Podcast appearances and mentions of vincent black lightning

For those who haven't heard the announcement I posted, songs from this point on will sometimes be split among multiple episodes, so this is the second part of a two-episode look at the song “Who Knows Where The Time Goes?” by Fairport Convention, and the intertwining careers of Joe Boyd, Sandy Denny, and Richard Thompson. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a forty-one-minute bonus episode available, on Judy Collins’ version of this song. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by editing, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ Erratum For about an hour this was uploaded with the wrong Elton John clip in place of “Saturday Sun”. This has now been fixed. Resources Because of the increasing problems with Mixcloud’s restrictions, I have decided to start sharing streaming playlists of the songs used in episodes instead of Mixcloud ones. This Tunemymusic link will let you listen to the playlist I created on your streaming platform of choice — however please note that not all the songs excerpted are currently available on streaming. The songs missing from the Tidal version are “Shanten Bells” by the Ian Campbell Folk Group, “Tom’s Gone to Hilo” by A.L. Lloyd, two by Paul McNeill and Linda Peters, three by Elton John & Linda Peters, “What Will I Do With Tomorrow” by Sandy Denny and “You Never Know” by Charlie Drake, but the other fifty-nine are there. Other songs may be missing from other services. The main books I used on Fairport Convention as a whole were Patrick Humphries' Meet On The Ledge, Clinton Heylin's What We Did Instead of Holidays, and Kevan Furbank's Fairport Convention on Track. Rob Young's Electric Eden is the most important book on the British folk-rock movement. Information on Richard Thompson comes from Patrick Humphries' Richard Thompson: Strange Affair and Thompson's own autobiography Beeswing.  Information on Sandy Denny comes from Clinton Heylin's No More Sad Refrains and Mick Houghton's I've Always Kept a Unicorn. I also used Joe Boyd's autobiography White Bicycles and Chris Blackwell's The Islander.  And this three-CD set is the best introduction to Fairport's music currently in print. Transcript Before we begin, this episode contains reference to alcohol and cocaine abuse and medical neglect leading to death. It also starts with some discussion of the fatal car accident that ended last episode. There’s also some mention of child neglect and spousal violence. If that’s likely to upset you, you might want to skip this episode or read the transcript. One of the inspirations for this podcast when I started it back in 2018 was a project by Richard Thompson, which appears (like many things in Thompson’s life) to have started out of sheer bloody-mindedness. In 1999 Playboy magazine asked various people to list their “songs of the Millennium”, and most of them, understanding the brief, chose a handful of songs from the latter half of the twentieth century. But Thompson determined that he was going to list his favourite songs *of the millennium*. He didn’t quite manage that, but he did cover seven hundred and forty years, and when Playboy chose not to publish it, he decided to turn it into a touring show, in which he covered all his favourite songs from “Sumer Is Icumen In” from 1260: [Excerpt: Richard Thompson, “Sumer is Icumen In”] Through numerous traditional folk songs, union songs like “Blackleg Miner”, pieces by early-modern composers, Victorian and Edwardian music hall songs, and songs by the Beatles, the Ink Spots, the Kinks, and the Who, all the way to “Oops! I Did It Again”: [Excerpt: Richard Thompson, “Oops! I Did it Again”] And to finish the show, and to show how all this music actually ties together, he would play what he described as a “medieval tune from Brittany”, “Marry, Ageyn Hic Hev Donne Yt”: [Excerpt: Richard Thompson, “Marry, Ageyn Hic Hev Donne Yt”] We have said many times in this podcast that there is no first anything, but there’s a reason that Liege and Lief, Fairport Convention’s third album of 1969, and the album other than Unhalfbricking on which their reputation largely rests, was advertised with the slogan “The first (literally) British folk rock album ever”. Folk-rock, as the term had come to be known, and as it is still usually used today, had very little to do with traditional folk music. Rather, the records of bands like The Byrds or Simon and Garfunkel were essentially taking the sounds of British beat groups of the early sixties, particularly the Searchers, and applying those sounds to material by contemporary singer-songwriters. People like Paul Simon and Bob Dylan had come up through folk clubs, and their songs were called folk music because of that, but they weren’t what folk music had meant up to that point — songs that had been collected after being handed down through the folk process, changed by each individual singer, with no single identifiable author. They were authored songs by very idiosyncratic writers. But over their last few albums, Fairport Convention had done one or two tracks per album that weren’t like that, that were instead recordings of traditional folk songs, but arranged with rock instrumentation. They were not necessarily the first band to try traditional folk music with electric instruments — around the same time that Fairport started experimenting with the idea, so did an Irish band named Sweeney’s Men, who brought in a young electric guitarist named Henry McCullough briefly. But they do seem to have been the first to have fully embraced the idea. They had done so to an extent with “A Sailor’s Life” on Unhalfbricking, but now they were going to go much further: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Matty Groves” (from about 4:30)] There had been some doubt as to whether Fairport Convention would even continue to exist — by the time Unhalfbricking, their second album of the year, was released, they had been through the terrible car accident that had killed Martin Lamble, the band’s drummer, and Jeannie Franklyn, Richard Thompson’s girlfriend. Most of the rest of the band had been seriously injured, and they had made a conscious decision not to discuss the future of the band until they were all out of hospital. Ashley Hutchings was hospitalised the longest, and Simon Nicol, Richard Thompson, and Sandy Denny, the other three surviving members of the band, flew over to LA with their producer and manager, Joe Boyd, to recuperate there and get to know the American music scene. When they came back, the group all met up in the flat belonging to Denny’s boyfriend Trevor Lucas, and decided that they were going to continue the band. They made a few decisions then — they needed a new drummer, and as well as a drummer they wanted to get in Dave Swarbrick. Swarbrick had played violin on several tracks on Unhalfbricking as a session player, and they had all been thrilled to work with him. Swarbrick was one of the most experienced musicians on the British folk circuit. He had started out in the fifties playing guitar with Beryl Marriott’s Ceilidh Band before switching to fiddle, and in 1963, long before Fairport had formed, he had already appeared on TV with the Ian Campbell Folk Group, led by Ian Campbell, the father of Ali and Robin Campbell, later of UB40: [Excerpt: The Ian Campbell Folk Group, “Shanten Bells (medley on Hullaballoo!)”] He’d sung with Ewan MacColl and A.L. Lloyd: [Excerpt: A.L. Lloyd, “Tom’s Gone to Hilo” ] And he’d formed his hugely successful duo with Martin Carthy, releasing records like “Byker Hill” which are often considered among the best British folk music of all time: [Excerpt: Martin Carthy and Dave Swarbrick, “Byker Hill”] By the time Fairport had invited him to play on Unhalfbricking, Swarbrick had already performed on twenty albums as a core band member, plus dozens more EPs, singles, and odd tracks on compilations. They had no reason to think they could actually get him to join their band. But they had three advantages. The first was that Swarbrick was sick of the traditional folk scene at the time, saying later “I didn’t like seven-eighths of the people involved in it, and it was extremely opportune to leave. I was suddenly presented with the possibilities of exploring the dramatic content of the songs to the full.” The second was that he was hugely excited to be playing with Richard Thompson, who was one of the most innovative guitarists of his generation, and Martin Carthy remembers him raving about Thompson after their initial sessions. (Carthy himself was and is no slouch on the guitar of course, and there was even talk of getting him to join the band at this point, though they decided against it — much to the relief of rhythm guitarist Simon Nicol, who is a perfectly fine player himself but didn’t want to be outclassed by *two* of the best guitarists in Britain at the same time). And the third was that Joe Boyd told him that Fairport were doing so well — they had a single just about to hit the charts with “Si Tu Dois Partir” — that he would only have to play a dozen gigs with Fairport in order to retire. As it turned out, Swarbrick would play with the group for a decade, and would never retire — I saw him on his last tour in 2015, only eight months before he died. The drummer the group picked was also a far more experienced musician than any of the rest, though in a very different genre. Dave Mattacks had no knowledge at all of the kind of music they played, having previously been a player in dance bands. When asked by Hutchings if he wanted to join the band, Mattacks’ response was “I don’t know anything about the music. I don’t understand it… I can’t tell one tune from another, they all sound the same… but if you want me to join the group, fine, because I really like it. I’m enjoying myself musically.” Mattacks brought a new level of professionalism to the band, thanks to his different background. Nicol said of him later “He was dilligent, clean, used to taking three white shirts to a gig… The application he could bring to his playing was amazing. With us, you only played well when you were feeling well.” This distinction applied to his playing as well. Nicol would later describe the difference between Mattacks’ drumming and Lamble’s by saying “Martin’s strength was as an imaginative drummer. DM came in with a strongly developed sense of rhythm, through keeping a big band of drunken saxophone players in order. A great time-keeper.” With this new line-up and a new sense of purpose, the group did as many of their contemporaries were doing and “got their heads together in the country”. Joe Boyd rented the group a mansion, Farley House, in Farley Chamberlayne, Hampshire, and they stayed there together for three months. At the start, the group seem to have thought that they were going to make another record like Unhalfbricking, with some originals, some songs by American songwriters, and a few traditional songs. Even after their stay in Farley Chamberlayne, in fact, they recorded a few of the American songs they’d rehearsed at the start of the process, Richard Farina’s “Quiet Joys of Brotherhood” and Bob Dylan and Roger McGuinn’s “Ballad of Easy Rider”: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Ballad of Easy Rider”] Indeed, the whole idea of “getting our heads together in the country” (as the cliche quickly became in the late sixties as half of the bands in Britain went through much the same kind of process as Fairport were doing — but usually for reasons more to do with drug burnout or trend following than recovering from serious life-changing trauma) seems to have been inspired by Bob Dylan and the Band getting together in Big Pink. But very quickly they decided to follow the lead of Ashley Hutchings, who had had something of a Damascene conversion to the cause of traditional English folk music. They were listening mostly to Music From Big Pink by the Band, and to the first album by Sweeney’s Men: [Excerpt: Sweeney’s Men, “The Handsome Cabin Boy”] And they decided that they were going to make something that was as English as those records were North American and Irish (though in the event there were also a few Scottish songs included on the record). Hutchings in particular was becoming something of a scholar of traditional music, regularly visiting Cecil Sharp House and having long conversations with A.L. Lloyd, discovering versions of different traditional songs he’d never encountered before. This was both amusing and bemusing Sandy Denny, who had joined a rock group in part to get away from traditional music; but she was comfortable singing the material, and knew a lot of it and could make a lot of suggestions herself. Swarbrick obviously knew the repertoire intimately, and Nicol was amenable, while Mattacks was utterly clueless about the folk tradition at this point but knew this was the music he wanted to make. Thompson knew very little about traditional music, and of all the band members except Denny he was the one who has shown the least interest in the genre in his subsequent career — but as we heard at the beginning, showing the least interest in the genre is a relative thing, and while Thompson was not hugely familiar with the genre, he *was* able to work with it, and was also more than capable of writing songs that fit in with the genre. Of the eleven songs on the album, which was titled Liege and Lief (which means, roughly, Lord and Loyalty), there were no cover versions of singer-songwriters. Eight were traditional songs, and three were originals, all written in the style of traditional songs. The album opened with “Come All Ye”, an introduction written by Denny and Hutchings (the only time the two would ever write together): [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Come All Ye”] The other two originals were songs where Thompson had written new lyrics to traditional melodies. On “Crazy Man Michael”, Swarbrick had said to Thompson that the tune to which he had set his new words was weaker than the lyrics, to which Thompson had replied that if Swarbrick felt that way he should feel free to write a new melody. He did, and it became the first of the small number of Thompson/Swarbrick collaborations: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Crazy Man Michael”] Thompson and Swarbrick would become a brief songwriting team, but as much as anything else it was down to proximity — the two respected each other as musicians, but never got on very well. In 1981 Swarbrick would say “Richard and I never got on in the early days of FC… we thought we did, but we never did. We composed some bloody good songs together, but it was purely on a basis of “you write that and I’ll write this, and we’ll put it together.” But we never sat down and had real good chats.” The third original on the album, and by far the most affecting, is another song where Thompson put lyrics to a traditional tune. In this case he thought he was putting the lyrics to the tune of “Willie O'Winsbury”, but he was basing it on a recording by Sweeney’s Men. The problem was that Sweeney’s Men had accidentally sung the lyrics of “Willie O'Winsbury'” to the tune of a totally different song, “Fause Foodrage”: [Excerpt: Sweeney’s Men, “Willie O’Winsbury”] Thompson took that melody, and set to it lyrics about loss and separation. Thompson has never been one to discuss the meanings of his lyrics in any great detail, and in the case of this one has said “I really don't know what it means. This song came out of a dream, and I pretty much wrote it as I dreamt it (it was the sixties), and