Final word from songwriting legend?
Legendary singer-songwriter Steve Ashley is to release his twelfth CD this September, which he
has announced will be his last.
'One More Thing' is due for release on September 28th from Market Square Records.
With twelve new songs it’s another stripped back solo production with just Steve, his Guild guitar
and his trusty harmonica. It marks the conclusion of a solo recording career that began back in the summer of 1971 with the first sessions for Stroll On at London’s Olympic Sound Studios.
Now, twelve albums later comes this final collection of Ashley originals.
“I’m very happy with the outcome,” says Steve. “Martin Mitchell’s done a great job of recording the songs. It’s a lively collection, right for the times I think, and for a number of reasons it feels like the right time for me to stroll off. I’ll continue performing live and I look forward to seeing people out on the road.”
For more about Steve's career, please see the interview at the bottom of this page. To order a signed
copy of the new album One More Day and keep updated of Steve's live performances, please visit his website www.steveashley.co.uk
has announced will be his last.
'One More Thing' is due for release on September 28th from Market Square Records.
With twelve new songs it’s another stripped back solo production with just Steve, his Guild guitar
and his trusty harmonica. It marks the conclusion of a solo recording career that began back in the summer of 1971 with the first sessions for Stroll On at London’s Olympic Sound Studios.
Now, twelve albums later comes this final collection of Ashley originals.
“I’m very happy with the outcome,” says Steve. “Martin Mitchell’s done a great job of recording the songs. It’s a lively collection, right for the times I think, and for a number of reasons it feels like the right time for me to stroll off. I’ll continue performing live and I look forward to seeing people out on the road.”
For more about Steve's career, please see the interview at the bottom of this page. To order a signed
copy of the new album One More Day and keep updated of Steve's live performances, please visit his website www.steveashley.co.uk
New single and album from Benjamin Folke Thomas
Scandinavian-born Benjamin Folke Thomas announced new album Modern Man to be released on November 9th, a follow up to 2017s Copenhagen (8/10 Uncut), including new single Tasteless and Complacent.
The ten songs on Modern Man draw from Folk, Country and the blues, to reveal the inner thoughts of a songwriter torn between supreme self-confidence and fear of the future.
Folke Thomas was born in the coldest winter recorded in modern day history in Gothenburg; perhaps his obsession for sad, lamenting country songs was inevitable; and grew up on a secluded island off the coast of Sweden, populated by mainly evangelical Christians. However, Ben never found God. He discovered grunge music instead, and at the age of 11 he was playing drums in a punk band before turning to Folk and Americana music after seeing Kurt Cobain’s performance of ‘In The Pines’ on Unplugged. Steeping himself in Leadbelly, Dylan, and Leonard Cohen, by the age of 20 he was an accomplished finger-picker, confident performer, and mature songwriter.
For further details visit benjaminfolkethomas.bandcamp.com
The ten songs on Modern Man draw from Folk, Country and the blues, to reveal the inner thoughts of a songwriter torn between supreme self-confidence and fear of the future.
Folke Thomas was born in the coldest winter recorded in modern day history in Gothenburg; perhaps his obsession for sad, lamenting country songs was inevitable; and grew up on a secluded island off the coast of Sweden, populated by mainly evangelical Christians. However, Ben never found God. He discovered grunge music instead, and at the age of 11 he was playing drums in a punk band before turning to Folk and Americana music after seeing Kurt Cobain’s performance of ‘In The Pines’ on Unplugged. Steeping himself in Leadbelly, Dylan, and Leonard Cohen, by the age of 20 he was an accomplished finger-picker, confident performer, and mature songwriter.
For further details visit benjaminfolkethomas.bandcamp.com
Bellman's Songs Ring True
Songs from The Bellman is the first album from David Milton, the Bell Man of the Court Leet in Watchet, Somerset. Exquisitely produced by Ange Hardy, it is a collection of traditional and original songs which capture the true essence of folk music without overstating it.
It combines a selection of songs that David has learned from a lifetime in Watchet, documenting the events and lives of the town.
When David isn't performing the duties of the Town Crier he runs shanty nights at the famous Pebbles Tavern in Watchet, referees football matches, assumes the role of Punch & Judy man Mr Mommet and occasionally appears as Father Christmas on the West Somerset Steam Railway's Santa Specials.
He is also an accomplished sculptor in stone, with public work on display in the area.
David's fine voice is complemented on this interesting CD with guitar and double bass from Lukas Drinkwater, accordion from Archie Churchill-Moss, fiddle by Tom Moore and percussion provided by Olly Winters-Owen. Ange Hardy, who adds another feather to her cap with this fine production, also contributes backing vocals. For more information visit www.songsfromthebellman.co.uk
It combines a selection of songs that David has learned from a lifetime in Watchet, documenting the events and lives of the town.
When David isn't performing the duties of the Town Crier he runs shanty nights at the famous Pebbles Tavern in Watchet, referees football matches, assumes the role of Punch & Judy man Mr Mommet and occasionally appears as Father Christmas on the West Somerset Steam Railway's Santa Specials.
He is also an accomplished sculptor in stone, with public work on display in the area.
David's fine voice is complemented on this interesting CD with guitar and double bass from Lukas Drinkwater, accordion from Archie Churchill-Moss, fiddle by Tom Moore and percussion provided by Olly Winters-Owen. Ange Hardy, who adds another feather to her cap with this fine production, also contributes backing vocals. For more information visit www.songsfromthebellman.co.uk
First single and European tour for Allan Yn Y Fan
Welsh traditional band Allan Yn Y Fan will be celebrating their 22nd year on the road with the release of their first single in September, followed by a major European tour in the Autumn.
The single, to be released on the Steam Pie label, consists of two tracks “Ym Mhontypridd” and “Gorthrwm y Gweithiwr”. The latter, which the band believes to be the first ever recording of the song, refers to the struggles of the workers, versus their Beaufort, Ebbw Vale ironmasters in mid 19th century Wales.
Both tour print and CD single feature the band in front of William Edward’s iconic single arch bridge crossing the River Taff in Pontypridd. Built in 1756, it was for 40 years Britain’s longest single span bridge.
