On the latest Folk Show, we have a double-helping from Rónán Ó Snodaigh and Myles O’Reilly, our Artists of the Month. Their new album, The Beautiful Road, is a calmative, a sonic balm in times of literal and metaphorical noise, but also a reminder of the verve and the life that can still exist in music. It’s an exceptional feat. You can read Thomas Blakes’ album review here. The album is available on Cd, Vinyl and Digital – Order it here.
However, we kick things off with a track recorded in the late ’70s when Hot Vultures duo Maggie Holland and Ian A Anderson were joined by a young guitar and banjo wizard Martin Simpson who had just released his debut LP Golden Vanity. In 1979, they toured clubs and festivals as a trio under the name of The Scrub Jay Orchestra. To quote from Ian’s notes: Scrub Jays are American birds that feed on acorns, the fruit of that very English of trees, the oak. The Scrub Jay Orchestra were definitely English creatures who fed on old American roots…
This 8-track album, titled Postcards of the Twanging, has been released on Ghosts from the Basement and is a great little gem – order it here. According to the notes, the track I’ve included here, South Coast Bound, featured on Hot Vultures’ 1979 LP Up the Line.
Toronto-based acoustic power trio Lonesome Ace Stringband will release their sixth release, Try To Make it Fly, on October 13th. We premiered the video for Sweeter Sound, and I can’t get enough of it, so it’s also in here.
We’ve also new music from Cup O Joe, whose new album, Why Live Without, drops later this month (pre-order here). Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening return next month with cloud horizons, their second album (September 1st via Resilient Records – Order Here). We recently shared the video for their lead single ‘Long For Light‘ – Global influences swirl beautifully throughout as an ancient Northumbrian language is reimagined.
Billy Rough recently reviewed amrwd, the new Angharad Jenkins and Patrick Rimes album. He concluded: Jenkins and Rimes’ masterful playing thrills throughout, and the considered compositions constantly surprise and please. amrwd is a delightful recording and ensures that, as accomplished stewards of tradition, Welsh folk is in very safe hands.
Chris Brain emerged from Leeds’ vibrant folk scene in 2022 with his debut, critically acclaimed and widely distributed album Bound to Rise. His much-anticipated second album, Steady Away, moves inward and takes on a more self-reflective quality whilst retaining glimmers of soaring figures and pastoral imagery.
Released in May, Jon Wilks‘s latest album, With Before I Knew What Had Begun I Had Already Lost, proves once again what a stand-out talent he really is. At its soul is the love of song, of collaborating with friends, and of discovering old tunes and creating new ones. I especially love The Old Miner, included here. Read Billy Rough’s album review here and pick up a copy on Bandcamp.
Another album that attracted lots of praise from Folk Radio is the Eliza Carthy Trio’s Conversations We’ve Had Before, on which David Delarre and Saul Rose join Eliza. In his review, David Pratt called it one of the best traditional folk releases of the year so far.
We have a track from Seth Lakeman’s ‘The Somerset Sessions’ (Peter Shaw reviewed it here)– a showcase for a brilliant set of musicians pouring their all into some of Lakeman’s strongest material to date.
Stornoway-born Norman Paterson released his new album Torn last month, on which he looks back to contemplate some of the most memorable songs. His delivery really caught my ear. The accompanying press shares: The songs have been resonating with residents of these island communities, with which he has such an emotional bond. Before
this album’s official release (at An Lanntair in Stornoway on July 21), he posted snippets and teasers online that attracted a lot of attention each time. He says:
“Yes, apparently, I have a decent following now. I think that’s amazing!” He adds, “It’s my first album. I’m 65 and only started writing songs two years ago, I’m from the Hebrides so most of them have an Island theme.”
The Mary Wallopers recently announced their new album, Irish Rock N Roll, and we’ve included their lead single ‘Wexford’, written by the legendary Irish travelling musician Pecker Dunne (read more here).
From 2020, we have a track from LAU‘s Folk Songs EP. As noted by Billy in his album review here, Ca’ The Ewes re-interprets the Isabel Pagan poem, originally collected by Robert Burns. It is probably the most traditionally performed track on the EP, focusing solely on the band’s instruments with minimal extraneous production.
Casting a bit further back in time, we’ve also music from Joe Ryan & Eddie Clarke, Maeve Donnelly, Maighréad Ní Dhomhnaill & Sean Corcoran, The Whistlebinkies, Liz Carroll & John Doyle, and Dick Gaughan.
Enjoy
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Music Played
The Scrub Jay Orchestra – South Coast Bound
Lonesome Ace Stringband – Sweeter Sound
Cup O’Joe – Weathered and Worn
Joe Ryan & Eddie Clarke, Maeve Donnelly, Maighréad Ní Dhomhnaill & Sean Corcoran – Johnny and Molly
Kathryn Tickell & The Darkening – Long for Light
Angharad Jenkins and Patrick Rimes – Nant Y Mynydd
The Whistlebinkies – Ceilidh Lines
Liz Carroll & John Doyle – A Pound a Week Rise
Paddy Keenan & Tommy O’Sullivan – Colliers the Woman of the House
Chris Brain – Golden Days
Rónán Ó Snodaigh and Myles O’Reilly – Bacon, Eggs, Blood and Bread
Jon Wilks – The Old Miner
Eliza Carthy Trio – Bird In The Bush
Seth Lakeman – Go Your Own Way
LAU – Ca’ The Ewes
Dick Gaughan – Games People Play
Norman Paterson – Torn
The Mary Wallopers – Wexford
Rónán Ó Snodaigh and Myles O’Reilly – Análl Mór Doimhin