didn't spend very long analyzing it. So interpret as you wish – or replace with your own lines.” But in the context of the traffic accident that had killed his tailor girlfriend and a bandmate, and injured most of his other bandmates, the lyrics about lonely travellers, the winding road, bruised and beaten sons, saying goodbye, and never cutting cloth, seem fairly self-explanatory: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Farewell, Farewell”] The rest of the album, though, was taken up by traditional tunes. There was a long medley of four different fiddle reels; a version of “Reynardine” (a song about a seductive man — or is he a fox? Or perhaps both — which had been recorded by Swarbrick and Carthy on their most recent album); a 19th century song about a deserter saved from the firing squad by Prince Albert; and a long take on “Tam Lin”, one of the most famous pieces in the Scottish folk music canon, a song that has been adapted in different ways by everyone from the experimental noise band Current 93 to the dub poet Benjamin Zephaniah to the comics writer Grant Morrison: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Tam Lin”] And “Matty Groves”, a song about a man killing his cheating wife and her lover, which actually has a surprisingly similar story to that of “1921” from another great concept album from that year, the Who’s Tommy. “Matty Groves” became an excuse for long solos and shows of instrumental virtuosity: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Matty Groves”] The album was recorded in September 1969, after their return from their break in the country and a triumphal performance at the Royal Festival Hall, headlining over fellow Witchseason artists John and Beverly Martyn and Nick Drake. It became a classic of the traditional folk genre — arguably *the* classic of the traditional folk genre. In 2007 BBC Radio 2’s Folk Music Awards gave it an award for most influential folk album of all time, and while such things are hard to measure, I doubt there’s anyone with even the most cursory knowledge of British folk and folk-rock music who would not at least consider that a reasonable claim. But once again, by the time the album came out in November, the band had changed lineups yet again. There was a fundamental split in the band – on one side were Sandy Denny and Richard Thompson, whose stance was, roughly, that Liege and Lief was a great experiment and a fun thing to do once, but really the band had two first-rate songwriters in themselves, and that they should be concentrating on their own new material, not doing these old songs, good as they were. They wanted to take the form of the traditional songs and use that form for new material — they wanted to make British folk-rock, but with the emphasis on the rock side of things. Hutchings, on the other hand, was equally sure that he wanted to make traditional music and go further down the rabbit hole of antiquity. With the zeal of the convert he had gone in a couple of years from being the leader of a band who were labelled “the British Jefferson Airplane” to becoming a serious scholar of traditional folk music. Denny was tired of touring, as well — she wanted to spend more time at home with Trevor Lucas, who was sleeping with other women when she was away and making her insecure. When the time came for the group to go on a tour of Denmark, Denny decided she couldn’t make it, and Hutchings was jubilant — he decided he was going to get A.L. Lloyd into the band in her place and become a *real* folk group. Then Denny reconsidered, and Hutchings was crushed. He realised that while he had always been the leader, he wasn’t going to be able to lead the band any further in the traditionalist direction, and quit the group — but not before he was delegated by the other band members to fire Denny. Until the publication of Richard Thompson’s autobiography in 2022, every book on the group or its members said that Denny quit the band again, which was presumably a polite fiction that the band agreed, but according to Thompson “Before we flew home, we decided to fire Sandy. I don't remember who asked her to leave – it was probably Ashley, who usually did the dirty work. She was reportedly shocked that we would take that step. She may have been fragile beneath the confident facade, but she still knew her worth.” Thompson goes on to explain that the reasons for kicking her out were that “I suppose we felt that in her mind she had already left” and that “We were probably suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, though there wasn't a name for it back then.” They had considered inviting Trevor Lucas to join the band to make Denny more comfortable, but came to the (probably correct) conclusion that while he was someone they got on well with personally, he would be another big ego in a band that already had several, and that being around Denny and Lucas’ volatile relationship would, in Thompson’s phrasing, “have not always given one a feeling of peace and stability.” Hutchings originally decided he was going to join Sweeney’s Men, but that group were falling apart, and their first rehearsal with Hutchings would also be their last as a group, with only Hutchings and guitarist and mandolin player Terry Woods left in the band. They added Woods’ wife Gay, and another couple, Tim Hart and Maddy Prior, and formed a group called Steeleye Span, a name given them by Martin Carthy. That group, like Fairport, went to “get their heads together in the country” for three months and recorded an album of electric versions of traditional songs, Hark the Village Wait, on which Mattacks and another drummer, Gerry Conway, guested as Steeleye Span didn’t at the time have their own drummer: [Excerpt: Steeleye Span, “Blackleg Miner”] Steeleye Span would go on to have a moderately successful chart career in the seventies, but by that time most of the original lineup, including Hutchings, had left — Hutchings stayed with them for a few albums, then went on to form the first of a series of bands, all called the Albion Band or variations on that name, which continue to this day. And this is something that needs to be pointed out at this point — it is impossible to follow every single individual in this narrative as they move between bands. There is enough material in the history of the British folk-rock scene that someone could do a 500 Songs-style podcast just on that, and every time someone left Fairport, or Steeleye Span, or the Albion Band, or Matthews’ Southern Comfort, or any of the other bands we have mentioned or will mention, they would go off and form another band which would then fission, and some of its members would often join one of those other bands. There was a point in the mid-1970s where the Albion Band had two original members of Fairport Convention while Fairport Convention had none. So just in order to keep the narrative anything like wieldy, I’m going to keep the narrative concentrated on the two figures from Fairport — Sandy Denny and Richard Thompson — whose work outside the group has had the most influence on the wider world of rock music more broadly, and only deal with the other members when, as they often did, their careers intersected with those two. That doesn’t mean the other members are not themselves hugely important musicians, just that their importance has been primarily to the folk side of the folk-rock genre, and so somewhat outside the scope of this podcast. While Hutchings decided to form a band that would allow him to go deeper and deeper into traditional folk music, Sandy Denny’s next venture was rather different. For a long time she had been writing far more songs than she had ever played for her bandmates, like “Nothing More”, a song that many have suggested is about Thompson: [Excerpt: Fotheringay, “Nothing More”] When Joe Boyd heard that Denny was leaving Fairport Convention, he was at first elated. Fairport’s records were being distributed by A&M in the US at that point, but Island Records was in the process of opening up a new US subsidiary which would then release all future Fairport product — *but*, as far as A&M were concerned, Sandy Denny *was* Fairport Convention. They were only interested in her. Boyd, on the other hand, loved Denny’s work intensely, but from his point of view *Richard Thompson* was Fairport Convention. If he could get Denny signed directly to A&M as a solo artist before Island started its US operations, Witchseason could get a huge advance on her first solo record, while Fairport could continue making records for Island — he’d have two lucrative acts, on different labels. Boyd went over and spoke to A&M and got an agreement in principle that they would give Denny a forty-thousand-dollar advance on her first solo album — twice what they were paying for Fairport albums. The problem was that Denny didn’t want to be a solo act. She wanted to be the lead singer of a band. She gave many reasons for this — the one she gave to many journalists was that she had seen a Judy Collins show and been impressed, but noticed that Collins’ band were definitely a “backing group”, and as she put it “But that's all they were – a backing group. I suddenly thought, If you're playing together on a stage you might as well be TOGETHER.” Most other people in her life, though, say that the main reason for her wanting to be in a band was her desire to be with her boyfriend, Trevor Lucas. Partly this was due to a genuine desire to spend more time with someone with whom she was very much in love, partly it was a fear that he would cheat on her if she was away from him for long periods of time, and part of it seems to have been Lucas’ dislike of being *too* overshadowed by his talented girlfriend — he didn’t mind acknowledging that she was a major talent, but he wanted to be thought of as at least a minor one. So instead of going solo, Denny formed Fotheringay, named after the song she had written for Fairport. This new band consisted at first of Denny on vocals and occasional piano, Lucas on vocals and rhythm guitar, and Lucas’ old Eclection bandmate Gerry Conway on drums. For a lead guitarist, they asked Richard Thompson who the best guitarist in Britain was, and he told them Albert Lee. Lee in turn brought in bass player Pat Donaldson, but this lineup of the band barely survived a fortnight. Lee *was* arguably the best guitarist in Britain, certainly a reasonable candidate if you could ever have a singular best (as indeed was Thompson himself), but he was the best *country* guitarist in Britain, and his style simply didn’t fit with Fotheringay’s folk-influenced songs. He was replaced by American guitarist Jerry Donahue, who was not anything like as proficient as Lee, but who was still very good, and fit the band’s style much better. The new group rehearsed together for a few weeks, did a quick tour, and then went into the recording studio to record their debut, self-titled, album. Joe Boyd produced the album, but admitted himself that he only paid attention to those songs he considered worthwhile — the album contained one song by Lucas, “The Ballad of Ned Kelly”, and two cover versions of American singer-songwriter material with Lucas singing lead. But everyone knew that the songs that actually *mattered* were Sandy Denny’s, and Boyd was far more interested in them, particularly the songs “The Sea” and “The Pond and the Stream”: [Excerpt: Fotheringay, “The Pond and the Stream”] Fotheringay almost immediately hit financial problems, though. While other Witchseason acts were used to touring on the cheap, all packed together in the back of a Transit van with inexpensive equipment, Trevor Lucas had ambitions of being a rock star and wanted to put together a touring production to match, with expensive transport and equipment, including a speaker system that got nicknamed “Stonehenge” — but at the same time, Denny was unhappy being on the road, and didn’t play many gigs. As well as the band itself, the Fotheringay album also featured backing vocals from a couple of other people, including Denny’s friend Linda Peters. Peters was another singer from the folk clubs, and a good one, though less well-known than Denny — at this point she had only released a couple of singles, and those singles seemed to have been as much as anything else released as a novelty. The first of those, a version of Dylan’s “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” had been released as by “Paul McNeill and Linda Peters”: [Excerpt: Paul McNeill and Linda Peters, “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere”] But their second single, a version of John D. Loudermilk’s “You’re Taking My Bag”, was released on the tiny Page One label, owned by Larry Page, and was released under the name “Paul and Linda”, clearly with the intent of confusing particularly gullible members of the record-buying public into thinking this was the McCartneys: [Excerpt: Paul and Linda, “You’re Taking My Bag”] Peters was though more financially successful than almost anyone else in this story, as she was making a great deal of money as a session singer. She actually did another session involving most of Fotheringay around this time. Witchseason had a number of excellent songwriters on its roster, and had had some success getting covers by people like Judy Collins, but Joe Boyd thought that they might possibly do better at getting cover versions if they were performed in less idiosyncratic arrangements. Donahue, Donaldson, and Conway went into the studio to record backing tracks, and vocals were added by Peters and another session singer, who according to some sources also provided piano. They cut songs by Mike Heron of the Incredible String Band: [Excerpt: Linda Peters, “You Get Brighter”] Ed Carter, formerly of The New Nadir but by this time firmly ensconced in the Beach Boys’ touring band where he would remain for the next quarter-century: [Excerpt: Linda Peters, “I Don’t Mind”] John and Beverly Martyn, and Nick Drake: [Excerpt: Elton John, “Saturday Sun”] There are different lineups of musicians credited for those sessions in different sources, but I tend to believe that it’s mostly Fotheringay for the simple reason that Donahue says it was him, Donaldson and Conway who talked Lucas and Denny into the mistake that destroyed Fotheringay because of these sessions. Fotheringay were in financial trouble already, spending far more money than they were bringing in, but their album made the top twenty and they were getting respect both from critics and from the public — in September, Sandy Denny was voted best British female singer by the readers of Melody Maker in their annual poll, which led to shocked headlines in the tabloids about how this “unknown” could have beaten such big names as Dusty Springfield and Cilla Black. Only a couple of weeks after that, they were due to headline at the Albert Hall. It should have been a triumph. But Donahue, Donaldson, and Conway had asked that singing pianist to be their support act. As Donahue said later “That was a terrible miscast. It was our fault. He asked if [he] could do it. Actually Pat, Gerry and I had to talk Sandy and Trevor into [it]… We'd done these demos and the way he was playing – he was a wonderful piano player – he was sensitive enough. We knew very little about his stage-show. We thought he'd be a really good opener for us.” Unfortunately, Elton John was rather *too* good. As Donahue continued “we had no idea what he had in mind, that he was going to do the most incredible rock & roll show ever. He pretty much blew us off the stage before we even got on the stage.” To make matters