The title of the tour is also inspired by the musical bridges that supporters of the band have enabled them to build over the decades, reflected by returns to Luxembourg, Spiegelberg, Ystradgynlais and Abertyleri.
The band is also mindful of the Welsh proverb “A Fo Ben Bid Bont” – which could be translated as “If you want to be a leader, be a bridge.” A possible interpretation of which is to become a leader, you must help others achieve their aims.
Allan Yn Y Fan is especially pleased on this tour to be paying first visits to Papenburg where they will perform the first concert in the newly restored Altei Droste venue; a premiere concert in the Studio Theatre of Dresden’s Staatsschauspiel; plus first visits to Llanelli, Oswestry and Llanidloes. The tour starts in Brecon on Friday 14th September and concludes at the Market Theatre in Ledbury on Satuday 1st December.
For more information about the band, tickets and full tour dates, please visit the website www.ayyf.co.uk
The single, to be released on the Steam Pie label, consists of two tracks “Ym Mhontypridd” and “Gorthrwm y Gweithiwr”. The latter, which the band believes to be the first ever recording of the song, refers to the struggles of the workers, versus their Beaufort, Ebbw Vale ironmasters in mid 19th century Wales.
Both tour print and CD single feature the band in front of William Edward’s iconic single arch bridge crossing the River Taff in Pontypridd. Built in 1756, it was for 40 years Britain’s longest single span bridge.
The title of the tour is also inspired by the musical bridges that supporters of the band have enabled them to build over the decades, reflected by returns to Luxembourg, Spiegelberg, Ystradgynlais and Abertyleri.
The band is also mindful of the Welsh proverb “A Fo Ben Bid Bont” – which could be translated as “If you want to be a leader, be a bridge.” A possible interpretation of which is to become a leader, you must help others achieve their aims.
Allan Yn Y Fan is especially pleased on this tour to be paying first visits to Papenburg where they will perform the first concert in the newly restored Altei Droste venue; a premiere concert in the Studio Theatre of Dresden’s Staatsschauspiel; plus first visits to Llanelli, Oswestry and Llanidloes. The tour starts in Brecon on Friday 14th September and concludes at the Market Theatre in Ledbury on Satuday 1st December.
For more information about the band, tickets and full tour dates, please visit the website www.ayyf.co.uk
Retrospective collection from Somerset songwriter Reg
Somerset-based singer songwriter Reg Meuross was invited to Germany by innovative producer Gunther Pauler, director of cutting edge audiophile studios Stockfisch Records, to record an eponymously titled new release.
The resulting album (released 13th July 2018) is a brand new retrospective. It includes new recordings and arrangements of twelve songs selected by Pauler from Reg's extensive repertoire.
Honoured by Stockfisch's invite, Reg said: "It was a real pleasure to work with Gunther and his team, and to make these new recordings of some of my classics on some of the most advanced recording equipment in the world. Gunther had a clear vision of how he wanted the songs to sound, and I gave him free range to achieve this."
Gunther came across a recording of England Green & England Grey by chance at the end of 2016:
"I was immediately impressed by his vocal and lyrics. I knew this would be a perfect fit for our Stockfisch label, so we invited Reg into the studio. The recording session was as good as expected and it was a joy to work with Reg. It's great that the songs of the final album span such a variety of different topics."
This collection will have a particular appeal for existing fans, who will hear fresh arrangements of some of their favourite songs. It will also give new listeners and opportunity to discover an artist whose work covers 'love, death, politics and social commentary.'
For further information about Reg and his music, visit www.regmeuross.com
The resulting album (released 13th July 2018) is a brand new retrospective. It includes new recordings and arrangements of twelve songs selected by Pauler from Reg's extensive repertoire.
Honoured by Stockfisch's invite, Reg said: "It was a real pleasure to work with Gunther and his team, and to make these new recordings of some of my classics on some of the most advanced recording equipment in the world. Gunther had a clear vision of how he wanted the songs to sound, and I gave him free range to achieve this."
Gunther came across a recording of England Green & England Grey by chance at the end of 2016:
"I was immediately impressed by his vocal and lyrics. I knew this would be a perfect fit for our Stockfisch label, so we invited Reg into the studio. The recording session was as good as expected and it was a joy to work with Reg. It's great that the songs of the final album span such a variety of different topics."
This collection will have a particular appeal for existing fans, who will hear fresh arrangements of some of their favourite songs. It will also give new listeners and opportunity to discover an artist whose work covers 'love, death, politics and social commentary.'
For further information about Reg and his music, visit www.regmeuross.com
Jamie Ferguson's percussive Epoch
Jamie Ferguson is a percussive acoustic guitarist based in Manchester. With influences from Andy McKee, Red Hot Chili Peppers through to Calum Graham and Jon Gomm, Jamie’s style combines percussive techniques, fingerpicking, and inventive harmonics to achieve an impressive and exciting style of music.
Personal goals and determination are key components to Jamie’s work as he is focusing on becoming a successful solo artist through percussive acoustic guitar. He has worked extensively in and around Manchester at live gigs, and has gained merit from fellow accomplished acoustic guitarists.
Jon Gomm pinpointed Jamie’s style as ‘pure adrenaline, both visceral and exciting’; whilst Mike Dawes also shares his admiration; 'Jamie is a great player with a wonderful tone and an ear for arranging, I particularly enjoyed his Rick Astley cover!'
Jamie has also accompanied and supported artist George the Poet as a session guitarist playing for B Franklin on his UK tour, performing at sold-out venues from Glasgow O2 to The Everyman Cinema in London. Following the UK tour, Jamie also featured on Sofar Sessions in London, as well as playing as a session musician for SB TV.
Jamie enjoys challenging himself in his work and hopes to further this through the release of his album and subsequent music videos on his new official social media platforms, essentially working on achieving both a specialised and professional look for his work as a guitarist.
