British Folk (and Revival)

... and this is significant in what way exactly?

The Eighteenth Day of May come closer than anyone else I've heard to that late 60s / early 70s British folk-rock sound. They're good.

Lucky Luke (from Glasgow) are great, though... go see them live and/or anticipate the next record.

Okay, so we're talking about folk rock here right,rather than straight-up trad folk, which can hot and heavy enough in its own addled way? I would love it if I could stumble on some decent bands that were ploughing the same sort of furrow as peak-era Fairport or Trees or whatever and that didn't suck outright. I know it's sort of backwards looking of me, but there's a certain clanging and organic feel and texture and god damn guitar sound that I never really feel I can hear enough of. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong places. All I can think of right now that fit the bill in any way are Ghost and Acid Mothers Temple ca. La Novia. Certainly no British bands that I've come across.

X-posts: I don't mind Espers, but they seem rather too gentle for me. Lucky Luke I've heard of, but am yet to hear.

this is the place to go: http://www.thegreenmanfestival.co.uk/

for all your brit-folk needs!

also worth looking out for, a new compilation called Strange Folk, with tracks from the aforementioned Vashti, Tyranosaurus Rex, Donovan, Espers, Incredible String Band, Lucky Luke (iirc) and loads of other ace people I can't remember cos i left it at home.

-- We Buy a Hammer For Dadaismus (dadaismu...), December 15th, 2005 9:56 AM. (Dada) (later)

I just thought it was ILM law to mention Reynolds whenever possible.

I wish there were more songs like Tam Lyn by Fairport, i.e funky Black Sabbath. Swedish doom band Witchcraft get there sometimes.

most of the the wyrd-folk stuff is only surface level weird. The second Steeleye recording of The Blacksmith is so much more bizarre than any of them, and that isn't even what it's trtying to do - what an amazing arrangement it has. Modern wyrd-folk types too much like Colin Hunt types... "You do have to be mad to work here but it doesn't help" etc.

You're right

The message I'm getting from this thread is that newer musicans aren't up to the standard of older musicians in folk music? Obviously ppl like mattacks, dransfield, guys from gryphon, thompson etc are hard to follow (evidence on eg Fairport's ROCKING live album "House Full") but I had kind of thought folk would be a genre where powerful/expressive musicianship/group playing would still be at some sort of premium. Dissapointing if not so.

Anyway, "No Roses" by Shirley Collins/Albion band is fucking great, and should get more props, basically.

AFAIK the terrible term wyrd-folk was coined by Stone Breath's Tim Renner.

But, before I begin to sound like a prog rocker, you don't have to be a brilliant musician to play folk music - in fact, one of the reasons I got sick of that whole scene was its muso-ishness (especially, fiddle players who only want to play as fast and as twiddly as possible!). To play like Fairport you have to be pretty good tho of course!

Morris On I like, other Albions stuff I'm not mad on, really. Perhaps the drums are why? I haven't listened to any for a while.

That's a good record that is. 'Lay Me Low' or whatever it's called just kills me. Totally tramples over any sort of aesthetic barriers I might have erected against that sort of soppy twaddle and stomps all over my jaded old heart. Sniffle.

Didn't really know there was any "revival" of British folk right now in terms of new bands playing it. I knew there was a revival of interest in the last few years, otherwise I wouldn't really know who Fairport Convention was, honestly.

I've often thought that 60s British folk revivalists treated folk music with much more respect and subtlty than their American counterparts did (who went for "simplicity" and "rawness"). This might also explain why I find Brit bands better at playing blues than their white American counterparts.

search: Shirley and Dolly Collins "Plains of Waterloo."

and sweet heavens, some forty posts in let me be the first to say the hallowed name of Davy Graham.

Have you seen them? Because they fucking do. Or did when they opened for Devendra in Edinburgh. But crap.

Espers draws far more influence from Pentangle and Bread, Love and Dreams.

Sorry. But you drew a very poor comparison.

Dave Mattacks was playing in bar bands here in Boston for a while a few years ago (and may still be). He was introduced to me by a friend who said "hey, you like Richard Thompson, don't you? This is Dave; he played drums with him."

As a huge fan of the complete family tree of Brit-folk(-rock), I don't think the entirely unassuming Mr. Mattacks was quite prepared for the amount of drool that ensued. It somehow seemed even bigger to me than meeting, say, Richard Thompson himself, because Mattacks defined that particular sound as much as anybody. Frankly, I think he was frightened by me.

