MEET THE BAND!
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Just like the Spice Girls, there is one of every different basic type of person in The Climb.
HAYLEY CARLYON
Originally hailing from Pembrokeshire, West Wales, The Climb’s lead vocalist, Hayley Carlyon (pronounced Car-Lion), has been Bucks based for the last few years. A singer and songwriter who pens some enjoyable and impressive original material, Hayley weaves a powerful and soaring voice through raw, beautiful lyrics and unusual covers.
She toured the UK extensively as a solo artist, supporting a range of artists from Fyfe Dangerfield to Ben Somers as well as bluegrass favourites 'The Hot Rock Pilgrims' and has been a familiar, smiling face on the London bluegrass and Americana scene for many years. After spending over a decade in the big smoke, she moved to Buckinghamshire in 2018 to raise a family. The Climb is her first full band.
ANDREW MAYNE
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ANDY BUNKER
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ANDREW AYLETT
A guitar player in my teens, I was converted to the bass by my then boss, Barry Richardson, the bass player and lead singer with iconic 70’s pub rock band Bees Make Honey. Barry got me a dep gig standing in for bass player Charlie Hart with stars of the north London blues/country/rock scene Juice On The Loose, featuring, amongst others, guitarist/singer Ron Kavana, Fran Byrne and Bam King (both ex-Ace), and Geraint Watkins (session keys man for everyone famous). In such vaunted company I realised very quickly that I was totally out of my depth musically. Fortunately for JOTL, Charlie retuned after a couple of months and, inspired by their level of musicianship I vowed to head for the shed and get my bass act together. In the mid 80’s, and after a lot of work, I joined north London rock/blues band High Roller fronted by ex-Iron Maiden/Prayin’ Mantis guitarist Bob ‘Angelo’ Sawyer. Four years of hard gigging on the London circuit was just the training I needed…but, maybe sensibly, I gave it up for a career in advertising, only seriously picking up the bass again in the noughties to join Finchley’s Americana/Blues stalwarts Rangoon. After moving back to my home county of Buckinghamshire in 2014, I met up with drummer Andy Bunker, and for a couple of years we played in local covers band Nightjars. After the demise of NJs we recruited piano player and singer extraordinaire Andrew Mayne and, after a long and painful search, eventually found the amazingly talented bluegrass singer/songwriter Hayley Carylon and guitarist Johnny Hinkes, to put together a new band called The Climb…by far the best band and best musicians I’ve had the pleasure of playing with since Juice on the Loose. So here I am again, out of my depth…but this time I’m hanging in there. And anyway, I own the PA!
JOHNNY HINKES
My parents gave me my first guitar (Malaguena No. 6) when I was nine in 1962. Around the age of ten I had the good fortune to go to many concerts at the Adelphi in Slough, just behind my house. Watching Roy Orbison, The Rolling Stones, The Ronettes and many others had a lasting effect on me and I never really entertained any serious idea to be anything but a guitarist after that. At age 19 I joined 'Assignment', my first working band, playing all the local clubs. I moved to London in 1979, invited by my friend Lester Moses to join his street theatre band the Demolition Decorators, I also worked on various theatre projects with musical director Paul Sand, at the Old Albany Empire in Deptford, Tricycle Theatre Kilburn and others. With actress and singer Denise Black, I formed a cabaret duo playing around London and toured Ireland with her vocal band The Kray Sisters. In 1984 I returned to Oxford, started running a weekly music night at the Jericho Tavern, putting on many ground-breaking bands including Radiohead, took up the pedal steel and joined the Allen James country band. 'Big Al' introduced me to the UK country music scene and I played many clubs and festivals with him. This period also saw me playing with Dylan-themed band The Zimmermen, local Ska perennials the Inflatables, the genre-busting Brickwork Lizards, and Soul band Emmarella. I was guitarist with Oxford rockers Move It for many years and still help them out occasionally. Extremely happy to have bumped into this lot. Loving every minute!