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BLUESMEN JOIN FESTIVAL DEBT LIST

By County Press Reporter - Friday, November 2, 2007
MUSICIANS have been left singing the blues after festival organisers have failed to pay up, more than a month after the event took place.
After cheques from organisers of the inaugural IW Folk and Blues Festival bounced, some musicians and their managements have started legal action to get their fees.
They are led by headliners Fairport Convention, who sold out their gig but this week had not received their near £5,000 fee, and rockers The Hamsters, who were praised by organisers after their concert. They said their £2,000 cheque bounced.
September’s folk and blues festival was organised by those behind April’s IW Jazz Festival, also in Ventnor.
The jazz festival attracted thousands of people to enjoy a host of acts, however, since then, some musicians, accommodation providers and others complained they had not been paid either.
Organisers are already promoting next year’s jazz and folk and blues events and on their website said: “We thank all the wonderful musicians who came down to the deep south of the IW to grace our stage and provide happiness and breathe energy into our friendly little town.”
But that rang hollow with Fairport Convention and Hamsters management and the boss of Island firm Panther Security, John Fisher, who is still owed £4,400.
Mr Fisher said: “I employed 20 people, providing security for the event. We’re only a small company and because we haven’t been paid we haven’t been able to pay our employees for their work.”
Hamsters’ Barry Martin said: “We have to ask what happened to the ticket money? We have only been in this situation a couple of times and we will send in the bailiffs again. We have started a small claim in the county court.”
Fairport Convention manager Rob Braviner said: “We played a sell-out gig in good faith and we are also making a small claim. I don’t believe we will be paid and we want to prevent this happening to anyone else.
“Any promoter will tell you that the general rule is that you should not stage an event if you have not got the money to pay for it.”
No comment could be obtained from Geri Ward or Philip Snellen from the IW Live Music Trust, which staged the events, but in an e-mail to performers, they promised there would be more financial clarity by today (Friday).
They blamed payment delay upon the illness of a key investor and his inability to undertake any stressful activity.
“We have asked the bank to bridge the position until our investor makes a full recovery,” the e-mail said.