Despite only releasing three songs, Jamie has already sparked label interest from Fret Monkey Records and is releasing his next two music videos on their platforms as a guest artist. His first release with FretMonkey Records quickly became the most viewed music video on the labels Youtube channel, accumulating 25,000 views in one week. Two of Jamie’s songs went viral when Facebook page Rhythmic shared them. The two shares resulted in nearly 3000 shares from people all over the world and nearly 300,000 views. His EP, which is entitled ‘Epoch’ was released in March 2018, and has been received well worldwide. Jamie also succeeded in selling out his first Manchester headline show.
For a sample of Jamie's music, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmlax1anEK0
Personal goals and determination are key components to Jamie’s work as he is focusing on becoming a successful solo artist through percussive acoustic guitar. He has worked extensively in and around Manchester at live gigs, and has gained merit from fellow accomplished acoustic guitarists.
Jon Gomm pinpointed Jamie’s style as ‘pure adrenaline, both visceral and exciting’; whilst Mike Dawes also shares his admiration; 'Jamie is a great player with a wonderful tone and an ear for arranging, I particularly enjoyed his Rick Astley cover!'
Jamie has also accompanied and supported artist George the Poet as a session guitarist playing for B Franklin on his UK tour, performing at sold-out venues from Glasgow O2 to The Everyman Cinema in London. Following the UK tour, Jamie also featured on Sofar Sessions in London, as well as playing as a session musician for SB TV.
Jamie enjoys challenging himself in his work and hopes to further this through the release of his album and subsequent music videos on his new official social media platforms, essentially working on achieving both a specialised and professional look for his work as a guitarist.
Despite only releasing three songs, Jamie has already sparked label interest from Fret Monkey Records and is releasing his next two music videos on their platforms as a guest artist. His first release with FretMonkey Records quickly became the most viewed music video on the labels Youtube channel, accumulating 25,000 views in one week. Two of Jamie’s songs went viral when Facebook page Rhythmic shared them. The two shares resulted in nearly 3000 shares from people all over the world and nearly 300,000 views. His EP, which is entitled ‘Epoch’ was released in March 2018, and has been received well worldwide. Jamie also succeeded in selling out his first Manchester headline show.
For a sample of Jamie's music, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmlax1anEK0
Out of Bulgaria: Lions Den from Jess
Jess Vincent's fourth release brings something new from the acclaimed English singer-songwriter. Recorded in the Old School Studios, Bulgaria with her partner Jozeph Chowles, threads of her new life there can be heard on this highly original collection of new material.
Through Joe's arrangements the listener can sense people, places, stories, colours and flavours of the land, making Lions Den Jess's bravest album so far.
"Since moving from the UK I've felt I had to step right back and look at the past in order to not repeat the same old mistakes," said Jess. "I decided to look my demons straight in the face for this album, and in doing so I've had to deal with many things I kept hidden inside for a long time. This album and these songs are a true reflection of where I am now."
The new sound takes Jess's talent in a different direction without losing the trademark subtle arrangements on guitar, baritone ukulele and harmonium. The soaring vocal style which established her reputation as as a unique and compelling performer in the alt Folk/Americana acoustic scene is a constant too.
Jess will be touring the UK this Autumn, with dates in south western England. Lions Den is out now, released on Kostenurka records, and can be ordered from Jess Vincent's website. For more information and tour dates, visit www.jessvincentsings.com
Through Joe's arrangements the listener can sense people, places, stories, colours and flavours of the land, making Lions Den Jess's bravest album so far.
"Since moving from the UK I've felt I had to step right back and look at the past in order to not repeat the same old mistakes," said Jess. "I decided to look my demons straight in the face for this album, and in doing so I've had to deal with many things I kept hidden inside for a long time. This album and these songs are a true reflection of where I am now."
The new sound takes Jess's talent in a different direction without losing the trademark subtle arrangements on guitar, baritone ukulele and harmonium. The soaring vocal style which established her reputation as as a unique and compelling performer in the alt Folk/Americana acoustic scene is a constant too.
Jess will be touring the UK this Autumn, with dates in south western England. Lions Den is out now, released on Kostenurka records, and can be ordered from Jess Vincent's website. For more information and tour dates, visit www.jessvincentsings.com
Second EP from Blackbeard's Tea Party
Is this the world’s first folk party record about the glories and tragedies of whaling? Leviathan! is the second EP – and fifth studio release – from York-based folk-rockers Blackbeard’s Tea Party.
On this record, the band dramatise a whaling industry which once funnelled significant funds to British ports such as Hull, Whitby and Peterhead but would eventually bring many whale species to the brink of extinction. Across five tracks the band depict the industry’s promises of profit and glory, the power and might of whales, the adrenaline of the hunt, and the tragic bloody realities of a whaler’s life at sea. Throughout, the band plough their own distinctive furrow of arresting folk rock, a sound that is bigger and badder than ever.
Moving away from hand percussion, the interlocking rhythms are now provided by two drum-kits, a choice which adds power to the band’s sound and accentuates Blackbeard’s Tea Party’s rockier edge. But while they contemporise British folk, here Blackbeard’s Tea Party stay grounded in traditional source material, displaying both accomplished musicianship and their flair for compelling Storytelling.
For more information and tour dates, visit www.blackbeardsteaparty.com
On this record, the band dramatise a whaling industry which once funnelled significant funds to British ports such as Hull, Whitby and Peterhead but would eventually bring many whale species to the brink of extinction. Across five tracks the band depict the industry’s promises of profit and glory, the power and might of whales, the adrenaline of the hunt, and the tragic bloody realities of a whaler’s life at sea. Throughout, the band plough their own distinctive furrow of arresting folk rock, a sound that is bigger and badder than ever.
Moving away from hand percussion, the interlocking rhythms are now provided by two drum-kits, a choice which adds power to the band’s sound and accentuates Blackbeard’s Tea Party’s rockier edge. But while they contemporise British folk, here Blackbeard’s Tea Party stay grounded in traditional source material, displaying both accomplished musicianship and their flair for compelling Storytelling.
For more information and tour dates, visit www.blackbeardsteaparty.com
Patsy's fiddle is still in fine fettle
It's been a while since Patsy Reid released an album - but the start of 2018 has changed all that with the launch of A Glint O' Scottish Fiddle.