worse, Fotheringay’s set, which was mostly comprised of new material, was underrehearsed and sloppy, and from that point on no matter what they did people were counting the hours until the band split up. They struggled along for a while though, and started working on a second record, with Boyd again producing, though as Boyd later said “I probably shouldn't have been producing the record. My lack of respect for the group was clear, and couldn't have helped the atmosphere. We'd put out a record that had sold disappointingly, A&M was unhappy. Sandy's tracks on the first record are among the best things she ever did – the rest of it, who cares? And the artwork, Trevor's sister, was terrible. It would have been one thing if I'd been unhappy with it and it sold, and the group was working all the time, making money, but that wasn't the case … I knew what Sandy was capable of, and it was very upsetting to me.” The record would not be released for thirty-eight years: [Excerpt: Fotheringay, “Wild Mountain Thyme”] Witchseason was going badly into debt. Given all the fissioning of bands that we’ve already been talking about, Boyd had been stretched thin — he produced sixteen albums in 1970, and almost all of them lost money for the company. And he was getting more and more disillusioned with the people he was producing. He loved Beverly Martyn’s work, but had little time for her abusive husband John, who was dominating her recording and life more and more and would soon become a solo artist while making her stay at home (and stealing her ideas without giving her songwriting credit). The Incredible String Band were great, but they had recently converted to Scientology, which Boyd found annoying, and while he was working with all sorts of exciting artists like Vashti Bunyan and Nico, he was finding himself less and less important to the artists he mentored. Fairport Convention were a good example of this. After Denny and Hutchings had left the group, they’d decided to carry on as an electric folk group, performing an equal mix of originals by the Swarbrick and Thompson songwriting team and arrangements of traditional songs. The group were now far enough away from the “British Jefferson Airplane” label that they decided they didn’t need a female vocalist — and more realistically, while they’d been able to replace Judy Dyble, nobody was going to replace Sandy Denny. Though it’s rather surprising when one considers Thompson’s subsequent career that nobody seems to have thought of bringing in Denny’s friend Linda Peters, who was dating Joe Boyd at the time (as Denny had been before she met Lucas) as Denny’s replacement. Instead, they decided that Swarbrick and Thompson were going to share the vocals between them. They did, though, need a bass player to replace Hutchings. Swarbrick wanted to bring in Dave Pegg, with whom he had played in the Ian Campbell Folk Group, but the other band members initially thought the idea was a bad one. At the time, while they respected Swarbrick as a musician, they didn’t think he fully understood rock and roll yet, and they thought the idea of getting in a folkie who had played double bass rather than an electric rock bassist ridiculous. But they auditioned him to mollify Swarbrick, and found that he was exactly what they needed. As Joe Boyd later said “All those bass lines were great, Ashley invented them all, but he never could play them that well. He thought of them, but he was technically not a terrific bass player. He was a very inventive, melodic, bass player, but not a very powerful one technically. But having had the part explained to him once, Pegg was playing it better than Ashley had ever played it… In some rock bands, I think, ultimately, the bands that sound great, you can generally trace it to the bass player… it was at that point they became a great band, when they had Pegg.” The new lineup of Fairport decided to move in together, and found a former pub called the Angel, into which all the band members moved, along with their partners and children (Thompson was the only one who was single at this point) and their roadies. The group lived together quite happily, and one gets the impression that this was the period when they were most comfortable with each other, even though by this point they were a disparate group with disparate tastes, in music as in everything else. Several people have said that the only music all the band members could agree they liked at this point was the first two albums by The Band. With the departure of Hutchings from the band, Swarbrick and Thompson, as the strongest personalities and soloists, became in effect the joint leaders of the group, and they became collaborators as songwriters, trying to write new songs that were inspired by traditional music. Thompson described the process as “let’s take one line of this reel and slow it down and move it up a minor third and see what that does to it; let’s take one line of this ballad and make a whole song out of it. Chopping up the tradition to find new things to do… like a collage.” Generally speaking, Swarbrick and Thompson would sit by the fire and Swarbrick would play a melody he’d been working on, the two would work on it for a while, and Thompson would then go away and write the lyrics. This is how the two came up with songs like the nine-minute “Sloth”, a highlight of the next album, Full House, and one that would remain in Fairport’s live set for much of their career: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Sloth”] “Sloth” was titled that way because Thompson and Swarbrick were working on two tunes, a slow one and a fast one, and they jokingly named them “Sloth” and “Fasth”, but the latter got renamed to “Walk Awhile”, while “Sloth” kept its working title. But by this point, Boyd and Thompson were having a lot of conflict in the studio. Boyd was never the most technical of producers — he was one of those producers whose job is to gently guide the artists in the studio and create a space for the music to flourish, rather than the Joe Meek type with an intimate technical knowledge of the studio — and as the artists he was working with gained confidence in their own work they felt they had less and less need of him. During the making of the Full House album, Thompson and Boyd, according to Boyd, clashed on everything — every time Boyd thought Thompson had done a good solo, Thompson would say to erase it and let him have another go, while every time Boyd thought Thompson could do better, Thompson would say that was the take to keep. One of their biggest clashes was over Thompson’s song “Poor Will and the Jolly Hangman”, which was originally intended for release on the album, and is included in current reissues of it: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Poor Will and the Jolly Hangman”] Thompson had written that song inspired by what he thought was the unjust treatment of Alex Bramham, the driver in Fairport’s fatal car crash, by the courts — Bramham had been given a prison sentence of a few months for dangerous driving, while the group members thought he had not been at fault. Boyd thought it was one of the best things recorded for the album, but Thompson wasn’t happy with his vocal — there was one note at the top of the melody that he couldn’t quite hit — and insisted it be kept off the record, even though that meant it would be a shorter album than normal. He did this at such a late stage that early copies of the album actually had the title printed on the sleeve, but then blacked out. He now says in his autobiography “I could have persevered, double-tracked the voice, warmed up for longer – anything. It was a good track, and the record was lacking without it. When the album was re-released, the track was restored with a more confident vocal, and it has stayed there ever since.” During the sessions for Full House the group also recorded one non-album single, Thompson and Swarbrick’s “Now Be Thankful”: [Excerpt, Fairport Convention, “Now Be Thankful”] The B-side to that was a medley of two traditional tunes plus a Swarbrick original, but was given the deliberately ridiculous title “Sir B. McKenzie’s Daughter’s Lament For The 77th Mounted Lancers Retreat From The Straits Of Loch Knombe, In The Year Of Our Lord 1727, On The Occasion Of The Announcement Of Her Marriage To The Laird Of Kinleakie”: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Sir B. McKenzie’s Daughter’s Lament For The 77th Mounted Lancers Retreat From The Straits Of Loch Knombe, In The Year Of Our Lord 1727, On The Occasion Of The Announcement Of Her Marriage To The Laird Of Kinleakie”] The B. McKenzie in the title was a reference to the comic-strip character Barry McKenzie, a stereotype drunk Australian created for Private Eye magazine by the comedian Barry Humphries (later to become better known for his Dame Edna Everage character) but the title was chosen for one reason only — to get into the Guinness Book of Records for the song with the longest title. Which they did, though they were later displaced by the industrial band Test Dept, and their song “Long Live British Democracy Which Flourishes and Is Constantly Perfected Under the Immaculate Guidance of the Great, Honourable, Generous and Correct Margaret Hilda Thatcher. She Is the Blue Sky in the Hearts of All Nations. Our People Pay Homage and Bow in Deep Respect and Gratitude to Her. The Milk of Human Kindness”. Full House got excellent reviews in the music press, with Rolling Stone saying “The music shows that England has finally gotten her own equivalent to The Band… By calling Fairport an English equivalent of the Band, I meant that they have soaked up enough of the tradition of their countryfolk that it begins to show all over, while they maintain their roots in rock.” Off the back of this, the group went on their first US tour, culminating in a series of shows at the Troubadour in LA, on the same bill as Rick Nelson, which were recorded and later released as a live album: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Sloth (live)”] The Troubadour was one of the hippest venues at the time, and over their residency there the group got seen by many celebrities, some of whom joined them on stage. The first was Linda Ronstadt, who initially demurred, saying she didn’t know any of their songs. On being told they knew all of hers, she joined in with a rendition of “Silver Threads and Golden Needles”. Thompson was later asked to join Ronstadt’s backing band, who would go on to become the Eagles, but he said later of this offer “I would have hated it. I’d have hated being on the road with four or five miserable Americans — they always seem miserable. And if you see them now, they still look miserable on stage — like they don’t want to be there and they don’t like each other.” The group were also joined on stage at the Troubadour on one memorable night by some former bandmates of Pegg’s. Before joining the Ian Campbell Folk Group, Pegg had played around the Birmingham beat scene, and had been in bands with John Bonham and Robert Plant, who turned up to the Troubadour with their Led Zeppelin bandmate Jimmy Page (reports differ on whether the fourth member of Zeppelin, John Paul Jones, also came along). They all got up on stage together and jammed on songs like “Hey Joe”, “Louie Louie”, and various old Elvis tunes. The show was recorded, and the tapes are apparently still in the possession of Joe Boyd, who has said he refuses to release them in case he is murdered by the ghost of Peter Grant. According to Thompson, that night ended in a three-way drinking contest between Pegg, Bonham, and Janis Joplin, and it’s testament to how strong the drinking culture is around Fairport and the British folk scene in general that Pegg outdrank both of them. According to Thompson, Bonham was found naked by a swimming pool two days later, having missed two gigs. For all their hard rock image, Led Zeppelin were admirers of a lot of the British folk and folk-rock scene, and a few months later Sandy Denny would become the only outside vocalist ever to appear on a Led Zeppelin record when she duetted with Plant on “The Battle of Evermore” on the group’s fourth album: [Excerpt: Led Zeppelin, “The Battle of Evermore”] Denny would never actually get paid for her appearance on one of the best-selling albums of all time. That was, incidentally, not the only session that Denny was involved in around this time — she also sang on the soundtrack to a soft porn film titled Swedish Fly Girls, whose soundtrack was produced by Manfred Mann: [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “What Will I Do With Tomorrow?”] Shortly after Fairport’s trip to America, Joe Boyd decided he was giving up on Witchseason. The company was now losing money, and he was finding himself having to produce work for more and more acts as the various bands fissioned. The only ones he really cared about were Richard Thompson, who he was finding it more and more difficult to work with, Nick Drake, who wanted to do his next album with just an acoustic guitar anyway, Sandy Denny, who he felt was wasting her talents in Fotheringay, and Mike Heron of the Incredible String Band, who was more distant since his conversion to Scientology. Boyd did make some attempts to keep the company going. On a trip to Sweden, he negotiated an agreement with the manager and publisher of a Swedish band whose songs he’d found intriguing, the Hep Stars. Boyd was going to publish their songs in the UK, and in return that publisher, Stig Anderson, would get the rights to Witchseason’s catalogue in Scandinavia — a straight swap, with no money changing hands. But before Boyd could get round to signing the paperwork, he got a better offer from Mo Ostin of Warners — Ostin wanted Boyd to come over to LA and head up Warners’ new film music department. Boyd sold Witchseason to Island Records and moved to LA with his fiancee Linda Peters, spending the next few years working on music for films like Deliverance and A Clockwork Orange, as well as making his own documentary about Jimi Hendrix, and thus missed out on getting the UK publishing rights for ABBA, and all the income that would have brought him, for no money. And it was that decision that led to the breakup of Fotheringay. Just before Christmas 1970, Fotheringay were having a difficult session, recording the track “John the Gun”: [Excerpt: Fotheringay, “John the Gun”] Boyd got frustrated and kicked everyone out of the session, and went for a meal and several drinks with Denny. He kept insisting that she should dump the band and just go solo, and then something happened that the two of them would always describe differently. She asked him if he would continue to produce her records if she went solo, and he said he would. According to Boyd’s recollection of the events, he meant that he would fly back from California at some point to produce her records. According to Denny, he told her that if she went solo he would stay in Britain and not take the job in LA. This miscommunication was only discovered after Denny told the rest of Fotheringay after the Christmas break that she was splitting the band. Jerry Donahue has described that as the worst moment of his life, and Denny felt very guilty about breaking up a band with some of her closest friends in — and then when Boyd went over to the US anyway she felt a profound betrayal. Two days before Fotheringay’s final concert, in January 1971, Sandy Denny signed a solo deal with Island records, but her first solo album would not end up produced by Joe Boyd. Instead, The North Star Grassman and the Ravens was