Still We Rise

Berkhamsted author and poet Leslie Tate talks to Living Magazine about what it’s like to front a high-energy band at an advanced age and remain creative, passionate and energized by life…

Neil Young sang: ‘Hey, hey, my, my / Rock and roll can never die.’ And it’s true, something lives on even when you’re (in Neil Young’s words) ‘Out of the blue and into the black.’ Or, like me, you’re 77 but feel about 25 when you get up on stage.

So it’s a huge lift to be the lead vocalist with Still We Rise, who hail from Berkhamsted, Hemel and Chesham. We play our own original songs and take on issues like gender, climate, childhood and nature – with no Dad Rock!

I should explain that my main singing role is to accompany Ellie Hill, our violinist, when she sings about women’s experience. When I lead, I chant, whisper, project and recite my poems, and I’m lucky enough to have Richard Lafford (guitar/keyboard) with Ellie and Jonathan Pagden (bass) improvising around me. With Anna Schofield, our fifth member, hand-drumming and presenting her on-stage artworks, we offer a unique mix of folk/rock/jazz with art and words about bullying and recovery.

Being on stage keeps me young and alive. Our show is both high-energy and tender. It’s about life, love and staying present. It’s fun, too!

To quote Neil Young again: ‘Rust never sleeps.’

Still We Rise play at The Pump House, Watford on Wednesday 8 July at 8pm as part of the Watford Fringe Festival. Information and bookings at: watfringe.co.uk/events/still-we-rise-living-with-imagination,

There’s another chance to catch the band over lunchtime at the annual Dacorum Climate Action Network Event on Wednesday 29 July at the Old Town Hall, Hemel Hempstead.

Don’t miss this driven and poetic show, guaranteed to leave you fired up and inspired.