Featuring the wonderful Alistair Iain Paterson on piano, the album is a compilation of tunes that Patsy has played for years, and others that she literally found a couple of hours before going into the studio to record. Some are well known and others may be new to the listener, with a handful of contemporary compositions in there by the likes of Donald Shaw, Phil Cunningham, Gráinne Brady and the late Angus R. Grant.
Since leaving Breabach, Patsy Reid has become the most in-demand fiddle player in the UK. She hasn’t stopped working. She performed alongside Dougie Maclean and Kylie Minogue at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony, with Zakir Hussain at the London 2012 Olympic Festival followed by an extensive tour of North America, and since 2013 she has visited India five times, collaborating with Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and fellow British musicians. In the studio Patsy is a one woman string quartet, contributing violin, viola and cello to albums by Donald Shaw, Duncan Chisholm, Bella Hardy, Treacherous Orchestra, Tim Edey and many more.
In February 2014 she released her third solo album, The Brightest Path, which received sparkling reviews and was named among Songlines’ Top 10 Scottish Albums. More is promised after the release of A Glint O' Scottish Fiddle: Patsy is now working on a new album, The Other Side, which will be the first to feature self-penned songs.
For more information, or to order A Glint O' Scottish Fiddle go to www.patsyreid.com
Featuring the wonderful Alistair Iain Paterson on piano, the album is a compilation of tunes that Patsy has played for years, and others that she literally found a couple of hours before going into the studio to record. Some are well known and others may be new to the listener, with a handful of contemporary compositions in there by the likes of Donald Shaw, Phil Cunningham, Gráinne Brady and the late Angus R. Grant.
Since leaving Breabach, Patsy Reid has become the most in-demand fiddle player in the UK. She hasn’t stopped working. She performed alongside Dougie Maclean and Kylie Minogue at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Closing Ceremony, with Zakir Hussain at the London 2012 Olympic Festival followed by an extensive tour of North America, and since 2013 she has visited India five times, collaborating with Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and fellow British musicians. In the studio Patsy is a one woman string quartet, contributing violin, viola and cello to albums by Donald Shaw, Duncan Chisholm, Bella Hardy, Treacherous Orchestra, Tim Edey and many more.
In February 2014 she released her third solo album, The Brightest Path, which received sparkling reviews and was named among Songlines’ Top 10 Scottish Albums. More is promised after the release of A Glint O' Scottish Fiddle: Patsy is now working on a new album, The Other Side, which will be the first to feature self-penned songs.
For more information, or to order A Glint O' Scottish Fiddle go to www.patsyreid.com
Guitar and voice shine as Sarah digs deeper
Produced by legendary singer-songwriter and guitar sage Michael Chapman, If We Dig Any Deeper It Could Get Dangerous is the fifth solo album by UK-based singer/songwriter Sarah McQuaid.
Musings on mortality dominate this recording, but it’s by no means all gloom: “Break Me Down” is possibly the cheeriest song ever written about decomposition, while “One Sparrow Down” (backed not by Sarah’s trademark DADGAD-tuned guitar but rather by a battery of unorthodox percussion instruments including wine bottle and oven grill) takes a similarly upbeat approach to the death of a bird hell-bent on attacking its own reflection, unseen by the predatory cat calmly watching from her perch on the windowsill. In the liner notes for the album, Sarah thanks her cat Nightshine for contributing guest vocals to the track, and apologises to her for the implicit metaphor.
A cover of Jeff Wayne’s melancholy “Forever Autumn” leads into an arrangement for voice and guitar of “Dies Irae”, the medieval chant whose melody is echoed not only in Wayne’s intro to his classic War Of The Worlds number but also in countless film soundtrack themes (The Exorcist, The Shining and Citizen Kane, to name a few).
Here as elsewhere on the album, McQuaid’s guitar shines on an equal basis with her velvet-textured voice. Indeed, two of the tracks are purely instrumental: “New Beginnings”, written as a wedding march for former pop star Zoë Pollock of “Sunshine On A Rainy Day” fame (with whom Sarah recorded the album Crow Coyote Buffalo under the band name Mama), and “The Day Of Wrath, That Day”, whose title is a literal translation of the first line in “Dies Irae”.
The propulsive, apocalyptic title track was inspired by a warning McQuaid heard herself giving her son as he excavated an enormous hole in their back garden. There’s an obvious allusion to fracking (“Splitting cracks in the rock to free the power inside”), but the song’s thematic scope extends well beyond that: “Sometimes the way to fix a problem is to turn the pressure off” is a maxim that could apply to virtually any aspect of life.
On four of the tracks, including lead single “The Tug Of The Moon”, McQuaid plays an electric guitar belonging to Chapman, which he’s since given her on long-term loan. “The precision and sophistication of the writing and playing blows me away. I am so glad to be involved,” he writes in his introduction to the album booklet. Since meeting Sarah when both artists played the Village Pump Festival in 2014, Chapman has become a staunch friend and supporter, even performing as her opening act at a local concert he and his wife arranged for her. Sarah became a regular visitor to the Chapmans’ farmhouse in Cumbria, and during one visit he made her an offer she couldn’t refuse: “We were having a chat and a glass of wine, and he said ‘Why don’t you let me produce your next album?’,” Sarah recalls. “I’m glad he said it, because I’d never have dared ask otherwise!”
Another new addition is piano, which McQuaid plays to beautiful effect on “The Silence Above Us” as well as on “Slow Decay” and “Forever Autumn”. Guest musicians include Chapman on archtop electric guitar, Roger Luxton on drums and percussion, Samuel Hollis on upright and electric bass, Richard Evans on trumpet, Georgia Ellery on violin and Joe Pritchard on cello.
If We Dig Any Deeper It Could Get Dangerous was made possible thanks to financial support from Arts Council England Grants For The Arts, using public money from the Government and the National Lottery, and from Cultivator, which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, Arts Council England and Cornwall Council. The album was launched with a concert at the Acorn Arts Centre in Sarah’s adopted home town of Penzance, following which she’ll be touring it extensively in the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and the USA.
