String Jam Club

String Jam Club “The Borders haven of acoustic music” (The List)
Nominated Club of the Year (Scots Trad Music Aw "The Borders haven of acoustic music." You won't regret it!

The List

The String Jam Club is one of the best-known little Scottish venues on the UK live music circuit and was voted the second best gig in the whole of the UK by the Guardian, beating Oasis. In 2007, it was shortlisted for the Scots Trad Music 'Club Of The Year' Award. We meet once a month at our home, The County Hotel, 1-5 High Street, Selkirk, Scottish Borders TD7 4BZ. We are a seated venue

upstairs in the hotel's function room, which also has a bar. String Jam Club ticket-holders are entitled to 10% off delicious County Hotel restaurant meals between 6-7 pm on gig nights. The food is good. Advance booking is advised. We normally sell tickets online via Eventbrite (booking fees apply). You can also book by phoning the String Jam Club phone line, as advertised on this page or Eventbrite. Tickets can also be bought in person from The County Hotel (cash only). Ticket prices vary from month to month. Over an eventful twenty years String Jam Club has hosted a veritable Hall of Fame of internationally-known musicians, including Amythyst Kiah, Chastity Brown, Kinnaris Quintet, Ryan Young & Jenn Butterworth, Blue Rose Code, Joe Topping, Edwina Hayes, Jill Jackson, Anna Massie & Mairearad Green, Ewan McLennan, Cera Impala, The Little Unsaid, Derek Gripper, Mary Coughlan, Martin Simpson, Mary Gauthier, Anais MItchell, Jarlath Henderson, Rod Clements, Mike Whellans, Rory McLeod, Jackie Leven, Michael Marra, Rab Noakes, Tam White, Dean Owens, Adrian Byron Burns, Boo Hewerdine, Julie Felix, Martin Carthy, Karine Polwart, Preston Reed, Eleanor McEvoy, Border Boogie Band, Kathy Stewart, Tommy Ashby, Amy Duncan, O’Hooley & Tidow, Tony McManus, The Bevvy Sisters, Martin Stephenson, Jenny Biddle, Wizz Jones, Waterson:Carthy, The Coal Porters to name but a few. In addition to its exclusive guestlist, over about 1000 local and semi-professional musicians have performed in the club's open mic and support slots. We welcome everyone who loves music. The first half of the evening is always given over to an emerging artist(s) who can hone their performance skills & gain experience of playing through a professional sound system in front of a friendly and appreciative audience, not to mention being on the same bill as some of the world's most highly-regarded acoustic musicians. Our audience is noted for its discernment and listening qualities but is also incredibly lively and welcoming. String Jam Club proves the point that a miraculous kind of magic can happen between performer and audience in a small special space and it's something you'll never forget. String Jam Club is a real experience, both for the punters and the artists, where you can see some of the greatest musicians playing live up close in a really intense and intimate atmosphere. Sponsored by Vixen Records, Sound Station Studio, Borders Certified Chartered Accountants, & Hainingside Fine Art Photo Gallery. JOIN OUR MAILING LIST! Just drop us an email at:
[email protected]

What a fantastic line-up! Including the amazing Amythyst Kiah who blew the roof off String Jam Club three times when she...
22/06/2025

What a fantastic line-up! Including the amazing Amythyst Kiah who blew the roof off String Jam Club three times when she was top of the bill here in Selkirk! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Amythyst Kiah first appeared at String Jam Club in early 2017. Hailing from Chattanooga, Tennessee, this was her first s...
06/10/2024