co-produced by Denny, John Wood — the engineer who had worked with Boyd on pretty much everything he’d produced, and Richard Thompson, who had just quit Fairport Convention, though he continued living with them at the Angel, at least until a truck crashed into the building in February 1971, destroying its entire front wall and forcing them to relocate. The songs chosen for The North Star Grassman and the Ravens reflected the kind of choices Denny would make on her future albums, and her eclectic taste in music. There was, of course, the obligatory Dylan cover, and the traditional folk ballad “Blackwaterside”, but there was also a cover version of Brenda Lee’s “Let’s Jump the Broomstick”: [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “Let’s Jump the Broomstick”] Most of the album, though, was made up of originals about various people in Denny’s life, like “Next Time Around”, about her ex-boyfriend Jackson C Frank: [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “Next Time Around”] The album made the top forty in the UK — Denny’s only solo album to do so — and led to her once again winning the “best female singer” award in Melody Maker’s readers’ poll that year — the male singer award was won by Rod Stewart. Both Stewart and Denny appeared the next year on the London Symphony Orchestra’s all-star version of The Who’s Tommy, which had originally been intended as a vehicle for Stewart before Roger Daltrey got involved. Stewart’s role was reduced to a single song, “Pinball Wizard”, while Denny sang on “It’s a Boy”: [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “It’s a Boy”] While Fotheringay had split up, all the band members play on The North Star Grassman and the Ravens. Guitarists Donahue and Lucas only play on a couple of the tracks, with Richard Thompson playing most of the guitar on the record. But Fotheringay’s rhythm section of Pat Donaldson and Gerry Conway play on almost every track. Another musician on the album, Ian Whiteman, would possibly have a profound effect on the future direction of Richard Thompson’s career and life. Whiteman was the former keyboard player for the mod band The Action, having joined them just before they became the blues-rock band Mighty Baby. But Mighty Baby had split up when all of the band except the lead singer had converted to Islam. Richard Thompson was on his own spiritual journey at this point, and became a Sufi – the same branch of Islam as Whiteman – soon after the session, though Thompson has said that his conversion was independent of Whiteman’s. The two did become very close and work together a lot in the mid-seventies though. Thompson had supposedly left Fairport because he was writing material that wasn’t suited to the band, but he spent more than a year after quitting the group working on sessions rather than doing anything with his own material, and these sessions tended to involve the same core group of musicians. One of the more unusual was a folk-rock supergroup called The Bunch, put together by Trevor Lucas. Richard Branson had recently bought a recording studio, and wanted a band to test it out before opening it up for commercial customers, so with this free studio time Lucas decided to record a set of fifties rock and roll covers. He gathered together Thompson, Denny, Whiteman, Ashley Hutchings, Dave Mattacks, Pat Donaldson, Gerry Conway, pianist Tony Cox, the horn section that would later form the core of the Average White Band, and Linda Peters, who had now split up with Joe Boyd and returned to the UK, and who had started dating Thompson. They recorded an album of covers of songs by Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, Johnny Otis and others: [Excerpt: The Bunch, “Willie and the Hand Jive”] The early seventies was a hugely productive time for this group of musicians, as they all continued playing on each other’s projects. One notable album was No Roses by Shirley Collins, which featured Thompson, Mattacks, Whiteman, Simon Nicol, Lal and Mike Waterson, and Ashley Hutchings, who was at that point married to Collins, as well as some more unusual musicians like the free jazz saxophonist Lol Coxhill: [Excerpt: Shirley Collins and the Albion Country Band, “Claudy Banks”] Collins was at the time the most respected female singer in British traditional music, and already had a substantial career including a series of important records made with her sister Dolly, work with guitarists like Davey Graham, and time spent in the 1950s collecting folk songs in the Southern US with her then partner Alan Lomax – according to Collins she did much of the actual work, but Lomax only mentioned her in a single sentence in his book on this work. Some of the same group of musicians went on to work on an album of traditional Morris dancing tunes, titled Morris On, credited to “Ashley Hutchings, Richard Thompson, Dave Mattacks, John Kirkpatrick and Barry Dransfield”, with Collins singing lead on two tracks: [Excerpt: Ashley Hutchings, Richard Thompson, Dave Mattacks, John Kirkpatrick and Barry Dransfield with Shirley Collins, “The Willow Tree”] Thompson thought that that album was the best of the various side projects he was involved in at the time, comparing it favourably to Rock On, which he thought was rather slight, saying later “Conceptually, Fairport, Ashley and myself and Sandy were developing a more fragile style of music that nobody else was particularly interested in, a British Folk Rock idea that had a logical development to it, although we all presented it our own way. Morris On was rather more true to what we were doing. Rock On was rather a retro step. I'm not sure it was lasting enough as a record but Sandy did sing really well on the Buddy Holly songs.” Hutchings used the musicians on No Roses and Morris On as the basis for his band the Albion Band, which continues to this day. Simon Nicol and Dave Mattacks both quit Fairport to join the Albion Band, though Mattacks soon returned. Nicol would not return to Fairport for several years, though, and for a long period in the mid-seventies Fairport Convention had no original members. Unfortunately, while Collins was involved in the Albion Band early on, she and Hutchings ended up divorcing, and the stress from the divorce led to Collins developing spasmodic dysphonia, a stress-related illness which makes it impossible for the sufferer to sing. She did eventually regain her vocal ability, but between 1978 and 2016 she was unable to perform at all, and lost decades of her career. Richard Thompson occasionally performed with the Albion Band early on, but he was getting stretched a little thin with all these sessions. Linda Peters said later of him “When I came back from America, he was working in Sandy’s band, and doing sessions by the score. Always with Pat Donaldson and Dave Mattacks. Richard would turn up with his guitar, one day he went along to do a session with one of those folkie lady singers — and there were Pat and DM. They all cracked. Richard smashed his amp and said “Right! No more sessions!” In 1972 he got round to releasing his first solo album, Henry the Human Fly, which featured guest appearances by Linda Peters and Sandy Denny among others: [Excerpt: Richard Thompson, “The Angels Took My Racehorse Away”] Unfortunately, while that album has later become regarded as one of the classics of its genre, at the time it was absolutely slated by the music press. The review in Melody Maker, for example, read in part “Some of Richard Thompson’s ideas sound great – which is really the saving grace of this album, because most of the music doesn’t. The tragedy is that Thompson’s “British rock music” is such an unconvincing concoction… Even the songs that do integrate rock and traditional styles of electric guitar rhythms and accordion and fiddle decoration – and also include explicit, meaningful lyrics are marred by bottle-up vocals, uninspiring guitar phrases and a general lack of conviction in performance.” Henry the Human Fly was released in the US by Warners, who had a reciprocal licensing deal with Island (and for whom Joe Boyd was working at the time, which may have had something to do with that) but according to Thompson it became the lowest-selling record that Warners ever put out (though I’ve also seen that claim made about Van Dyke Parks’ Song Cycle, another album that has later been rediscovered). Thompson was hugely depressed by this reaction, and blamed his own singing. Happily, though, by this point he and Linda had become a couple — they would marry in 1972 — and they started playing folk clubs as a duo, or sometimes in a trio with Simon Nicol. Thompson was also playing with Sandy Denny’s backing band at this point, and played on every track on her second solo album, Sandy. This album was meant to be her big commercial breakthrough, with a glamorous cover photo by David Bailey, and with a more American sound, including steel guitar by Sneaky Pete Kleinow of the Flying Burrito Brothers (whose overdubs were supervised in LA by Joe Boyd): [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “Tomorrow is a Long Time”] The album was given a big marketing push by Island, and “Listen, Listen” was made single of the week on the Radio 1 Breakfast show: [Excerpt: Sandy Denny, “Listen, Listen”] But it did even worse than the previous album, sending her into something of a depression. Linda Thompson (as the former Linda Peters now was) said of this period “After the Sandy album, it got her down that her popularity didn't suddenly increase in leaps and bounds, and that was the start of her really fretting about the way her career was going. Things only escalated after that. People like me or Martin Carthy or Norma Waterson would think, ‘What are you on about? This is folk music.'” After Sandy’s release, Denny realised she could no longer afford to tour with a band, and so went back to performing just acoustically or on piano. The only new music to be released by either of these ex-members of Fairport Convention in 1973 was, oddly, on an album by the band they were no longer members of. After Thompson had left Fairport, the group had managed to release two whole albums with the same lineup — Swarbrick, Nicol, Pegg, and Mattacks. But then Nicol and Mattacks had both quit the band to join the Albion Band with their former bandmate Ashley Hutchings, leading to a situation where the Albion Band had two original members of Fairport plus their longtime drummer while Fairport Convention itself had no original members and was down to just Swarbrick and Pegg. Needing to fulfil their contracts, they then recruited three former members of Fotheringay — Lucas on vocals and rhythm guitar, Donahue on lead guitar, and Conway on drums. Conway was only a session player at the time, and Mattacks soon returned to the band, but Lucas and Donahue became full-time members. This new lineup of Fairport Convention released two albums in 1973, widely regarded as the group’s most inconsistent records, and on the title track of the first, “Rosie”, Richard Thompson guested on guitar, with Sandy Denny and Linda Thompson on backing vocals: [Excerpt: Fairport Convention, “Rosie”] Neither Sandy Denny nor Richard Thompson released a record themselves in 1973, but in neither case was this through the artists’ choice. The record industry was changing in the early 1970s, as we’ll see in later episodes, and was less inclined to throw good money after bad in the pursuit of art. Island Records prided itself on being a home for great artists, but it was still a business, and needed to make money. We’ll talk about the OPEC oil crisis and its effect on the music industry much more when the podcast gets to 1973, but in brief, the production of oil by the US peaked in 1970 and started to decrease, leading to them importing more and more oil from the Middle East. As a result of this, oil prices rose slowly between 1971 and 1973, then very quickly towards the end of 1973 as a result of the Arab-Israeli conflict that year. As vinyl is made of oil, suddenly producing records became much more expensive, and in this period a lot of labels decided not to release already-completed albums, until what they hoped would be a brief period of shortages passed. Both Denny and Thompson recorded albums at this point that got put to one side by Island. In the case of Thompson, it was the first album by Richard and Linda as a duo, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight: [Excerpt: Richard and Linda Thompson, “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight”] Today, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight is widely regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, and as one of the two masterpieces that bookended Richard and Linda’s career as a duo and their marriage. But when they recorded the album, full of Richard’s dark songs, it was the opposite of commercial. Even a song that’s more or less a boy-girl song, like “Has He Got a Friend for Me?” has lyrics like “He wouldn’t notice me passing by/I could be in the gutter, or dangling down from a tree” [Excerpt: Richard and Linda Thompson, “Has He got a Friend For Me?”] While something like “The Calvary Cross” is oblique and haunted, and seems to cast a pall over the entire album: [Excerpt: Richard and Linda Thompson, “The Calvary Cross”] The album itself had been cheap to make — it had been recorded in only a week, with Thompson bringing in musicians he knew well and had worked with a lot previously to cut the tracks as-live in only a handful of takes — but Island didn’t think it was worth releasing. The record stayed on the shelf for nearly a year after recording, until Island got a new head of A&R, Richard Williams. Williams said of the album’s release “Muff Winwood had been doing A&R, but he was more interested in production… I had a conversation with Muff as soon as I got there, and he said there are a few hangovers, some outstanding problems. And one of them was Richard Thompson. He said there’s this album we gave him the money to make — which was I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight — and nobody’s very interested in it. Henry the Human Fly had been a bit of a commercial disappointment, and although Island was altruistic and independent and known for only recording good stuff, success was important… Either a record had to do well or somebody had to believe in it a lot. And it seemed as if neither of those things were true at that point of Richard.” Williams, though, was hugely impressed when he listened to the album. He compared Richard Thompson’s guitar playing to John Coltrane’s sax, and called Thompson “the folk poet of the rainy streets”, but also said “Linda brightened it, made it more commercial. and I thought that “Bright Lights” itself seemed a really commercial song.” The rest of the management at Island got caught up in Williams’ enthusiasm, and even decided to release the title track as a single: [Excerpt: Richard and Linda Thompson, “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight”] Neither single nor album charted — indeed it would not be until 1991 that Richard Thompson would make a record that made the top forty in the UK — but the album got enough critical respect that Richard and Linda released two albums the year after. The first of these, Hokey Pokey, is a much more upbeat record than their previous one — Richard Thompson has called it “quite a music-hall influenced record” and cited the influence of George Formby and Harry Lauder. For once, the claim of music hall influence is audible in the music. Usually when a British musician is claimed to have a music ha