When I asked him why he moved to Boston, he said, "just to try get gigs." As much as I know how small our idols' roles are in the world of commercial music, it was crushing to hear that out of him.

i certainly hear influences of the old stuff in the new, but nothing too much alike. espers don't sound much like fairport to me, aside from the pretty vocals. i saw them once live and they were more weird sounding, like almost "trance" and really dark. i don't know, i have looked into them and thier inflkuences, but most of the stuff they talk about or people who like them tal about seems so unheard of or really hard to find. i don't think devendra's stuff sounds like any of it. i'd like to hear that lucky luke band.

We seem to be agreeing on just about everything here

just not getting any of the uk folk music.

and however said that the espers sounds like bread over fairport is spot on.

18th day of may is too much of a fairport copyist band. pretty dull fair.

i have a lot of time for lucky luke..

lucky luke is dull as fuck!! its like listening to grateful dead b-sides.

dadaimus ... did you get the vashti record. its pretty. but there is absolutely nothing of substance. i couldn't remember one song after it finished playing!

gosh, her voice still sounds great on those 2018 live cuts

jesus christ, that bit where they come back in after the fake-out ending on murdoch *always* gets every hair in my brain standing on end

Sad top hear about her passing.
I'm hoping that a copy of the box set is actually going to arrive having now been told taht it was on its way to me as an Xmas present.

I've been listening to a lot of Davy Graham in the last few days and god I'd forgotten how transcendent he can be. Midnight Man in particular is sending me to all sorts of places. Anyone have any experience with the recent Bread & Wine reissues? I can't find much in the way of information about them anywhere (even the Hoffman forums seem empty of news or opinion!).

Been on a Spotify kick of Scottish travelers and some English stuff:

Belle Stewart
Davie Stewart
Jeannie Robertson
Fred Jordan
Sam Larner

Way upthread, I reposted my from one of the post-Fahey threads about xpost Davey Graham re Renbourn's early 60s-travelling The Attic Tapes, and no lime tangier provided me with some Graham tips:

(in the notes, Renbourn) also talks about finding traces of the UK songster Davey Graham in various cities, ideas that lodged in the heads of musos who may well have had no reel-to-reels, or anyway didn't need one to summon the bits that JR puts together here. Mind you, he does give Graham the writer's credit for the opening tightly loose bedsit version of "Anji"(that's from the box marked "1962").
...the grand finale teams JR with Graham himself, on "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out": jazzy-bluesy, duh, and rawther magical. What other Graham should I check out?
Oh yeah, audio and more info here:
http://www.worldmusic.net/store/item/TUG1089/
Wantin those Graham tips yall.

― dow, Tuesday, September 8, 2015 6:11 PM (four years ago) bookmarkflaglink

lots of davy graham releases i've yet to hear but...

the comp that came out on see for miles is a great place to start, picks and chooses from most of his decca albums. not sure if this has been superseded by a more recent collection or not.

favourite dg lp of mine: large as life & twice as natural. stretched out folk blues jazz raga (love the joni both sides now cover that kicks it off), cd reissue has good notes from john renbourn himself.
& if you don't want to hear him sing (i like his voice personally) the collaboration with shirley collins is a+

― no lime tangier, Tuesday, September 8, 2015

I'd not heard Large As Life - brilliant. The Joni cover is magnificent. Davy's magic aside, Danny Thompson is in imperious form, Jon Hiseman too.

The live set from Hull University is pretty great. Or athat is to say the dorms after I think an earlier gig.
ITs called After hours at Hull or something

I could really do with getting Caedmon but i think the current release had no cd version.

Thought would be about next week’s release of Beeswing.

Next week?
Right time flies by.
There was an extract in the last Uncut the VU covered one.
Seemed to fly through some time that I would have hoped was more thoroughly covered so hope it was more of an intro.
But yeah do think it is pretty essential

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/jan/13/carthy-folk-dynasty-appeals-for-financial-support-after-income-dried-up-during-pandemic Also, Martin and Eliza Carthy are due to play live throughout the UK this winter, with an intermittent run of dates kicking off in Durham on 27 January. Eliza wrote that she had recorded a new album during the pandemic, proceeds from which would also help the family. No mention of Norma's participation; hope she's okay.

Sad to read that story, will definitely bung them a few quid as soon as I can

Eliza posted that Norma passed away yesterday. RIP.

;_; RIP Norma

Tragic news. I'd gone to the record shop to buy a copy of For Pence and Spicy Ale, and was informed of her death by the shop owner.