For more information, or to order, visit www.sarahmcquaid.com
Musings on mortality dominate this recording, but it’s by no means all gloom: “Break Me Down” is possibly the cheeriest song ever written about decomposition, while “One Sparrow Down” (backed not by Sarah’s trademark DADGAD-tuned guitar but rather by a battery of unorthodox percussion instruments including wine bottle and oven grill) takes a similarly upbeat approach to the death of a bird hell-bent on attacking its own reflection, unseen by the predatory cat calmly watching from her perch on the windowsill. In the liner notes for the album, Sarah thanks her cat Nightshine for contributing guest vocals to the track, and apologises to her for the implicit metaphor.
A cover of Jeff Wayne’s melancholy “Forever Autumn” leads into an arrangement for voice and guitar of “Dies Irae”, the medieval chant whose melody is echoed not only in Wayne’s intro to his classic War Of The Worlds number but also in countless film soundtrack themes (The Exorcist, The Shining and Citizen Kane, to name a few).
Here as elsewhere on the album, McQuaid’s guitar shines on an equal basis with her velvet-textured voice. Indeed, two of the tracks are purely instrumental: “New Beginnings”, written as a wedding march for former pop star Zoë Pollock of “Sunshine On A Rainy Day” fame (with whom Sarah recorded the album Crow Coyote Buffalo under the band name Mama), and “The Day Of Wrath, That Day”, whose title is a literal translation of the first line in “Dies Irae”.
The propulsive, apocalyptic title track was inspired by a warning McQuaid heard herself giving her son as he excavated an enormous hole in their back garden. There’s an obvious allusion to fracking (“Splitting cracks in the rock to free the power inside”), but the song’s thematic scope extends well beyond that: “Sometimes the way to fix a problem is to turn the pressure off” is a maxim that could apply to virtually any aspect of life.
On four of the tracks, including lead single “The Tug Of The Moon”, McQuaid plays an electric guitar belonging to Chapman, which he’s since given her on long-term loan. “The precision and sophistication of the writing and playing blows me away. I am so glad to be involved,” he writes in his introduction to the album booklet. Since meeting Sarah when both artists played the Village Pump Festival in 2014, Chapman has become a staunch friend and supporter, even performing as her opening act at a local concert he and his wife arranged for her. Sarah became a regular visitor to the Chapmans’ farmhouse in Cumbria, and during one visit he made her an offer she couldn’t refuse: “We were having a chat and a glass of wine, and he said ‘Why don’t you let me produce your next album?’,” Sarah recalls. “I’m glad he said it, because I’d never have dared ask otherwise!”
Another new addition is piano, which McQuaid plays to beautiful effect on “The Silence Above Us” as well as on “Slow Decay” and “Forever Autumn”. Guest musicians include Chapman on archtop electric guitar, Roger Luxton on drums and percussion, Samuel Hollis on upright and electric bass, Richard Evans on trumpet, Georgia Ellery on violin and Joe Pritchard on cello.
If We Dig Any Deeper It Could Get Dangerous was made possible thanks to financial support from Arts Council England Grants For The Arts, using public money from the Government and the National Lottery, and from Cultivator, which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, Arts Council England and Cornwall Council. The album was launched with a concert at the Acorn Arts Centre in Sarah’s adopted home town of Penzance, following which she’ll be touring it extensively in the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany and the USA.
For more information, or to order, visit www.sarahmcquaid.com
Sixth Studio Album from Somerset Folk Star Ange
Bring Back Home is the sixth studio album from BBC Radio 2 Folk Award nominated singer-songwriter Ange Hardy.
The past year has seen the Somerset-based artist performing live on both BBC Radio 2 and 3 and touring as a headline artist, playing at venues up and down the country. She's certainly come a long way from the 14 year-old who ran away from a children's home and discovered music as a counsellor and lifeline while living on the streets in Ireland.
Ange's last album, Findings - as a duo with Lukas Drinkwater, hit number one in the Amazon Fok Music charts, scored a five star review in R2 magazine and found itself if the fRoots Critics' Poll end of year list.
Bring Back Home looks set fair to do the same.
The songs on Bring Back Home (two traditional, twelve written by Ange), range from epic full band-productions to Ange at her stripped-back best. She has co-opted the support of some of folk's most influential musicians - including the formidable fiddle of Peter Knight, flutes and whistles from Jonny Dyer, the accordion of Alex Cumming and the musical tower of Lukas Drinkwater on bass, guitar and backing vocals. Percussion is from Evan Carson and Lee Cuff adds cello here and there. The blend works well and the production is stunning throughout.
The closing song on the album, What It Is, demonstrates the diversity of Ange's musical styling and the blurred lines between acoustic, singer-songwriter and pop, delivering a genre-defying message of hope that cuts to the heart of the album. This is what you'd expect from one of Britain's leading folk musicians - and Bring Back Home doesn't disappoint on any level. For more information, or to order, visit www.angehardy.com
The past year has seen the Somerset-based artist performing live on both BBC Radio 2 and 3 and touring as a headline artist, playing at venues up and down the country. She's certainly come a long way from the 14 year-old who ran away from a children's home and discovered music as a counsellor and lifeline while living on the streets in Ireland.
Ange's last album, Findings - as a duo with Lukas Drinkwater, hit number one in the Amazon Fok Music charts, scored a five star review in R2 magazine and found itself if the fRoots Critics' Poll end of year list.
Bring Back Home looks set fair to do the same.
The songs on Bring Back Home (two traditional, twelve written by Ange), range from epic full band-productions to Ange at her stripped-back best. She has co-opted the support of some of folk's most influential musicians - including the formidable fiddle of Peter Knight, flutes and whistles from Jonny Dyer, the accordion of Alex Cumming and the musical tower of Lukas Drinkwater on bass, guitar and backing vocals. Percussion is from Evan Carson and Lee Cuff adds cello here and there. The blend works well and the production is stunning throughout.
The closing song on the album, What It Is, demonstrates the diversity of Ange's musical styling and the blurred lines between acoustic, singer-songwriter and pop, delivering a genre-defying message of hope that cuts to the heart of the album. This is what you'd expect from one of Britain's leading folk musicians - and Bring Back Home doesn't disappoint on any level. For more information, or to order, visit www.angehardy.com
Stroll On, Steve's acclaimed debut album, was first released in 1974.