No tot el pop

Richard started as guitarist in the folk-rock staple Fairport Convention in 1967 but left in 1970 after five albums. He then recorded his debut solo album, six as Richard and Linda Thompson, and has since recorded 20 more solo albums of lyrically inventive, stylistically varied tunes that nearly always feature very skilled guitar work. We discuss "Freeze," the first single from his new album Ship to Shore, "The Ghost of You Walks" from You? Me? Us? (1996), and "Don't Take It Lying Down" from Still/Variations EP (2015). End song: "When I Get to the Border" by Richard and Linda Thompson from I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight (1974). Intro: "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" from Rumor and Sigh (1991). More at richardthompson-music.com. Hear more Nakedly Examined Music. Support us on Patreon.

Pop Art Painter Jamie Roxx (www.JamieRoxx.us) welcomes David Lancaster, Filmmaker (Speed Is Expensive: Philip Vincent and the Million Dollar Motorcycle; Doc, History) to the Show!  (Click to go there) ● WEB: speedisexpensive.com ● IMDB: www.imdb.com/title/tt21430266 ● AZ (preorder): www.amazon.com/Speed-Expensive-Vincent-Million-Motorcycle/dp/B0C9TG4NTK ● FB: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064669810911 ● IG: @speed_is_expensive ● X: @DavidCLancaster When the hammer came down on a Vincent Black Lightning motorbike at a Bonhams auction in 2018, an Australian collector paid $1.2 million to own the machine – making it the most expensive motorcycle ever sold. And now an award-winning documentary, narrated by Ewan McGregor, tells the inside story of the motorcycle maverick behind the bikes, designer Philip Vincent. Vincent motorcycles set more records during the 1940s and 50s than any other manufacturer.The bikes were years ahead of their time, and Philip Vincent pioneered what is now known as ‘guerrilla marketing' – sponsoring LA racers, in secret, to compete in illegal back-street duels to promote his motorcycles.   Owners include Brad Pitt and Ryan Reynolds. ● Media Inquiries: October Coast PR www.octobercoastpr.com

Join us for a Celt n A Twist road trip. The ride - a Vincent Black Lightning 1952, a burn down an Unapproved Road with Lunasa, a cruise around Stanley Park with Aoife O'Donovan, we even take a spin on a mechanical bull with Gaelic Storm. Hold onto your hat. Dropkick Murphys aren't leaving without it. For 20 years you got yer Celt In A Twist! Ewan Robertson - Vincent Black Lightning Yoko Pwno - The Old Lightbulb INST Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy - The Case Of The Mysterious Squabby Quash INST CANCON The Mahones - When Ye Go Away CANCON The Rumjacks - Rhythm Of Her Name Dropkick Murphys - I Had A Hat Talisk - Storm INST Aoife O'Donovan - Stanley Park La Bastringue - L Grande Gigue Simple INST Lunasa - Unapproved Road INST Kate Rusby - I Wish Celtic Kitchen Party - Big Break CANCON Gaelic Storm - The Mechanical Bull INST Manran - Tilldh Mi Shooglenifty - The Eccentric INST 59:34

SUMMARY:Our guest is Richard Thompson, a  three-time Grammy nominee who has earned lifetime achievement honors from the Americana Music Association and the BBC Awards. Named one of the top 20 guitarists of all time by Rolling Stone magazine, Thompson is a highly revered musician and songwriter whose music has been covered by Elvis Costello, Robert Plant, REM, Emmylou Harris, and many others. Algonquin Books recently released the paperback version of Richard's memoir Beeswing: Losing My Way and Finding My Voice, 1967-1975.  PART ONE:Paul and Scott talk about which music books they love, and one that Scott really hates. PART TWO:The guys chat about their friends at Pearl Snap Studios.PART THREE:Our in-depth conversation with Richard Thompson.ABOUT RICHARD THOMPSON:Our guest on this episode of Songcraft is three-time Grammy nominee and Ivor Novello award winner Richard Thompson. Named as one of the top 20 guitarists of all time by Rolling Stone magazine, Thompson began his career as one of the architects of the British Folk Rock movement with his band Fairport Convention in the late 1960s. The 1970s and early ‘80s brought a series of critically-acclaimed duo albums by Richard and his then-wife Linda Thompson. Two of those releases—I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight and Shoot Out the Lights—were named among Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Returning to a solo career after the musical and marital partnership concluded, Thompson has released more than 20 solo studio albums and film soundtracks, and has earned lifetime achievement honors from the Americana Music Association and the BBC Awards. He was bestowed with an Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, and his song “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” was named by Time magazine on its list of the 100 Greatest Songs Since 1923.” As influential a songwriter as he is a guitarist, Richard's music has been covered by Elvis Costello, Robert Plant, Don Henley, REM, Sleater-Kenny, David Byrne, Linda Ronstadt, The Five Blind Boys of Alabama, Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, Los Lobos, The Del McCoury Band, David Gilmour, Alison Krauss, Patty Loveless, Shawn Colvin & Loudon Wainwright III, among others. Algonquin Books recently released the paperback version of Richard's memoir Beeswing: Losing My Way and Finding My Voice, 1967-1975. 

Hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot interview singer, songwriter and guitarist Richard Thompson this week. They discuss his memoir Beeswing, his time in Fairport Convention and how the iconic folk rock band stood out in a sea of blues and traditional rock bands. The hosts also review new albums by Naked Raygun and Amythyst Kiah. Take our Survey: https://bit.ly/3i4BWdinsn Join our Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/3sivr9TBecome a member on Patreon: https://bit.ly/3slWZvcSign up for our newsletter: https://bit.ly/3eEvRnGMake a donation via PayPal: https://bit.ly/3dmt9lURecord a Voice Memo: https://bit.ly/2RyD5Ah Featured Songs:Richard Thompson, "1952 Vincent Black Lightning," Rumor and Sigh, Capitol, 1991Naked Raygun, "Broken Things," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Naked Raygun, "Living in the Good Times," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Naked Raygun, "Suicide Bomb," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Naked Raygun, "Black and Grey," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Naked Raygun, "Soul Hole Baby," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Naked Raygun, "Farewell to Arms," Over The Overlords, Wax Trax, 2021Amythyst Kiah, "Fancy Drones (Fracture Me)," Wary + Strange, Rounder, 2021Amythyst Kiah, "Black Myself," Wary + Strange, Rounder, 2021Amythyst Kiah, "Ballad Lost," Wary + Strange, Rounder, 2021Amythyst Kiah, "Tender Organs," Wary + Strange, Rounder, 2021Amythyst Kiah, "Soapbox," Wary + Strange, Rounder, 2021Richard Thompson, "Beeswing," Mirror Blue, Capitol, 1994Fairport Convention, "Who Knows Where the Time Goes," Unhalfbricking, Island, 1969Fairport Convention, "Sir Patrick Spens," Liege & Lief, Island, 1969Fairport Convention, "Matty Groves," Liege & Lief, Island, 1969Fairport Convention, "Autopsy," Unhalfbricking, Island, 1969Fairport Convention, "A Sailor's Life," Unhalfbricking, Island, 1969Fairport Convention, "Crazy Man Michael," Liege & Lief, Island, 1969Richard and Linda Thompson, "Wall of Death," Shoot Out the Lights, Hannibal, 1982Richard and Linda Thompson, "Don't Renege On Our Love," Shoot Out the Lights, Hannibal, 1982Richard Thompson, "The Big Love Scene," Serpent's Tears, Beeswing, 2021Richard Thompson and Teddy Thompson, "Persuasion," Action Packed - The Best of the Capitol Years, Capitol, 2001Yola, "Stand For Myself," Stand For Myself, Easy Eye Sound, 2021

After April’s showers, we not only get May’s beautiful flowers but two of the largest Mecum auctions on the 2021 schedule, and that’s the focus of this week's On the Move. Coming up in the next couple of weeks is the 30th Annual Vintage and Antique Motorcycle Auction in Las Vegas, the world’s largest motorcycle auction, and then right behind it is Dana Mecum’s 34th Original Spring Classic this May 14-22 in Indianapolis. Before diving in, there’s other Mecum news to get to including detailing the results of the Mecum Gone Farmin’ Spring Classic auction. The event was held recently in Davenport, Iowa, with top sellers including a 1915 Wallis Cub Model D selling for $231,000 and a 1938 Minneapolis-Moline UDLX selling for $215,250. Then, it's shifting gears to the latest auto news, with the guys discussing GMC’s unveiling of the 2024 HUMMER EV SUV and the latest of the all-new Hyundai Santa Cruz pickup truck. Next is talk of a pair of refreshed affordable sports cars: the Subaru BRZ and the Toyota 86. Wrapping up, John relays an update facing the new car industry: a computer chip shortage and how that could delay vehicle delivery. Then, it’s a final thought on challenges facing the proposed electric vehicle future. In the second segment, the guys are joined in studio by Mecum Auctions Vice President of Consignments Frank Mecum. He shares his thought on the red-hot success of the collector car market and how Mecum has pressed forward to lead the charge of holding safe live events. Frank also shares his forecast of trends that will be seen in the hobby, including the continued growth of modern exotics and hypercars like the collection of modern Ford GTs crossing the block at Mecum’s Indy auction. Rounding out this week's On The Move, Matt and John are back in the saddle, suiting up for a lively conversation with Director of Mecum Auctions Motorcycle Division Greg Arnold. Greg gives the latest on how his team is gearing up for Mecum’s massive motorcycle auction, which has undergone two massive changes. Not only is there a change in venue, there’s also a new date, and Greg shares how both will contribute to the success of the event. Before signing off, Greg runs through a few of the stars of the event like a 1937 Harley-Davidson EL, a 1950 Vincent Black Lightning and a 1903 Mitchell.

