Kicking off this week’s Folk Show is the new single from Elephant Sessions, the profits from which all go to World Elephant Day (on 12 August), you can watch the accompanying video and find out more about it here. We have a number of forthcoming releases, the first of which is from Rowan Rheingans, taken from her album The Lines We Draw Together which you can pre-order here (out on 23 August). This is quite unlike anything I’ve heard before and we’ll be covering the album in more depth very soon. We also have a song from Jack Rutter‘s new album Gold of Scar and Shale, out on 4th October which was produced by Joe Rusby and recorded live – he just keeps getting better. Another album we’ve waxed lyrical about and from which we’ve included a double-helping is the debut release from Green Ribbons which features the singing talents of Debbie Armour (Burd Ellen), Frankie Armstrong, Alasdair Roberts and Benjamin “Jinnwoo” Webb (Jinnwoo, Bird in the Belly) – more on this soon. And finally, a name which may be new to many of you is The Distance Collective. Led by guitarist Graham Young, they release their self-titled debut album later this month on 23 August. The album offers an eclectic array of genres, “melding traditional folk sounds with orchestral strings and woodwind melodies, all wrapped up in the warm hug of rich, ambient, post-rock drones.” The band members are from across the UK and from diverse musical backgrounds; from traditional folk, to classical ensembles, through to post-rock and indie. Find out more about them via their Facebook page here.
We also have a few new vintage releases, one from Dick Gaughan, our Artist of the Month, with a song from The Harvard Tapes, recorded live in 1982 (read the review here). I also used this as the perfect excuse to play some more classic Gaughan under the guise of Five Hand Reel with the brilliantly rousing The Beef-Can Close.
His greatest talent, though, has to be his ability to share his music with skill, passion and humour. That fact is abundantly clear on The Harvard Tapes, a unique and unmissable opportunity to relish a vintage Dick Gaughan performance. Neil McFadyen, Folk Radio UK
A year earlier in 1981 and also recorded at a Harvard concert is a newly released live recording from The Clutha ‘Live from Harvard‘. They started as a Scottish folk band in 1964 and originally featured three young librarians who worked at Glasgow’s Mitchell Library along with a former colleague – two additional members joined in 1965. They all shared a love of Scottish traditional music. Although not a strange combination in English folk music, the blend of fiddle, concertina and guitar was new to the Scottish folk revival at the time. They were very much a live band as demonstrated throughout this live CD which perfectly captures their warmth, humour and energy. They were inducted into Scottish Traditional Music Hall of Fame in 2014.
The other vintage “new” release comes from none other than John Renbourn and Jacqui McShee with An Evening with John Renbourn and Jacqui McShee which is out on Fledg’ling Records on 30 September –
From the earliest days of Pentangle, John and Jacqui would share infrequent duo gigs. An evening of music from these two friends would always be something very special. Although there were a couple of DVDs released twenty years or so ago, there has never been a live album to truly represent the subtle musical magic that would be conjured up during a performance by these two remarkable musicians.
Of course, as with Gaughan, this prompted me to slip in some classic Pentangle as well – I don’t need much of an excuse, to be honest.
There’s also music from Aidan O’Rourke’s 365: Volume 2 (feat Kit Downes), one of our Featured Albums of the Month, reviewed here.
In 365: Stories, James Roberston’s words have inspired unique music and fascinating art. In 365: Volume 2, Aidan O’Rourke’s musical responses provide yet another fascinating, detailed and perfectly executed musical miscellany. Neil McFadyen, Folk Radio UK
Scattered throughout are some not so new favourites but which I encourage you to explore if you’ve not heard them before including Crooked Weather, The Brothers Gillespie, Landless and Aidan Connolly.
Enjoy
Music Played
00:00 – Elephant Sessions – Tyagarah
03:17 – Rowan Rheingans – Lines
08:21 – Rhiannon Giddens & Francesco Turrisi – Gonna Write Me A Letter
12:16 – Crooked Weather – Hares On The Moutain
17:04 – Pentangle – Bruton Town
22:16 – Five Hand Reel – The Beef-Can Close
25:37 – Jack Rutter – The Lancashire Liar
29:06 – John Renbourn and Jacqui McShee – Cruel Sister
35:09 – Green Ribbons – The Well Below The Valley
39:23 – The Brothers Gillespie – Northumberland I
41:29 – Aidan O’Rourke – I met him only once
44:29 – Landless – Rags Upon the Poddle
49:41 – Green Ribbons – My Geordie, Oh
52:43 – The Distance Collective – Fuaigh Mor
54:29 – Dick Gaughan – The Freedom Come All Ye
58:31 – Aidan Connolly – Reel: The Bucks Of Oranmore
01:01:33 – The Clutha – Jock Hawk’s Adventures in Glasgow
Photo by Nils Nedel – Ring of Kerry, Ireland