In the early 1980s Steve made two albums for the UK Peace Movement called the 'Demo' Tapes. They were released on cassette only.
The 1990 album Mysterious Ways featured the Steve Ashley Band.
Stroll On, reissued in 1999 with a new cover and extra tracks.
Everyday Lives, album number seven, was released on Topic Records in 2001.
Time and Tide was Steve's ninth solo album, released in 2007.
Fire and Wine: An Armchair Guide to
Steve Ashley by Dave Thompson (Biography, paperback, published 2013) Covering Steve’s fifty year journey, the book includes interviews with many old friends, including Fairporters, Dave Pegg, Chris Leslie, Bruce Rowland and Maartin Allcock, plus Shirley Collins, Linda Thompson and Colin Irwin. Now he has a book to sell on gigs along with his many albums, and after successful duos with Al Fenn and Dik Cadbury he’s made a renewed commitment to live performance, pared down now to just the man and his guitar. For further details visit steveashley.co.uk |
Steve Ashley: still strolling on, 40 years on!
 Simon Nicol and Steve Ashley at Dave Pegg's 60th birthday concert
Steve Ashley is one of the most enduring singer-songwriters on the contemporary folk scene. It's now forty years since the release of his groundbreaking album Stroll On - a collection of thoughtful self-penned songs which drew on the tradition of English folk, but added a cutting edge and reached out to an entirely different audience.
Over the years Steve's material has been covered by many leading folk artists including Fairport Convention, Martin & Jessica Simpson, Anne Briggs, Maggie Boyle, Grace Notes, Wizz Jones, The Bushwackers, St Agnes Fountain, Phil Beer and The Owl Service. The songs are just as relevant today - and four decades on he is still writing, performing and considering recording 'one last album.' I first interviewed Steve in the late 1970s, before a concert in Cheltenham which previewed his forthcoming album Rare Old Men. He was still at the vanguard of the British singer-songwriter scene, yet the album was never released; after meeting him again forty years later, I found out why. "The first two albums, Stroll On (1974) and Speedy Return (1975) were put out on the Gull label, which was a subsidiary of DECCA. Then, to my great surprise, the company did a marketing and distribution deal with Motown in the USA. So both albums were released in the states through Motown. And two extensive tours of America were arranged for me.” said Steve. “I supported Gene Clark, The Chris Hillman Band, Tracey Nelson, Jimmy Buffet, Leon Redbone and many others. The gigs were mostly along the east coast and down into the south. There were also a couple of nights in Toronto.” "But just after the release of Speedy Return and immediately before the start of my second US tour, Motown pulled out of its agreement with Gull. Shortly after that the label had to cut back on its commitments, so along with others on the label I lost my contract with them and the project was shelved. But quite a few of the songs made it on to later albums." Yet his solo performances in the States didn't go un-noticed. After his 1975 solo performance in Greenwich Village, Variety Magazine said "Steve Ashley of London is a delightful surprise ... The performer not only sings his originals well, but has one of the funniest of dry stage raps. His voice is good. His originals are sensitive, ex-of the Albion Country Band, Ashley can hold an audience." But getting himself heard in America wasn't always easy. "I found myself in Dallas, singing a song about an English winter in a state where the seasons and weather patterns are very different . A few songs in, there was an awful lot of noise and I was beginning to wonder how I could get them to listen. I tried a blues number on the harmonica, but even that failed to cut through. Then I lowered the volume and quietly sang 'The Foggy Dew' unaccompanied. There was complete silence for that with solid applause at the end. From then on, once I’d got their attention, the rest of the songs went down well." Listening is the key to appreciating Steve's music. The songs are always delicately structured, under-pinned with a strong message delivered through thought-provoking lyrics. He was an active peace campaigner in the 1980s, and his gently persuasive messages still cut through his music today. His present live tour features a diverse set with songs about Iraq, Trident, racial harmony, atheism, apples, orchards and loving relationships, all couched in his irrepressible good humour. "Although many of my songs are controversial, I try to present them in a way that makes them accessible to everyone. But inevitably there are challenging moments. After one gig where I sang the Trident song, ‘Ships of Shame’ I was approached by a former submariner who had served on one of the subs and to my amazement he was very courteous and friendly. He said he felt no shame on board but then said he thought it was a very good song." After a career in which he secured the respect of his peers, played in various bands and wrote music for a number of projects - including television - Steve took an eight-year break from live performance in 1992. After his return one of his best-loved songs Best Wishes, was written as a blessing to his fellow musicians, many of whom had seen their careers grow and prosper during his long absence. "The folk scene had lost its edge for me at that time and I stopped recording and performing, turning my attention to writing and designing campaigns for various charities and pressure groups. But in the end, with the reissue of Stroll On I was drawn back to the stage and now I’m happy to be on it again. When I turned sixty I had a big concert party with many old musical chums. Just prior to their arrival I realised how important those friendships were to me and the value that live music held for us all and I managed to express that in Best Wishes." Fairport Convention later concluded two albums with the song, first on Sense of Occasion and then a live version on Live At Cropredy 08. In 1999, the re-issue of Stroll On was welcomed by the music press, especially Mojo, who said "The passing of time has confirmed two things about Steve Ashley's debut. First, it's up there with Liege and Lief, the first Steeleye Album and Christy Moore's Prosperous, a masterpiece of its kind. Second, it is still a best-kept-secret. A beautiful, rich and deeply atmospheric collection of songs, very English - like a musical impression of Dickens, Victorian Christmas cards and Thomas Hardy's Wessex..." Following the re-release of the album, Steve contacted Dave Pegg of Fairport Convention. "Peggy” - he said, I'm coming back. Can you put me on at Cropredy?" "I'm afraid we're fully booked, said Peggy, but why don't you join us on stage." "So I did...” Steve explained: "...first at the traditional warm-up gig in the Mill Arts Centre at Banbury, and then on the Saturday night headliner. After an eight-year break I was very apprehensive facing 20,000 people gathered in the field - but it was great to be up there with Fairport to sing Fire and Wine." Two years later, Steve's seventh album Everyday Lives was released on Topic. "I was pleasantly surprised when they took it on. I’d always admired Topic but it is the quintessential traditional label, and the purists hadn't always been open to my songs. In the early days it was