Da verden myldrer med bizarre eksistenser, sære skæbner og utallige eksempler på at virkeligheden overgår fantasien, hvorfor så ikke omsætte noget af det righoldige stof til sangkunst? Det er der masser af gode eksempler på, og nogle af de bedste præsenterer Rockhistorier i denne ombæring.Historierne er lige så forskellige som de syngende, men generelt med et tragisk anslag, selvom der også er blevet fundet plads til et par med en ’happy end’. Som for eksempel Dixie Chicks’ hit fra 1999, ”Goodbye Earl”, hvor Mary Anne hjælper med at ombringe Wandas voldelige mand Earl, for efterfølgende at få ham til at forsvinde. Helt. Det kalder vi en lykkelig slutningMen ellers – fortællinger om lejesoldater, fan-stalking, teenagegraviditeter og hekseforfølgelser, om selvmord og fængselsoprør, om at stikke af med firmakassen, om onde nonner og hævnende genfærd, om at komme frem i verden via prostitution og meget andet snavs fra det kaos, vi kalder livet. Rockhistorier kan rigtig godt lide en god historie godt fortalt, så her atten udsøgte eksempler på hvordan – og hvor galt – det kan gå.The Robins: Riot in Cell Block #9 (1954)Steve Earle: Copperhead Road (1988)The Divine Comedy: Lady of a Certain Age (2006)Bobbie Gentry: Fancy (1969)Niels Skousen: Heksen (2006) OBS! Grundet programmeringsbøf skal man spille nummeret ”Slaraffenland” for at høre ”Heksen”The Replacements: The Ledge (1987)2Pac feat. Kimmy Hill: Mama's Just a Little Girl – KP’s Remix (2002)Roy Orbison: Southbound Jericho Parkway (1969)Joni Mitchell: Magdalene Laundries (1994)Richard Thompson: 1952 Vincent Black Lightning (1991)Dusty Springfield: Sandra (1978)New Order: Love Vigilantes (1985)Dixie Chicks: Goodbye Earl (1999)The Monkees: Mr. Webster (1967)Warren Zevon: Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner (1978)Eminem feat. Dido: Stan (2000)Cornelis Vreeswijk: Alices snaps (1973)The Handsome Family: After We Shot the Grizzly (2006)

On this episode of Can't Find My Way Home, I'm flying solo. With my interview being cancelled at the last minute, and still feeling in the mood for some kind of creativity, I thought I'd put out something different this week. So, what is it? Well, I'll take a look at new music from Public Enemy, Chris Stapleton, Richard Thompson, Larkin Poe, and Doves. Something new for your playlist. On the plus side, it's only about 10 minutes long. And, if you're counting, I've switched from saying 'interesting' too often, to 'fantastic'. Man, I should really put that thesaurus to better use. Enjoy! Featured artists - Public Enemy - https://bit.ly/3j8patJ Richard Thompson - https://bit.ly/2HCyjNh Richard Thompson - 1952 Vincent Black Lightning - https://bit.ly/30dfsPa Doves - Prisoners - https://bit.ly/3mQMNt7 Chris Stapleton - Cold - https://bit.ly/30cvAQV Larkin Poe - Nights in White Satin - https://bit.ly/3kRs5az You can follow Can't Find My Way Home on Anchor.fm instagram - @cant.findmywayhome On Facebook -@expatmusicpod Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2IsaIvJ Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts from… --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/craig-branch/message

Hosts Matt Avery and John Kraman are saddling up in this On The Move to focus on motorcycles. But before they get to the two-wheeled talk, there’s a bit of car news to touch on. A new Mecum Magazine has hit the digital newsstands, and the guys take time to share what they penned in the latest issue. John’s "At the Redline" column goes into the social aspect of automotive events and gatherings, as well as the special way relationships develop through a love of transportation. Meanwhile, Matt’s "Free Revs" feature spotlights a rare bird coming to the Mecum Las Vegas auction: a 2002 Year One Edition Blackbird Trans Am that is just one of eight created. Speaking of Sin City, John just returned from a trip out there, where he took part in a television taping for a special "Mecum Presents" focusing on a pair of standout Shelby vehicles. John recaps how it went, including what it was like to hear from Peter Brock, Carroll Shelby’s first employee, and Brock's memories of Shelby operations back in the day. Though, the fun didn’t stop there for John, who had the chance to visit Shelby American’s nearby headquarters and see one of its latest creations: the F150 Super Snake Sport. Top versions of the ultra-hot hauler boast 770 HP and a $93,385 price tag. Matt has truck news, too, sharing how Ford will be offering a Tremor off-road package on the Ranger pickup truck for 2021. The package costs $4,290 and brings upgrades like a lifted suspension, bigger wheels and tires, and skid plates. No adjustments are made to the powertrain, causing the guys to revisit a familiar question: will the forthcoming Bronco get bigger power in the form of a V-8? Wrapping up the car news, Matt tells of Maserati’s new MC20. The two-seat Italian exotic boasts a twin-turbo V-6, 630 HP and a claimed zero to 62 MPH time of 2.9 seconds. From there, the crew gears up for a discussion on motorcycles, with Mecum Auction’s Motorcycle Auction Manager Greg Arnold in the studio. The "Spokes Man" fills in Matt and John on how the division has grown and how things are gearing up for the 30th Annual Vintage and Antique Motorcycle Auction slated for January 26-31 in Las Vegas. Greg also takes time to shine the spotlight on one of the show's stars, a 1950 Vincent Black Lightning that is expected to bring a half-million dollars when it crosses the auction block. Wrapping up the show, it’s time for another On the Move Vehicle Profile, with Matt and John taking a close look at the first-generation Camaro produced from 1967 through 1969. The guys discuss the car’s development, the strategy employed by Chevrolet to get it out into the marketplace, some of the famous performance variants, including the legendary Z28, and various options like RPO L89 and JL8.

Welcome to the sixth in the Pledge Week series of episodes, putting up old bonus episodes posted to my Patreon in an attempt to encourage more subscriptions. If you like this, consider subscribing to the Patreon at http://patreon.com/join/andrewhickey . This one is about "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" by the Cheers, one of the first Teen Tragedy records, and Leiber and Stoller's biggest hit. Content warning -- contains mentions of deaths in accidents, and of false rape accusations. Click the cut to view a transcript of this episode: ----more----   Welcome to the latest ten-minute Patreon bonus episode of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs. In this one we're going to talk about "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" by The Cheers. This episode has some discussion of deaths in accidents, and of false rape accusations, so if that's going to be traumatic for anyone, please turn off now, or read the transcript to check if it'll be OK for you. The Cheers are not a group who usually turn up in histories of rock and roll. If they're mentioned at all by anyone, it's usually because one of the trio, Bert Convy, later went on to be a host of several syndicated game shows in the eighties and early nineties. But "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" was one of the biggest-selling singles of 1955, and the ur-example of a genre that would become hugely popular over the next decade: [Excerpt: "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots"] We've talked about Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller before in the main series, and they are going to come up a lot more, but at the time we're talking about they weren't the massive stars of rock and roll songwriting they later became. They were, rather, just one of a lot of songwriting teams who were working in blues and R&B in the mid-fifties. Normally, they worked only with black artists, but for once they were working with a white group. The Cheers were signed to Capitol Records, one of the major labels. They were a trio consisting of Bert Convy, Gill Garfield, and Sue Allan, and they were tragically uncool in the way that only white vocal groups of the early fifties could be. When they were signed to Capitol, they were assigned Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller as their producers. I've not been able to find anything out about how this came to happen -- Leiber and Stoller weren't staffers at Capitol, and they never really talked about their work with the Cheers in interviews. But their first record with the group, "Bazoom (I Need Your Lovin')" was a hit: [Excerpt: The Cheers, "Bazoom (I Need Your Lovin')"] The Cheers' sound really, really doesn't fit with the style of Leiber and Stoller's songwriting, but the power of white blandness meant that this was the first Leiber and Stoller song to hit the pop charts. Around this time, Jerry Leiber was involved in something that would traumatise him for the rest of his life. The story as Leiber told it -- and to be clear, this is *his* telling of the story, not necessarily the truth -- was that he'd got drunk, and then two attractive women had offered to have a threesome with him. He'd been keen, but then backed out as he'd pulled a muscle earlier that day. The two women, however, insisted that he should pay them two hundred dollars or they would accuse him of raping them. He didn't have two hundred dollars on him, so, very drunk and in pain, he drove them to go and meet a friend who would give him the money. They never made it to their destination. Leiber had no memory of the crash, but he and one of the women were injured, and the other woman died. Now, I don't know for sure that this experience fed into Leiber's writing process -- I've not been able to find out the dates for the car crash, or any interviews about his writing of the song -- but the second, and final, hit for the Cheers, "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" certainly seems likely to have been inspired by it, dealing as it does with an automotive crash and a loss of life: [Excerpt: The Cheers, "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots"] The main hook for the song, a teen tragedy about a young man who dies in a crash after his girlfriend tells him not to ride his motorbike, was simply that it was about a motorcycle -- there had been no hit records about motorbikes before, and this one latched on to the newfound popularity of bikes and bikers. But the song was given an unexpected, and tragic, boost in popularity when the week after it came out, James Dean, a young actor who specialised in moody, rebellious, tormented characters and appealed to almost exactly the same teenage demographic who were buying rock and roll records, died in a car crash. People started buying "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots" as a form of tribute to Dean. Meanwhile, the royalty cheques for "Bazoom" were starting to come in. Mike Stoller was astonished to get a cheque for a whole five thousand dollars -- more money than he'd ever seen in his life -- and he and his wife went on a trip to Europe for three months. While they were there, they went to see Edith Piaf in concert, and heard her perform this: [Excerpt: Edith Piaf, "L'Homme a la Moto"] It was Piaf's own version of "Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots", which had become her biggest hit. "Black Denim Trousers" had become a sensation, the first in what would become a whole new genre of records about tragic rebellious figures dying in car crashes, and you can hear its echoes in everything from "Leader of the Pack" by the Shangri-Las to "1952 Vincent Black Lightning" by Richard Thompson. It also inspired this parody record a few years later: [Excerpt: Dodie Stevens, "Pink Shoe Laces"] But Stoller, too, would be affected by tragedy. He and his wife were persuaded that on the way back they should go by sea, on a new fancy ocean liner, the Andrea Doria. While he was on the boat, Stoller was reading A Night To Remember, the bestselling book about the Titanic, as were many of the other passengers. The night before it was due to arrive in New York, the Andrea Doria collided with another liner, the Stockholm. Both ships sank, and fifty-one people died. Stoller and his wife, though, survived, and made it to New York. When they got to New York Harbor, Jerry Leiber ran up to them. He was excited that they'd survived, of course, but he was also excited about something else. "Mike, you're OK! We have a smash hit!" "You're kidding?" "Hound Dog" "Big Mama Thornton?" “No, some white kid named Elvis Presley.” For Leiber and Stoller, nothing would ever be the same again.

