Best Compilations/Various Artists
Various Artists: The Lost Words – Spell Songs
“The Lost Words” finally reaches us in the form of Spell Songs. Composed by eight of folk’s finest contemporary talents: Karine Polwart, Seckou Keita, Julie Fowlis, Kris Drever, Jim Molyneux, Kerry Andrew, Rachel Newton and Beth Porter, the songs bring us hope for the future.
Vision & Revision: The First 80 Years Of Topic Records
Whether down the pub, out in the field or recording up in Bill Leader’s bedroom, Topic have always been at the forefront of bringing traditional song to a wider audiences attention. Ultimately, Vision & Revision serves as a reminder of the various enriching ways folk song lends itself to reinvention, and the idealists, innovators and romantics that have passed through their ranks. And in doing so, it is yet another testament to the label’s enduring legacy.
Stick in the Wheel present From Here: English Folk Field Recordings Volume 2
Stick In The Wheel’s stated intention for this project was an attempt at documenting what folk music is rather than trying to dictate what it should be, and in that, they have succeeded. The latest instalment of From Here shows that, perhaps against the odds, folk music in England is diverse and thriving.
Various Artists – The Social Power of Music
With Vice recently claiming memes are now our generations preferred form of protest art whether there’s cause for concern about music’s effectiveness, surrounding the fact the medium and methods are changing, is another matter altogether. As Huib continues “Now, as then, shared acts of music can bring joy, greater connectedness, stronger communities, and a greater sense of fairness; at it’s most powerful, music does seem to be able to help us change the world.” And this is what this astonishingly inspirational compilation celebrates and aims to do in its own way: ‘to surround hate and force it to surrender.’
Various – Imaginational Anthem, Vol. 9: Ryley Walker Presents
This snippet piece fits plenty into its diminutive run time and fully illustrates the diversity of this set as a whole, because Volume Nine crams its forty-four minutes with enough musical styles and new artists to satisfy anybody for some time. Study the sleeve notes, seek out the players and have a load of fun with this ace compilation.
Various Artists/Mike Seeger – Just Around The Bend: Survival And Revival In Southern Banjo
Just Around the Bend is of monumental importance and an engrossing release not least, of course, due to the gentle force of Mike Seeger’s own personality, his over-reaching enthusiasm for old-time and its practitioners.
Best Live Album
Dick Gaughan – The Harvard Tapes
Dick Gaughan is a man of many talents – guitarist, singer, songwriter, musical director, producer and sound engineer. 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.
John Renbourn & Jacqui McShee – An Evening With…
Throughout “An Evening With…” I’m struck over and again by the sheer wow factor, the spine-tingling effectiveness of this particular extraordinary musical partnership of John Renbourn & Jacqui McShee. However many albums you own by these two musicians, you’ll still need this one!
Nancy Kerr And James Fagan – An Evening With
An Evening With Nancy Kerr And James Fagan captures one of folk music’s most enduring and talented acts in their natural habitat and provides the perfect snapshot of the duo at the top of their game.
Joshua Burnside – Live at the Elmwood Hall
This is a true portrait of a young performer enjoying the art of captivating an audience and mastering his songs without losing any of himself along the way. Joshua Burnside may not be typical Irish Folk, but he is everything it should stand for, and no doubt will bring it to new places for years to come.