That version of Hal-An-Tow on Frost and Fire, I don't even know what half of it means tbh, but that to me is one of the most joyful and life-affirming songs I can think of, that song basically banishes death and that is how I will always think of her. RIP Norma

oh :(

coming at it from the opposite direction to Nick, I feel like every word of Red Wine & Promises off of Bright Phoebus is seared into my brain and I feel as though I understand what she meant exactly, down to the last nuance, and it is one of the saddest and most beautiful songs I've ever heard. one of those rare songs i've listened to repeatedly at moments of crisis in my life, just poured my soul into it and internalised it and made it all about me and my parents. a fucking wonder of a song.

but yes, Hal-An-Tow is joyful, A Souling Song is terrifying.

my Dad got me hooked, he used to play this track in the car when I was quite young and still utterly obsessed with the Libertines (and through them the Smiths, the Clash, the Jam and all of that). this, along with Poor Old Horse by the Albion Band and Penguin Eggs, showed me a completely different vision of what constituted "distinctly British music" and i'll always be grateful for that

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9qlI6hQYy0

RIP

on his invaluable doomandgloomfromthetomb tumblr, ilxor tylerw sez:
...check out this fantastic 1960s documentary on the Watersons, capturing the group very early on in their folk club days. The inky black-and-white style of the film could easily fit in with those classic British kitchen sink realist films of the era — you almost expect Tom Courtenay to be lurking in the background (Instead, there’s Anne Briggs, which is even better). It’s a beautiful time capsule.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Vrszb4w318

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOFsJLQZpcM

Is this book good? Hadn't heard of it.

Enjoying this book called Dazzling Stranger by Colin Harper. Connecting a lot of dots for me. Recommended if you’re into this sort of thing—British folk, Bert Jansch, blues, what have you. pic.twitter.com/8Ehg2hZMK6

— Shane Parish (@shaneparishgtr) July 1, 2022

Was out a long time ago? I read it but I can't remember much about beyond Bert saying he was never interested in the Beatles.

yeah thought it pretty great. Also looks at the Edinburgh and i think London folk scenes as they tie in with the narrative.
There is a companion cd in 2 versions one either side of the Atlantic. They change a couple of tracks presumably tie din with rights etc.
Unexpected appearance of Bruce Loose of Flipper whose dad was a promoter on the folk scene in the late 70s and also put Bert up a few times when he was drinking way too much. & Loose apparently started mimicking his behaviour.

I thought it was a good book as are the other couple of books by Harper I've read. Irish Folk, Trad & Blues: A Secret History and Bathed In Lightning: John McLaughlin, the 60s and the emerald beyond

.. Archie Fisher jumping out of a window to avoid Licorice McKechnie's dad is in there I think? Also Licorice and Bert almost getting married?

Hell yes. https://t.co/q2F50kLxBZ pic.twitter.com/Ulc1FuKKRW

— Tyler Wilcox (@tywilc) July 14, 2022

I love when a UK folk band expands their horizons to adopt the propulsive electric bass grooves and backbeat that characterized US folk-rock of the era. This LP is a great example, but Shirley Collins’ otherworldly voice and the song choices keep the vibeS trending traditional pic.twitter.com/q8v8E5zAiD

— the modern folk (@themodernfolk) August 1, 2022

Keep meaning to buy Show of Hands' Singled Out, but I'm little puzzled by what it's meant to be exactly. A compilation of assorted post-2001 songs(?), with two rare recordings from the early 90s Columbus EP and "Crazy Boy" from 1997's Dark Fields. But why? What's it for?

since the season is officially here and there has been a lot of “brit folk = chilly weather” discourse lately, here’s that uk folk mix i did for @aquadrunkard a while back https://t.co/NPzE7kYLlW

— jocelyn romo (@theeroamer) September 25, 2022

Lankum album (despite the album art) is really as good as they say

heavy, droney, druidic trad
https://lankum.bandcamp.com/album/false-lankum

Lankum are not British! And there's already a thread for them!

lol true on both counts, sorry!

Oops.

have been spinning shearwater multiple times this last week so seeing this was a nice surprise today: https://thequietus.com/articles/33584-martin-carthy-bakers-dozen-favourite-albums-jon-wilks

Lovely Martin Carthy. My grandfather played and sang with him in Bath and Sidmouth. I'm reliably informed their singing voices were very similar too.

I saw Martin Simpson at a local church last weekend. He was great as ever, and just as pissed off. He played mostly stuff off his new album; Deportee, a Woody Guthrie cover, was probably the highlight. It's a predominantly conservative area, so some of his barbed comments about Rwanda and Gaza were met with a mixture of soft applause and awkward silence.