Welcome to the sixth in the Pledge Week series of episodes, putting up old bonus episodes posted to my Patreon in an attempt to encourage more subscriptions. If you like this, consider subscribing to the Patreon at http://patreon.com/join/andrewhickey . This one is about “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots” by the Cheers, one of the first Teen Tragedy records, and Leiber and Stoller’s biggest hit. Content warning — contains mentions of deaths in accidents, and of false rape accusations. Click the cut to view a transcript of this episode: —-more—-   Welcome to the latest ten-minute Patreon bonus episode of A History of Rock Music in Five Hundred Songs. In this one we’re going to talk about “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots” by The Cheers. This episode has some discussion of deaths in accidents, and of false rape accusations, so if that’s going to be traumatic for anyone, please turn off now, or read the transcript to check if it’ll be OK for you. The Cheers are not a group who usually turn up in histories of rock and roll. If they’re mentioned at all by anyone, it’s usually because one of the trio, Bert Convy, later went on to be a host of several syndicated game shows in the eighties and early nineties. But “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots” was one of the biggest-selling singles of 1955, and the ur-example of a genre that would become hugely popular over the next decade: [Excerpt: “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots”] We’ve talked about Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller before in the main series, and they are going to come up a lot more, but at the time we’re talking about they weren’t the massive stars of rock and roll songwriting they later became. They were, rather, just one of a lot of songwriting teams who were working in blues and R&B in the mid-fifties. Normally, they worked only with black artists, but for once they were working with a white group. The Cheers were signed to Capitol Records, one of the major labels. They were a trio consisting of Bert Convy, Gill Garfield, and Sue Allan, and they were tragically uncool in the way that only white vocal groups of the early fifties could be. When they were signed to Capitol, they were assigned Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller as their producers. I’ve not been able to find anything out about how this came to happen — Leiber and Stoller weren’t staffers at Capitol, and they never really talked about their work with the Cheers in interviews. But their first record with the group, “Bazoom (I Need Your Lovin’)” was a hit: [Excerpt: The Cheers, “Bazoom (I Need Your Lovin’)”] The Cheers’ sound really, really doesn’t fit with the style of Leiber and Stoller’s songwriting, but the power of white blandness meant that this was the first Leiber and Stoller song to hit the pop charts. Around this time, Jerry Leiber was involved in something that would traumatise him for the rest of his life. The story as Leiber told it — and to be clear, this is *his* telling of the story, not necessarily the truth — was that he’d got drunk, and then two attractive women had offered to have a threesome with him. He’d been keen, but then backed out as he’d pulled a muscle earlier that day. The two women, however, insisted that he should pay them two hundred dollars or they would accuse him of raping them. He didn’t have two hundred dollars on him, so, very drunk and in pain, he drove them to go and meet a friend who would give him the money. They never made it to their destination. Leiber had no memory of the crash, but he and one of the women were injured, and the other woman died. Now, I don’t know for sure that this experience fed into Leiber’s writing process — I’ve not been able to find out the dates for the car crash, or any interviews about his writing of the song — but the second, and final, hit for the Cheers, “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots” certainly seems likely to have been inspired by it, dealing as it does with an automotive crash and a loss of life: [Excerpt: The Cheers, “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots”] The main hook for the song, a teen tragedy about a young man who dies in a crash after his girlfriend tells him not to ride his motorbike, was simply that it was about a motorcycle — there had been no hit records about motorbikes before, and this one latched on to the newfound popularity of bikes and bikers. But the song was given an unexpected, and tragic, boost in popularity when the week after it came out, James Dean, a young actor who specialised in moody, rebellious, tormented characters and appealed to almost exactly the same teenage demographic who were buying rock and roll records, died in a car crash. People started buying “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots” as a form of tribute to Dean. Meanwhile, the royalty cheques for “Bazoom” were starting to come in. Mike Stoller was astonished to get a cheque for a whole five thousand dollars — more money than he’d ever seen in his life — and he and his wife went on a trip to Europe for three months. While they were there, they went to see Edith Piaf in concert, and heard her perform this: [Excerpt: Edith Piaf, “L’Homme a la Moto”] It was Piaf’s own version of “Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots”, which had become her biggest hit. “Black Denim Trousers” had become a sensation, the first in what would become a whole new genre of records about tragic rebellious figures dying in car crashes, and you can hear its echoes in everything from “Leader of the Pack” by the Shangri-Las to “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” by Richard Thompson. It also inspired this parody record a few years later: [Excerpt: Dodie Stevens, “Pink Shoe Laces”] But Stoller, too, would be affected by tragedy. He and his wife were persuaded that on the way back they should go by sea, on a new fancy ocean liner, the Andrea Doria. While he was on the boat, Stoller was reading A Night To Remember, the bestselling book about the Titanic, as were many of the other passengers. The night before it was due to arrive in New York, the Andrea Doria collided with another liner, the Stockholm. Both ships sank, and fifty-one people died. Stoller and his wife, though, survived, and made it to New York. When they got to New York Harbor, Jerry Leiber ran up to them. He was excited that they’d survived, of course, but he was also excited about something else. “Mike, you’re OK! We have a smash hit!” “You’re kidding?” “Hound Dog” “Big Mama Thornton?” “No, some white kid named Elvis Presley.” For Leiber and Stoller, nothing would ever be the same again.

This week Aaron and Brent talk about the music of Richard Thompson and Foy Vance. Playlist Links https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1oJI4AiPMqWjHeZJfiugFX?si=SblTRaZwTlut8767OJa80w (Spotify) https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/crossing-the-streams-volume-6/pl.u-76oNlV6u4LRWvG (Apple Music) Band Links https://www.richardthompson-music.com/ (https://www.richardthompson-music.com/) https://www.foyvance.com/ (https://www.foyvance.com/) Mentions from the Show (10:45) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUeD2botpxA (Richard Thompson Performing A Britney Spears Cover) (32:35) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0kJdrfzjAg (Richard Thompson Performing 1952 Vincent Black Lightning) (0:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-RT7vugJmo (Recording Nothing)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-RT7vugJmo ( (mini doc)) (0:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkClm70hlAo (Wild DeTour (6 part)) (0:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3ytM0PEip4 (To Memphis (mini-documentary)) (0:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koFUGgTSR_s (In Conversation with David Hood and Spooner Oldham (5 part)) (0:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzyij-rsXhw (Foy plays Cheers Theme) www.crossingthestreamspodcast.com This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Chartable - https://chartable.com/privacy

How to vote in the Celtic Top 20, plus lots of great Celtic culture through Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. Mithril, Round the House, willos', Andy Law & Friends, Outbound Traveler, Jim Sharkey, We Banjo 3, Eamonn Flynn, The Prodigals, Kyn, Hard Green, The Wild Irish Roses, Brother Sea I hope you enjoyed this week's show. If you did, please share the show with ONE friend. The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is dedicated to growing our community and helping the incredible artists who so generously share their music. If you find music you love, buy their albums, shirts, and songbooks, follow them on Spotify, see their shows, and drop them an email to let them know you heard them on the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast. Remember also to Subscribe to the Celtic Music Magazine. Every week, I'll send you a few cool bits of Celtic music news. It's a quick and easy way to plug yourself into more great Celtic culture. Plus, you'll get 34 Celtic MP3s for Free, just for signing up today. Thank you again for being a Celt of Kindness. VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20 With the new year comes a new votes in the Celtic Top 20. This is our way of finding the best songs and artists each year. Just list the show number, and the name of as many bands in the episode as you like. Your vote helps me create next year's Best Celtic music of 2019 episode.  Vote Now! THIS WEEK IN CELTIC MUSIC 0:07 - "The Trip To Skye/Brenda Stubbert's/The Hunter's Purse/Tommy Peoples" by Mithril from The Return Home 6:57 - WELCOME 7:37 - "MacLeod's Farewell" by Round the House from Safe Home 10:53 - "Pastures of Plenty" by willos' from 4th 15:25 - "An Diberdhyans / Dons Bewnans" by Andy Law & Friends from The Long and the Short of It 20:19 - "Vincent Black Lightning" by Outbound Traveler from Go On and Wander 24:52 - HOW TO VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20 27:44 - "The Old Piano" by Jim Sharkey from A Lovely Day 32:45 - "The Bunch of Green Rushes/Salt Creek" by We Banjo 3 from Gather the Good 36:48 - "Black Coddle" by Eamonn Flynn from Black Coddle 41:05 - CELTIC FEEDBACK 45:13 - "Jug of Punch" by The Prodigals from Brothers 51:16 - "Fata Morgana" by Kyn from Earendel 55:32 - "Whisky in the Jar" by Hard Green from Rare Old Mountain Dew 59:49 - "Garry Owen" by The Wild Irish Roses from Full Bloom 1:02:26 - FINAL NOTES 1:03:58 - "Curious Shore" by Brother Sea from EP The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast was produced by Marc Gunn, The Celtfather. To subscribe, go to Apple Podcasts or to our website where you can become a Patron of the Podcast for as little as $1 per episode. Promote Celtic culture through music at http://celticmusicpodcast.com/.   CELTIC PODCAST NEWS * Helping you celebrate Celtic culture through music. My name is Marc Gunn. I am a Celtic musician and podcaster. This show is dedicated to the indie Celtic musicians. I want to ask you to support these artists. Share the show with your friends. And find more episodes at celticmusicpodcast.com. You can also support this podcast on Patreon. Subscribe to the Celtic Christmas Podcast to enjoy hours of Christmas music by Celtic musicians. HOW TO VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20We are near the end of the year. That means there are just a couple more weeks left for you to vote in the Celtic Top 20. The Celtic Top 20 is a poll for you to pick the best songs of each episode of the podcast. At the end of the year, I compile the twenty most-popular songs of all episodes into one very special, extra-long episode. Your last day to vote for your favorite Celtic songs of this year is on December 18, 2019. There are many ways you can vote. I will list two below. The most-obvious way to vote is to just relax and listen to the show. Each time you come across a song or tune that blows you away, write down the show time. Then head over to the shownotes at CelticMusicPodcast.com. I list the times of each song played in the show. If you wrote down 5:56, you can find exactly what song was played at that timestamp. Just copy the band name and the show number. Go to BestCelticMusic.net/vote/ and cast your vote. You can repeat this procedure with as many tracks as you want in the show. That’s the basic way. But sometimes you want to give every song a solid chance to be heard. So now I want to share tips on how to make voting easier, using a method I use when picking my favorites. Step 1. At the top of each episode of the podcast, I list every artist in the show. Copy and paste that list into a notes program along with the show number. I use Evernote. So that’s where I paste it. Step 2. Listen to the episode. If any song or tune doesn’t impress you, look at the show time to find out the band name. Delete that band from the list. Step 3. Repeat that procedure until you’re done. Step 4. Go vote at BestCelticMusic.net/vote/. Post all of the band names that remain in your list in the voting form. Congrats you’re done! I know. I’m a bit anal about voting. But sometimes I’m impressed by multiple artists. So I want to give each a chance to be heard again. Either of these methods of voting are great with me. Ultimately, I want you to just enjoy the show. But the Celtic Top 20 is something special. This is a chance for many artists to get extra special attention. The tracks are also added to our Top Irish & Celtic Music Playlist on Spotify. It’s a big honor. But these artists need your votes to earn it. So go vote in the Celtic Top 20 today! TRAVEL WITH CELTIC INVASION VACATIONS Every year, I take a small group of Celtic music fans on the relaxing adventure of a lifetime. We don't see everything. Instead, we stay in one area. We get to know the region through it's culture, history, and legends. You can join us with an auditory and visual adventure through podcasts and videos. Join the invasion at http://celticinvasion.com/ THANK YOU PATRONS OF THE PODCAST!Your generosity funds the creation, promotion and production of the show. It allows us to attract new listeners and to help our community grow. You get weekly episodes of this podcast and you get them before regular listeners. When we hit a milestone, you get an extra-long episode. We are $26 away from a two-hour instrumental. You can pledge a dollar or more per episode and cap how much you want to spend each month over on Patreon. I want to send a huge shout out to our Celtic Legends. These amazing people pledge at least $25 per month to support Celtic culture through music. That is just incredibly kind. So I humbly thank you. Raise a glass to Shawn Cali, Hank Woodward, Annie Lorkowski, Tiffany Knight, robert michael kane, Bryan Brake, Lynda MacNeil, Kevin Long, Nancie Barnett, Miranda Nelson, Carol Baril, Scott Benson, Marianne Ludwig, Patricia Conner You can become a generous Patron of the Podcast at http://songhenge.com. Oh! And Song Hengers who pledge $5 or more per month also get an exclusive podcast where I tell you a little more about artists in the latest episode.   I WANT YOUR FEEDBACK What are you doing today while listening to the podcast? You can send a written comment along with a picture of what you're doing while listening. Email a voicemail message to celticpodcast@gmail.com Tim Meushaw emailed two years ago: "Hi, Marc, I have been a listener for a very long time, but usually when I'm listening I'm doing fairly mundane things, like cleaning or driving.  But I was on holiday on the Isle of Mull, in the Inner Hebrides, for a few days last week, and listened to episode 332 while hiking north to Ardmore Bay, outside of Tobermory.  They say that on a clear day, you can see to the Isle of Skye, which reminded me of next year's Celtic Invasion.  I can't say I actually saw Skye, but the rest of the scenery was breathtaking. To prove I was listening, I made a short video of the bay, with "Sláinte Mhaith" from that episode playing as background music.  Hope you enjoy!" Tim followed up a few days ago and reminded about this email. So let me say first I am sorry Tim that I missed your email. I haven a much better system for including your feedback into the show. And hopefully, I won't run into that problem again in the future. Thank you so much for sharing the video too. If you want to watch Tim's video. Head on over to the shownotes. Fred Gilbertson emailed some photos in July 2018: "Hi Marc, I listened to your podcast for the 1st time yesterday. I had spent some time in the morning deleting other stuff from and then adding new stuff on my iPod. I think I stumbled upon your show doing an iTunes search for Natalie MacMaster. Anyway, I loaded the podcast on and later I rode my bike. My 1st new listen was to an NPR New music podcast, and when it ended I switched to your show. I enjoyed it a lot, and I intend to listen again in the future. You read a note from the listener in Suffolk, England and told of the pictures he had attached for your viewing pleasure, and you welcomed “us” to send more. Right at that moment I happened to be at a spot that I thought you would find interesting. I was on the Colonial Parkway, near Williamsburg, VA. I stopped right where I was and took 3 pictures, rode another mile or so and took 2 more. It was a rather gloomy day, but it is always rather glorious out on this stretch of the earth. On one 1 side of the parkway where I stopped, there is a farm that’s called “Gospel Spreading Farm”, which, due to its religious identity, is the only residence and farm that remained when the land was cleared decades ago for the construction of the parkway. Same spot, looking to the southwest, you see the James River Same spot, sort of northwest in direction, more of the James as well as the southern tip of Jamestown Island, where the colonists arrived in 1607. About a mile away, the James w/ a look at the Surry Nuclear Power Station Same spot, a selfie." Brandon Ball emailed a photo in May: "Love the podcast First podcast I ever listened to, back in 2009. Keep turning them out! And please play Drunken Night in Dublin by The Mahones? Here’s what I just built while listening to the most recent podcast. Whiskey you’re the devil is playing now. It’s a box for sprouts! Thanks Marc, Great listening," Kathy Levin emailed in March 2017, “Hey Marc, Hope all is going well. You always ask what people are doing while listening to your Celtic Podcast - well I spend many days here at work (WD-40 Company) catching up on back episodes I have not listened to while working. I use this to drown out the fact I work in an area with some very noisy people. Today I am setting the mood for an Irish Rovers concert we are going to tonight. On another note:  Would you please send me the link for artists that would like to have their music on the Podcast?  I have a great guy that I met last year at an SCA event and then re-connected with last month who is interested. He is out of Canada and is also on Patreon. Thanks for the great music!"   #celticmusic #celtictop20 #irishmusic

