3 Daft Monkeys


3 Daft Monkeys are a world music-influenced acoustic band from Cornwall, UK, consisting of Tim Ashton, Athene Roberts, Rich Mulryne, and Jamie Graham. The instrumentation consists of vocals, fiddle, twelve-string guitar, bass guitar and percussion.
The band's musical influences include Celtic, Balkan, Romani, Latino, electronic dance, reggae, dub, punk rock, and traditional folk music.
The band have had great success at venues and festivals all over the UK and Europe, including being invited by Show of Hands to play the main stage at the Eden Project and the 2008 BBC Proms at St David's Hall in Cardiff. Other highlights include GuilFest; Lakefest festival; Folkwoods, Holland; the Glastonbury Festival, the Trowbridge Village Pump Festival; Folk Segovia, Spain; Lorient Interceltic Festival, France; Kevelaer World Music Festival, Germany; Labadoux Festival, Belgium, Buskers Bern Street Festival in Switzerland, and enthusiastically welcomed returns to the Beautiful Days, Bearded Theory, and Larmer Tree festivals.
Throughout the 2000s, the band were a regular support act for The Levellers, with Roberts usually returning to join the Levellers onstage for the finale in a duelling fiddle-off of "What You Know" with added tambourine from Waters and tin-whistle from Ashton.
Between March 2020 and June 2021, the band played over sixty 'Cyberbusks' online due to the various lockdowns and restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Tim and Athene also collaborated with Scott Doonican of The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican on a cover of the Beatles' Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!. From July 2021, 3 Daft Monkeys were able to resume touring and played several major festivals including returns to Beautiful Days and Hawkfest.
The band have enjoyed airplay on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio Ulster, BBC Radio Cornwall, and BBC Radio Wales, and have been described by presenter Mike Harding as "a brilliant band... absolutely amazing".

Line-up changes

The band's first album, Brouhaha, featured Rich Mulryne on djembe, kick drum, cymbals, tambourine and saucepan. From Ooomim onwards Waters played bass. Mulryne rejoined the band as a guest drummer for the album The Antiquated and the Arcane, and has since rejoined as a full member.
In 2011, Lukas Drinkwater joined the band as a temporary replacement for Jamie Waters for the summer tour, and later joined permanently after Waters stepped down. In 2015, Jamie Graham took over playing bass.

Releases

''Brouhaha'' (2000)

Six songs recorded in Cornwall in 2000 with the band's original line-up.
  1. Wonderful
  2. 3 Daft Monkeys
  3. Nothing
  4. Maximillian
  5. Saturn Returns
  6. Global Junkie

    ''Ooomim'' (2002)

Eight songs recorded in Germany, during October 2001 and released in 2002.
  1. Faces
  2. Ooomim
  3. We Be
  4. Weird-Id
  5. Crimson Eyes
  6. Chuffy
  7. Cheerio
  8. For the Wedding

    ''Hubbadillia'' (2004)

Ten songs recorded by Mark Tucker at Presshouse Studios, Devon during the summer of 2004, released December 2004.
  1. Hubbadillia
  2. Hey Listen
  3. Trez Cerveza
  4. Air
  5. Astral Eyes
  6. Bubbles
  7. The Man
  8. Stop
  9. Timeless
  10. Does My Head In

    ''Gibbon It Live and Dreckly'' (2007)

12 tracks recorded live at various venues during 2006.
  1. Broygas Tantz
  2. Hubbadillia
  3. Tres Cerveza
  4. 3 Daft Monkeys
  5. One Fine Day
  6. Ooomim
  7. Social Vertigo
  8. Astral Eyes
  9. Hey Listen
  10. Faces
  11. Maximillian
  12. Mazoltov

    ''Go Tell the Bees EP'' (2007)

Showcasing three new tracks from the band's forthcoming album, plus one old favourite.
  1. Go Tell the Bees
  2. Paranoid Big Brother
  3. Social Vertigo
  4. Astral Eyes

    ''Social Vertigo'' (2008)

13 Tracks recorded with Mark Tucker during 2007 at Green Room Studios. Includes guest musicians on cello, brass, and percussion.
  1. Paranoid Big Brother
  2. Eyes of Gaia
  3. Human Nature
  4. Human Nature
  5. Go Tell the Bees
  6. Guardian Angel
  7. Since
  8. One Fine Day
  9. Social Vertigo
  10. Little Secret
  11. Let 'Em In
  12. Monkey & the Slippers
  13. Dance of the Old Man of Storr

    ''The Antiquated and the Arcane'' (2010)

  14. The Antiquated and The Arcane
  15. Under One Sun
  16. Just A Ride
  17. Doors of Perception
  18. Days of the Dance
  19. Perfect Stranger
  20. Time To Evolve
  21. Casualties of Tour
  22. Civilised Debauchery
  23. She Said
  24. Love Fool
  25. Love Life
  26. Masquerade Parade

    ''Of Stones and Bones'' (2013)

  27. Agnes the Giant Killer
  28. Sarah, the Devil and Jack
  29. The Lovers of Porthgwarra Cove
  30. Jenny and the Changeling
  31. World on its Head
  32. The Tale of the Laziest Pirate
  33. Morwenna
  34. The Pellars of Zennor
  35. Reverend Hawker of Morwenstow
  36. One and All
  37. The Stranger

    ''Year of the Clown'' (2017)

  38. Year of the Clown
  39. Delighted to be Invited
  40. Drink with God
  41. Money
  42. Look to the Stars
  43. 1,000 Years
  44. I Love You
  45. Blessings
  46. Animal
  47. To Dream of Angels
  48. Not in my Name
  49. We are Revolution

    ''Year of the Cyberbusk'' (2021)

A limited-edition 2-Disc DVD set chronicling the previous years' series of 'Cyberbusks'. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the band were only able to meet up a handful of times so instead they met up 'online' each Sunday to play an hour's set. The DVDs contain a compilation of some of the most memorable moments from those sessions plus excerpts from the few outdoor gigs they were able to do together.

Film appearances

The band played the part of buskers in the Cornish film Darralla Jooan Choy an Horr, winner of the Audience Award at the 2004 Goel Fylm Kernow. In 2015, Athene took a role in Tulip Fever, directed by Justin Chadwick.