October - December 2014" is with the printer and will be delivered to Nashville next Friday, so I will be able to bring 12 copies with me to Britain! They are very heavy, so that’s all I can manage with the new CDs, too! They’ve come out very nicely and I am so grateful to everyone who encouraged me to collect my reports into a book!

So, if you are in Britain and would like to buy a copy, they will be £15. But since I will only have 12 of them, it would be great if you could let me know that you would like to me to set one aside for you in case I won’t see you until the end of the tour. OR you can even pay in advance by sending $22.50 (US Dollars) to jeniandbilly@gmail.com via Paypal. Either way is perfectly fine if you’re not keen on Paypal.

Folks worldwide can order a PDF version for $10 that you can read on your computer/tablet/iPad (wherever PDFs are supported) online at Blurb. It looks fantastic in this PDF format and you can handily EXPAND the type for easy readability. I did try to keep the type fairly large throughout the book for ease of reading. eBook format is still in the works due to a technical glitch on their end.

Friends in the USA can order their own printed copy of my new book directly from Blurb by following this link: http://blur.by/1DokXJx

I may order some more to bring to shows in the fall . . . but if you’d like one now, just follow the link. That link is also good for purchasing the PDF version.

HOORAY! 

P.S. If you pre-ordered (THANK YOU!), I sent out an email today with a link to my Dropbox where you can download the PDF version. I will mail your print version on Monday, April 20. Let me know if you didn't get the email. I used the email address connected to your Paypal payment.

Reckoning Day – LIVE at Caltech! Our FIRST official concert video!

We are over the moon to announce our all new YouTube Channel and launch our FIRST official concert video "Reckoning Day -- Live" performed with the Big Picnic Band at the Pasadena Folk Society on November 15, 2014. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SHARE and we hope you will subscribe to our YouTube Channel, so you'll be the first to see our new videos. We have several in the hopper right now! 

Tremendous thanks to Pattie Van Over and Mark Indictor for creating the video with such love and care. You two are stellar! And many many thanks to Dave Way for mixing the live performance so lushly and beautifully (P.S. Ahhhhhh!!!!! Wheeee!!! On the new Grammy, Dave!).

This night was made possible through the enormous talents of the Big Picnic Band -- Craig Eastman, Dillon O'Brian, Denny Weston Jr., and Dave Way. Special thanks to Ali Moynihan Eastman for being our angel that night and looking after ever detail as only a best friend can.

And thanks to Greg Hankins for helping me get our YouTube channel in order. 

Remember to subscribe to our Channel for new videos.

And PLEASE consider SHARING "Reckoning Day -- Live" to get the word out about our music! 

You'll also find several newly added videos for Henry Lee and Single Girl (originally a special feature on our Longing for Heaven CD). And we've highlighted some of our favorite fan videos on our favorites page. 

All so exciting! Thank you for celebrating with us! Yes!

Go West with Jeni & Billy

Our friend, Anne, asked us to re-post this photo of the Airstream in the forest. It's so good to be headed out west again.

We're off to California via the southern route, naturally! We get started tonight in Conway, Arkansas. I've got a little musing in here about fall and, if you click the link on the far left hand side of the newsletter for Billy's blog, you'll hear a swell new tune he wrote called Goldie's Chase. 

http://tinyurl.com/pba3b4q