Denis Cook Solo musician guitar mandolin ukulele harmonica Vocalist and DJ

Had a rocking great night with Denis doing his live show and Denis on the decks for my partners 60th birthday party in the garden. Denis was punctual and professional as usual and everybody have come back to me saying what a great night was had by all. No small thanks to Denis playing 6 hours. We had him for her 50th now 60th and always great entertainment.
Sheldon Moss, Wednesday 24 September 2025

Denis Cook is the perfect pub and bar-room entertainer: genial, charming and chatty with a charismatic personality, so it's not surprising that the sumptuous Haven Wine Bar & Restaurant in Whetstone booked Denis for several gigs, since he's the ideal 'mine host' for this exclusive venue, encouraging the guests to join in and have a fun time.

With many strings to his bow, in addition to singing Denis plays guitar, mandolin, ukulele, harmonica and kazoo, but his greatest claim to fame is that he taught his nephew Norman Cook, alias Fatboy Slim, to DJ! (Denis has been 'spinning discs' since 1969 and the young Norman was soon hooked on music too!)

Though perhaps not the greatest instrumentalist to perform on stage, Denis more than makes up for this with his highly tuneful singing voice, careful selection of material and infectious personality. Skill and experience gained through years of DJing shines through in Denis's easy command of banter between numbers, putting many other pub acts to shame, and his sheer dedication to entertaining others certainly evidenced in this three-hour gig undertaken with hardly a break.

Starting with the Eagles' country ditty "Peaceful Easy Feeling" and a stripped-down version of the Foundations' "Baby Now That I've Found You" guests knew they were in for something special, loving the laid-back, peaceful easy listening style and the fact that the music was at a very reasonable volume: no blasting speakers here! Then, after just three songs, self-accompanied by guitar, Denis popped out his mandolin for a very enjoyable rendition of the Kinks' "Tired Of Waiting For You" and Steve Earle's Irish classic "Galway Girl" before switching to the ukulele for a charming interpretation of McFly's wistful "Love Is Easy" but, in addition, you'll find plenty of variety in Denis's act, ranging from party numbers like the Mavericks' "Dance The Night Away" and Roxy Music's "Let's Stick Together" to country classics such as Glen Campbell's "Rhinestone Cowboy" and John Denver's "Take Me Home Country Roads" to up-to-date material like George Ezra's catchy "Budapest" as well as some good old rock 'n roll. And - how many performers would be brave enough to attempt Rupert Holmes' excellent "Escape" (The Pina Colada Song); the late Ronnie Lane's rocking "Ooh La La" or Billy Ray Cyrus' witty comedy number "Where Am I Gonna Live?!"

Mr Cook will be returning to the Haven soon and my advice is that you might want to reserve a table, since the place is likely to be well be packed in anticipation of this great entertainer.
Colin Fenn Lemonrock reviewer,

We cannot thanks Denis enough for providing such an amazing evening for us and our guests. He had asked if we wanted to create a playlist or if we had any special requests prior to the event, but we both love to be a bit spontaneous. We gave him a free rein on music choice asking him to "read the room & play to the crowd" so to speak… and he certainly did that and much much more! He kept our guests engaged & involved throughout and friends were talking about it in the weeks to follow. We just can’t praise this wonderful man enough. Thank you so very much Denis! For anyone looking for a Dj for any occasion we 100% we would recommend Denis Cook ❤️
Simone Bentley,

My wife and I popped along to see the popular Denis Cook's solo gig. Along with his regular set songs like: "Budapest" by George Ezra, an acoustic version of The Foundations "Baby Now That I’ve Found You", Neil Diamond's "Love On The Rocks" and "Sweet Caroline", even Chas & Dave's "Rabbit"

Denis establishes a good rapport with his audience, some of whom are obviously regular fans, so there was plenty of joking, repartee and crowd participation during this gig which was played to a packed house and which saw Denis strumming guitar, ukulele, mandolin and blowing some decent harmonica too.

Denis has learnt his craft well and along with his affable manner and fine vocal renditions which made for a very pleasant evening. (For those who may not already know, this talented man is also a well-respected DJ!)

In any event, we had intended to stay only a short while but ended up staying put for a full, enjoyable 3 hours and although I didn't count, I'm told Denis played 52 songs in this extended set!

Denis has been a regular performer at our Golden Memories programme held at Watford Football Club, and each time he brings fun and fantastic music. If you’re looking for a performer who interacts with the audience and delivers great entertainment, book Denis!

He’s always reliable, and we highly recommend him to everyone.

The ladies and gents at our sessions are always calling out for one more song and can’t wait for his next performance.

I'm so glad we booked Denis for my mums 80th party, it absolutely made our day. Not only did everyone love the music, Denis had taken the time to think about what age my mum would have been on each song and walked us through her years hitting milestones such as her 18th and 21st etc. It was such a great touch.
Gemma, Monday 25 November 2024

Wow what a night we had with Denis !! So talented and professional, and the history behind songs and the story’s made the night , all our customers had the best night ( felt like a New Year’s Eve party 🤣)
Ian smith ( owner), Sunday 31 August 2025