Amythyst Kiah first appeared at String Jam Club in early 2017. Hailing from Chattanooga, Tennessee, this was her first solo tour of the UK. She was a knockout, and after a sell-out show & encores, I booked her again later in the year (this doesn’t happen very often!) What stood out was the power & beauty of that rich, deep & distinctive voice. Back in the US she was invited by the Grammy winning Rhiannon Giddens (Carolina Chocolate Drops) to be part of her groundbreaking project ‘Our Native Daughters’ which highlighted the lived experiences of black women, both historically & in present time. There were four women songwriters: Rhiannon, Amythyst, Alison Russell and Leyla McCalla, all highly accomplished in their own careers. The album “Songs of Our Native Daughters” was released in early 2019 on Smithsonian Folkways to great acclaim. Amythyst’s contribution to the album was her intense & powerful anthem ‘Black Myself’ which was subsequently nominated for a Grammy. I remember seeing the video of Amythyst singing with full band accompaniment on one of the giant screens in Times Square, New York City. Wow. What a song! Since then life has been pretty non-stop for Amythyst & her latest album ‘Still + Bright’ is due out 25th October.

It’s a racket. Someone’s making a fortune out of music & it sure ain’t the musicians.
06/06/2024

It’s a racket. Someone’s making a fortune out of music & it sure ain’t the musicians.

Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall has hit back at Spotify CEO Daniel Ek after he suggested it is now easier for artists to create 'content'.

Spotify is the biggest music streaming platform in the world, and its chief this week tweeted: "Today, with the cost of creating content being close to zero, people can share an incredible amount of content."

In response, Tunstall tweeted: "I for one don’t make ‘content’. I make music.

"It’s *possible* to make music cheaply, but you still need equipment. And making music the way I make it also employs other people and takes time.

"It’s such a completely f*****g myopic thing for him to say."

Tunstall, who is known for the likes of Suddenly I See, Other Side of the World and Black Horse and the Cherry Tree, this month received her second prestigious Ivor Novello songwriting award.

It’s with great sadness that I report the death of the great blues artist Mike Whellans, who has been a very welcome gue...
28/06/2023

It’s with great sadness that I report the death of the great blues artist Mike Whellans, who has been a very welcome guest and friend of String Jam Club over many years. Hailing from Lauder, he was described as “one of Scotland's heroes, a bluesman of amazing ability...a totally brilliant one man band.' (Mike Harding, preview of 'Fired-Up & Ready', BBC Folk & Acoustic Website Sept 2008) and didn’t we all know it. Blues was in his blood, his greatest love, and he performed it with such authenticity, grit & spirit that you felt its presence in your bones. He was a natural entertainer, a multi talented instrumentalist & a passionate blues man. The one man band tag was no pastiche, it was sheer dynamite, highlighting his multi instrumental genius, bringing together his ubiquitous talents as a player, performer & blues artist. A showman to the end, he had the String Jam Club audience up on their feet spontaneously dancing the night away to his boogie-woogie vibes the last time he was here & that’s how I will always remember him. He was a true gent, a lovely man, who I will never forget. Go break a leg Mike & start a house party up there, wherever you are, because if anyone can do it, you can. Sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. (Photos Michael Fitch)

Nick Drake, the one and only
29/05/2023

Nick Drake, the one and only

From a youthful hook-up with the Rolling Stones to crafting his bleakly brilliant final album, three extracts from an exhaustive new biography offer the most nuanced portrait to date of the 70s singer-songwriter

21/05/2023

Tommy Ashby live in session on the The Quay Sessions (BBC) - full programme below. Tommy’s unique voice and songs shine - he really does have a sound all of his own and we are very happy that he’s getting the recognition he deserves. Check it out! SEE COMMENT BELOW FOR LINK TO PROGRAMME

RIP Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot who died yesterday aged 84. “I can’t think of any Gordon Lightfoot song ...
03/05/2023

RIP Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot who died yesterday aged 84. “I can’t think of any Gordon Lightfoot song I don’t like,” Bob Dylan once said. “Every time I hear a song of his, it’s like I wish it would last forever.”

Brilliant songwriter penned classics like “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Early Morning Rain,” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”

Address

The County Hotel, 1-5 High Street, Market Square
Selkirk
TD74BZ

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when String Jam Club posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Establishment

Send a message to String Jam Club:

Shortcuts

Share