very difficult for young songwriters to break into traditional folk clubs, and although things have improved, there is still a lot of daft prejudice towards original songs. However, Topic were very supportive and enthusiastic about both the albums I made for them and I think they are among the best I’ve made" The second one for Topic was Steve's ninth solo album in 2007 (the eighth was a live one, released the previous year). The ninth - Time and Tide - was described as 'a modern day masterpiece' by fRoots magazine. The Guardian said "... sturdy melodies are matched with a rare blend of emotion and anger. Ashley may not be prolific but his songs are worth the wait." A fresh interest in Steve's music generated thereafter and resulted in many more artists covering his songs. He marked forty years of recording with a special concert at Cheltenham Town Hall in 2009 - with strings arranged by Nick Drake’s arranger, his old friend Robert Kirby, a long-time musical collaborator, who sadly died later that year. In 2013 the respected rock author Dave Thompson published a musical biography called Fire and Wine - an armchair guide to Steve Ashley; the title taken from one of Steve's most popular songs. (See column left for further information). "I'm back where I was in the Stroll On days, just me and the guitar out on the road. But I’m 68 now, and like everyone at my age things aren't quite what they once were. I’ve developed a circulatory disorder called Raynaud's which affects the finger tips in cold weather. So it makes it difficult to play a full set during the winter." But Steve is on the road this side of Christmas - and will be out there again next Spring and through to the Autumn. That one last album seems to call. He played me his latest song, ‘People In Love’ which is quite wonderful. There are, I am convinced, a lot more where that came from. "I've been thinking of doing another album. And if I do it will probably just be me and the guitar; that's more or less how I play now. I've done many big productions on previous albums but the new songs are very direct and intimate and if I can, I’d like to present them in that way - stripped back, clear and simple." Finally: the state of the nation. Who is out there to take up the baton and carry it forward? "Oh, I don’t know. There are lots of hugely skilled young musicians out there and some talented songwriters too. There are college courses in traditional music now, and a high level of musicianship is emerging. In many ways these are exciting times for lovers of folk music. But a surprising amount of young folkies seem to focus on the past and disconnect from contemporary life. When I was young we were fortunate to have some brilliant elder song writers in the British folk scene like Ewan MacColl, Sidney Carter and Ian Campbell. All of them loved traditional songs as well. But they took on big contemporary issues in their songs and they inspired a passionate political and ethical engagement with the world. Our great traditional repertoire is still there of course but for the folk tradition to make any real sense in today’s world it needs to foster radical contemporary songs. From what I’ve heard in the clubs you’re still more likely to hear a song about Napoleon than a song about Iraq. There are some notable exceptions of course – and more power to them - but we are living in hard and dangerous times. And songs can bear powerful witness to them. Folk songs are songs of the people and we the people need new songs that engage with the real challenges we face today. I still believe that songs can make a real difference to the world and influence change. And we need them now more than ever.” Steve Ashley's influence is still powerful. His ability to write a song that will move your heart and make you think is as strong as it ever was. I, for one, can't wait to hear the next album (This Little Game - due for release in February 2015) Mike Weaver (August 2014) For more information visit www.steveashley.co.uk |
Bright Morning Star will shine again this Christmas
It's one of our favourite Christmas traditions (well, since last year): listening to Bella Hardy's wonderful album Bright Morning Star. The good news is that Bella is on the festive road again this December. She took time out of her busy schedule to talk to Armandaleg Music's Mike Weaver. (Interview: Dec 2013)
MW: For me, Bright Morning Star was one of the musical highlights of last Christmas, with some magical interpretations of classic songs. Will this year's tour feature any new material?
BH: Well that's very kind of you! Yes, there's some new material this year; I've actually finally managed to write my own original Christmas song! This is the fourth year of the tour, so it's taken a while…There's so many Christmas songs that I love, I try to include a few different ones each year so there's always something new. So many of them encapsulate the emotions of the season so well. I think Christmas itself causes a kind of concentration of feeling, be that positive or negative sensation. The job of any great song is to translate these feelings, so I think Christmas music has an amazing head start, and this results in very powerful songs.
MW: Battleplan seemed to take your songwriting into a new, more personal direction.Will the upcoming Christmas tour reflect this too, or are you sticking to a more traditional flavour?
BH: Battleplan is definitely more overtly personal than my previous records, but actually the songs I've recorded have always been very personal to me, I just tend to hide myself into lyrics so you can't tell! In every song, be it one of my own, traditional, or a cover, I'm putting myself into the character or the story, finding Stanislavski's 'chink in the armour'. If I can't do that, I don't sing it. I make every song about myself, I'm very egocentric! But hopefully I'm taking the listener with me as well, and they're putting themselves into the story too. I think it's the only way to achieve any suspension of disbelief. And nobody wants to watch a faker. I don't think I've every managed to sing 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' without fighting back tears.
MW: So, what influenced your choice of songs for Bright Morning Star? Are they tunes which remind you of family Christmas traditions or songs which have any particular nostalgic connections?
BH: There's a whole mix of influences when it comes to the Bright Morning Star songs. The first is definitely the festive traditions back home, the carols of South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire. Castleton is my local traditional carol village, it's just over the hill from Edale. I recorded 'Down In Yon Forest', collected in Castleton by Vaughan Williams in 1908, on my debut CD Night Visiting, and then another Castleton song 'All In The Morning' on 'In The Shadow of Mountains'.
It seemed only natural to take these carols on the road. Christmas and the singing that goes hand in hand with it is very much a community experience for me; we've always sung in the village choir, and done carols door to door back home; I'm really just trying to take this great feeling of community and home and belonging on the road with me. I pick any songs, old or new, that can communicate that.
MW: You've just returned from a grand musical tour of Canada; did you learn anything of Christmas traditions there?
