Sleeping Dogz

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In the Norman king in Dunstable, 2004

Sleeping Dogz is a an English neo-folk band based in Buckinghamshire. It was formed in 2002 by Wild Willy Barrett (who sings and plays guitar, violin, banjo, percussion and balalaika) and also features Mary Holland (cello, harmonium, guitar and vocals) and John Devine (uilleann pipes, whistles, flutes, harmonium and percussion).

1 Biography
2 Songs
3 On-stage antics
4 Discography
- 4.1 Gypsies Too (2002)
- 4.2 The Drum With No Ears (2004)
5 External links

[edit] Biography

Barrett is a multi-instrumentalist who has been performing professionally since 1977. He is probably best known for his work with John Otway from 1977 to 1981. Barrett had previously worked with John Devine when, in 2002, he saw a group of belly dancers, accompanied by celloist Mary Holland. Barrett suggested that he, Holland and Devine should combine their musical talents together to form Sleeping Dogz. The resulting music is an unusual mix of country/folk (from Barrett), Irish Folk (from Devine) and Egyptian and classical music (from Holland). The band has played venues across England and has also been the final performers for the Cambridge Folk Festival in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

[edit] Songs

A lot of the songs Sleeping Dogz play are written by Barrett and Eddy Stanton, but some are traditional tunes. Many songs have a comedic aspect, such as Tales from the Raj, a song which starts out normal, but then the words change to make it sound Indian (i.e. "your party" becomes "chapati", "everybody" becomes "onion bhaji" and "life" becomes "rice"). In the song Anyway, Barrett sings his most classic line "All my eyes flashed before my life". The origanal song played by Barrett, called Jack o' Diamonds, had the same tune played on the banjo as what is now Sleeping Dogz, and the words were used for what is now Jack o' Diamonds. Every Sleeping Dogz performance starts with Old Joe Coral, and ends with Boris.

[edit] On-stage antics

Barrett often breaks instruments during performances, either on purpose or accidentally. He cuts holes in his guitars, saying "It's louder than the usual guitar with just one hole." He once stated, "I've got one guitar at home that's got so many holes in it, it's just a neck, and it's so loud, I don't even need a microphone!". During the show Barrett often interacts with the audience, whether by insulting them or making them shout "Boris", "Ticket/chicken" or just "Oi". Barrett sometimes builds his own guitars and cuts them apart on stage. Other on-stage antics by Barrett include his stating "I'm Wild Willy Barrett, and I don't have a clue who these two are!"