We have a double treat for you today from Urban Folk Quartet with a Song and a Tune of the Day. The very first on Folk Radio UK which maybe says more about how excited we are about their new album ‘The Escape’ which is out May 1st. This is their first release with new recruit Dan Walsh whose own solo album ‘Incidents & Accidents‘ was a Featured Album of the Month on FRUK recently.
The song “Five Hundred Miles” is an old American folk song, closely related to the song “Reuben’s Train” and the tune “Upward Spiral/Brink” is a pair of original UFQ reels, written by Paloma.
Five Hundred Miles
Upward Spiral/Brink
Words from band member Tom Chapman on the tracks and album:
With our previous albums either being recorded “live in the studio” or even live in front of an audience, we thought we’d take a different approach to recording with The Escape. By teaming up with engineer Andie Thomson (Bellowhead, Dave Swarbrick etc.) Joe was able to take on a producer’s role much more akin to that he’s taken when producing for other people. Without the emphasis being entirely on representing what happens on stage, there’s been space to fill in some of the extra things we imagine when we write the material – big string sections, extra percussion, backing vocals etc. The only rules were that everything would be played and sung by the four of us and that all the material would be UFQ repertoire that will appear in the new live show.
Tour Dates
More Summer dates tba
01 May – The Greystones, Sheffield S11 7BS
02 May – Trinity Folk Festival, Guildford GU1 3UA
08 May – Hanger Farm Arts Centre, Southampton SO40 8FT
09 May – Guildhall Arts Centre, Grantham NG31 6PZ
11 May – Chesham Folk Club, Chesham HP5 1AG
15 May – The Forge, Camden, London NW1 7NL
16 May – Maldon Town Hall, Maldon CM9 4PZ
17 May – Dart Music Festival, Dartmouth
21 May – Alexander’s, Chester CH1 2JW
23 May – Fishguard Folk Festival, Fishguard SA65 9AD
29 May – Village Hall, Bowerchalke, Wiltshire
30 May – Village Hall, Kington Langley, Wiltshire SN15 5NJ
02 Jun – Swaledale Festival, Hawes DL8 3RN
05 Jun – Gate To Southwell Festival, Nottinghamshire, NG25 0PT
06 Jun – Gate To Southwell Festival, Nottinghamshire, NG25 0PT
07 Jun – Wirral Folk Festival, Ellesmere Port CH65 6QF
18 Jul – Sesiwn Fawr Dolgellau Festival, Dolgellau, North Wales
23 Jul – Loon Plage, France
19 Aug – Festival, Belgium
22 Aug – Folk East Festival, Glemham Hall, Suffolk