BH: I'm afraid not! I was there September to October, I really missed the season! Well actually Cara Luft sang a couple of beautiful Canadian Christmas songs to me, so who knows what Christmas crossovers the future holds...
MW: The Bright Morning Star tour looks like a heavy schedule up and down the country, in a variety of different venues. Do you try and select more intimate settings to add to the atmosphere?
BH: There's always a great variety of venues, from front rooms to churches to formal theatre spaces. We create the intimacy with the music (of course), but I give it a helping hand with a ridiculous amount of baubles and fairy lights! I basically spend the whole month untangling the things! But that's an important Christmas tradition, right?
MW: Right! But will you be 'Christmassed Out' by the end of the tour, or will you still be up for more songs around the piano in Edale?
BH: I have never managed to get 'Christmassed Out'. Not a chance. I try and put off any festivities until advent starts to avoid over stretching it. Well, apart from tour preparations, plum brandy and Christmas Cake making in November that is. OK, who am I kidding!
MW: So is it back to Edinburgh for Hogmanay, and straight back to work in the New Year?
BH: New Year's Day 2013, I wrote a newsletter and made my sister Emma design the 'Battleplan' CD cover with me… maybe we'll take the day off this time!
MW: You will be 30 next year (sorry!) and I think a special milestone tour is planned to mark the occasion. Will there be a new album to go with it?
BH: Please don't be sorry! I'm not! I'm very excited about the whole thing. Yes, I turn 30 in May, and I'm hitting the road with my band The Midnight Watch for a tour called 'Thirty for 30'; thirty gigs for my 30th birthday! There won't be an album with it, I think you've all heard quite enough from me for a while! But I will have a little EP of birthday songs to celebrate the occasion.
MW: Thanks for finding the time to talk to us, Bella. Every success with Bright Morning Star and your future projects. (December 2013)
For more information and tour dates go to www.bellahardy.com
MW: For me, Bright Morning Star was one of the musical highlights of last Christmas, with some magical interpretations of classic songs. Will this year's tour feature any new material?
BH: Well that's very kind of you! Yes, there's some new material this year; I've actually finally managed to write my own original Christmas song! This is the fourth year of the tour, so it's taken a while…There's so many Christmas songs that I love, I try to include a few different ones each year so there's always something new. So many of them encapsulate the emotions of the season so well. I think Christmas itself causes a kind of concentration of feeling, be that positive or negative sensation. The job of any great song is to translate these feelings, so I think Christmas music has an amazing head start, and this results in very powerful songs.
MW: Battleplan seemed to take your songwriting into a new, more personal direction.Will the upcoming Christmas tour reflect this too, or are you sticking to a more traditional flavour?
BH: Battleplan is definitely more overtly personal than my previous records, but actually the songs I've recorded have always been very personal to me, I just tend to hide myself into lyrics so you can't tell! In every song, be it one of my own, traditional, or a cover, I'm putting myself into the character or the story, finding Stanislavski's 'chink in the armour'. If I can't do that, I don't sing it. I make every song about myself, I'm very egocentric! But hopefully I'm taking the listener with me as well, and they're putting themselves into the story too. I think it's the only way to achieve any suspension of disbelief. And nobody wants to watch a faker. I don't think I've every managed to sing 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' without fighting back tears.
MW: So, what influenced your choice of songs for Bright Morning Star? Are they tunes which remind you of family Christmas traditions or songs which have any particular nostalgic connections?
BH: There's a whole mix of influences when it comes to the Bright Morning Star songs. The first is definitely the festive traditions back home, the carols of South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire. Castleton is my local traditional carol village, it's just over the hill from Edale. I recorded 'Down In Yon Forest', collected in Castleton by Vaughan Williams in 1908, on my debut CD Night Visiting, and then another Castleton song 'All In The Morning' on 'In The Shadow of Mountains'.
It seemed only natural to take these carols on the road. Christmas and the singing that goes hand in hand with it is very much a community experience for me; we've always sung in the village choir, and done carols door to door back home; I'm really just trying to take this great feeling of community and home and belonging on the road with me. I pick any songs, old or new, that can communicate that.
MW: You've just returned from a grand musical tour of Canada; did you learn anything of Christmas traditions there?
BH: I'm afraid not! I was there September to October, I really missed the season! Well actually Cara Luft sang a couple of beautiful Canadian Christmas songs to me, so who knows what Christmas crossovers the future holds...
MW: The Bright Morning Star tour looks like a heavy schedule up and down the country, in a variety of different venues. Do you try and select more intimate settings to add to the atmosphere?
BH: There's always a great variety of venues, from front rooms to churches to formal theatre spaces. We create the intimacy with the music (of course), but I give it a helping hand with a ridiculous amount of baubles and fairy lights! I basically spend the whole month untangling the things! But that's an important Christmas tradition, right?
MW: Right! But will you be 'Christmassed Out' by the end of the tour, or will you still be up for more songs around the piano in Edale?
BH: I have never managed to get 'Christmassed Out'. Not a chance. I try and put off any festivities until advent starts to avoid over stretching it. Well, apart from tour preparations, plum brandy and Christmas Cake making in November that is. OK, who am I kidding!
MW: So is it back to Edinburgh for Hogmanay, and straight back to work in the New Year?
BH: New Year's Day 2013, I wrote a newsletter and made my sister Emma design the 'Battleplan' CD cover with me… maybe we'll take the day off this time!
MW: You will be 30 next year (sorry!) and I think a special milestone tour is planned to mark the occasion. Will there be a new album to go with it?
BH: Please don't be sorry! I'm not! I'm very excited about the whole thing. Yes, I turn 30 in May, and I'm hitting the road with my band The Midnight Watch for a tour called 'Thirty for 30'; thirty gigs for my 30th birthday! There won't be an album with it, I think you've all heard quite enough from me for a while! But I will have a little EP of birthday songs to celebrate the occasion.
MW: Thanks for finding the time to talk to us, Bella. Every success with Bright Morning Star and your future projects. (December 2013)
For more information and tour dates go to www.bellahardy.com