Steve Behrens of 67 Music hosts this week's Irish & Celtic Music Podcast. Poitin, Outbound Traveler, St. James’s Gate, West of Mabou, We Banjo 3, Farsan, Katie Jane Band, Bernadette Morris, Hanneke Cassel, Molly’s Revenge, Alasdair Fraser & Tony McManus, Anton Emery, Sliotar, The Kilt Lifters, The High Kings, Jiggy I hope you enjoyed this week's show. If you did, please share the show with ONE friend. The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is dedicated to growing our community and helping the incredible artists who so generously share their music. If you find music you love, buy their albums, shirts, and songbooks, follow them on Spotify, see their shows, and drop them an email to let them know you heard them on the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast. Remember also to Subscribe to the Celtic Music Magazine. Every week, I'll send you a few cool bits of Celtic music news. It's a quick and easy way to plug yourself into more great Celtic culture. Plus, you'll get 34 Celtic MP3s for Free, just for signing up today. Thank you again for being a Celt of Kindness. VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20 With the new year comes a new votes in the Celtic Top 20. This is our way of finding the best songs and artists each year. Just list the show number, and the name of as many bands in the episode as you like. Your vote helps me create next year's Best Celtic music of 2019 episode.  Vote Now! THIS WEEK IN CELTIC MUSIC 0:07 "Tuesday From 6pm" by Poitin from Simple Pleasures 2:56 "Vincent Black Lightning" by Outbound Traveler from Go On And Wander 7:30 "Ragin’ & Rollin'" by St. James’s Gate from Happy Life 10:25 "Gordon’s Reels" by West of Mabou from West of Mabou 16:30 "Haven" by We Banjo 3 from Haven 19:58 Steve Behrens opening remarks 20:56 "Pronn an Caoran (Smash the Ember)" by Farsan from Farsan 24:16 "Paddy in the Turnpike-Hommage de Christmas Morning" by Katie Jane Band from Stanton Street Sessions 27:10 "Home Is Where The Heart Is" by Bernadette Morris from Where The Heart Is 30:03 "Passing Place-Silver Special" by Hanneke Cassel from Trip To Walden Pond 33:50 About 67 Music and Celtic Music Journal 35:21 "The Western Shore" by Molly’s Revenge from The Western Shore 41:00 "Bidh Clann Ulaidh (Men of Ulster)" by Alasdair Fraser & Tony McManus from Return to Kintail 44:50 "Ship In Full Sail-Trip To Sligo" by Anton Emery from Noone Lasses 49:09 "Tonight’s The Night" by Sliotar from Voyage 52:49 "Pour Another Round" by The Kilt Lifters from Pour Another Round 55:44 "The Auld Triangle' by The High Kings from The High Kings 58:46 Closing comments 1:00:55 "Music For A Found Harmonium" by Jiggy from Jiggy I hope you enjoyed 67 Music as guest host of this podcast. If you enjoyed this show, please visit them on their website at http://67music.net/ The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast was produced by Marc Gunn, The Celtfather. To subscribe, go to Apple Podcasts or to our website where you can become a Patron of the Podcast for as little as $1 per episode. Promote Celtic culture through music at http://celticmusicpodcast.com/.   CELTIC PODCAST NEWS * Helping you celebrate Celtic culture through music. My name is Marc Gunn. I am a Celtic musician and podcaster. This show is dedicated to the indie Celtic musicians. I want to ask you to support these artists. Share the show with your friends. And find more episodes at celticmusicpodcast.com. You can also support this podcast on Patreon. TRAVEL WITH CELTIC INVASION VACATIONS Every year, I take a small group of Celtic music fans on the relaxing adventure of a lifetime. We don't see everything. Instead, we stay in one area. We get to know the region through it's culture, history, and legends. You can join us with an auditory and visual adventure through podcasts and videos. Join the invasion at http://celticinvasion.com/ THANK YOU PATRONS OF THE PODCAST! This show exists because of the kind patronage of people like you. You can make a pledge of a dollar or more per episode and cap how much you want to spend each month. Your generosity funds the creation, promotion and production of the show. It allows us to attract new listeners and to help our community grow. And you also get episodes before regular listeners. You can become a generous Patron of the Podcast at http://patreon.com/celticpodcast. I want to thank our newest Patrons. Thank you so much for helping us celebrate Celtic culture through music.   I WANT YOUR FEEDBACK What are you doing today while listening to the podcast? You can send a written comment along with a picture of what you're doing while listening. Email a voicemail message to celticpodcast@gmail.com #celticmusicjournal #irishmusic #67music

This episode was pre-recorded for airing on KWTF Sonoma County Radio for May 29, 2018. In this episode, I pay tribute to some of the writers who passed away in 2017.Songs Played in this episode:- “Dirty Blvd.” by Lou Reed- “The Fairest of the Seasons” by Nico- “Wild Horses” by The Rolling Stones- “Easy Rider” by Janis Joplin- “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf- “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” by Richard Thompson- “Money (That’s What I Want)” by Jackie Shane- “Four Women” by Nina Simone- “She Works Hard for the Money” by Donna Summer- An excerpt from “Paddington Bear” by Stephen Fry- “Charlie Brown Theme” by the Vince Guaraldi TrioThanks for listening! p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial; min-height: 16.0px} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial; color: #323333}

This episode was pre-recorded for airing on KWTF Sonoma County Radio for May 29, 2018. In this episode, I pay tribute to some of the writers who passed away in 2017.Songs Played in this episode:- “Dirty Blvd.” by Lou Reed- “The Fairest of the Seasons” by Nico- “Wild Horses” by The Rolling Stones- “Easy Rider” by Janis Joplin- “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf- “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” by Richard Thompson- “Money (That’s What I Want)” by Jackie Shane- “Four Women” by Nina Simone- “She Works Hard for the Money” by Donna Summer- An excerpt from “Paddington Bear” by Stephen Fry- “Charlie Brown Theme” by the Vince Guaraldi TrioThanks for listening! p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial; min-height: 16.0px} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Arial; color: #323333}

War is hell. War film are sometimes also hell, but a considerably lesser hell. Let's get this straight: war = hell; war films = heck. And oh boy is Platoon one heck of a film. Oliver Stone's semi-autobiographical tale of men in Vietnam is filled with impressive actors and maybe less than impressive direction. Also the gang listens to some Fuzzy, ignore some vinegar, find out that a motorcycle is pretty cool and watch an I Love the 90s parody from the creator of Veep. Get excited, it's a short one this week!   Intro: 0:00- 2:05 Platoon: 2:05- 19:41 Fuzzy: 19:41- 24:04 Shanxi Extra Aged Vinegar:24:04-24:28 1952 Vincent Black Lightning: 24:28- 30:48 Time Trumpet: 30:48- 35:45 Outro: 35:45-42:09   --Leave your own henge ratings at TheArtImmortal.com --Be sure you leave an iTunes review so Pedro can give you a compliment on air.    Twitter iTunes YouTube   Join us next time as we discuss more random things. Until then, email or tweet us your thoughts, leave a review on iTunes and other crap every podcast asks you to do. (But we love that you do it!)    Artwork by Ray Martindale Opening tune by Adam Lord Edited by Sara Rust

This week on StoryWeb: Richard Thompson’s song “1952 Vincent Black Lightning.” For Jim, in honor of his birthday My husband, Jim, and I love this song by Richard Thompson and its signature line, “red hair and black leather, my favorite color scheme.” In fact, the first concert we saw together was Thompson playing at the Boulder Theater, and of course, I sported a black leather motorcycle jacket. When Thompson sang the song, one of his most popular, and got to this particular line, Jim called out, “Me, too!” Thank goodness, Jim is not a heckler – and he didn’t disturb the concert – but I loved it! I’m guessing many red-headed women have gone to Richard Thompson concerts in black leather jackets. Thompson’s “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” is a perfect story song. It’s short – just four stanzas – but it really tells a story and packs an emotional punch in that compact space. There are two, maybe three characters – the thief James Adie and Red Molly, of course, but James’s 1952 Vincent Black Lightning is almost a character, too. This “fine motorbike,” as Red Molly calls it, is legendary in the U.K. The Vincent motorcycle company – based in Great Britain – made motorcycles for only four years and made fewer than thirty of this particular bike in 1952. In an interview, Thompson describes the 1952 Vincent Black Lightning as “an object of myth, a rather wonderful, rare and beautiful beast.” Or as Red Molly says, “a girl could feel special on any such like.” What I (and so many others!) love about this song is that Thompson has written it to sound like an old English ballad. It is the perfect ballad. It has a limited cast of characters whom we care about almost instantly. There is an object of beauty – or more accurately, two objects of beauty: Red Molly and the 1952 Vincent Black Lightning. There’s a romance, some crime, and an untimely death. But the fun twist is that the old-sounding ballad is about a man and his motorcycle – as if even the modern world can be the stuff of ballads. Or as Thompson said in one live performance, “It’s a simple boy-meets-girl story, complicated somewhat by the presence of a motorcycle.” Thompson explains the origin of the song: When I was a kid, that was always the exotic bike, that was always the one, the one that you went “ooh, wow.” I'd always been looking for English ideas that didn't sound corny, that had some romance to them, and around which you could pin a song. And this song started with a motorcycle, it started with the Vincent. It was a good lodestone around which the song could revolve. It’s not surprising that Richard Thompson would write an old-time ballad about a motorbike. After all, as a founding member of the Fairport Convention in the 1960s, he was at the forefront of the English folk rock movement. According to one source, Thompson’s early group brought “a distinctively English identity to rock music and helped awaken much wider interest in traditional music in general.” AllMusic.com points out that in his songwriting, Thompson has “long displayed a flair for adapting the tenets of the [English folk] style to his own contemporary works.” This song, says AllMusic.com, “takes a story old as the hills (good woman falls for noble criminal) and brings it into the present day without robbing it of a bit of its emotional power – and it has a killer guitar part to boot.” American Songwriter says of the ending, “Yes it’s a cliché, but Thompson imbues their last goodbye with such genuine emotion that it transcends all the times this story has been told before.” The song, which has developed almost a cult-like following, was recorded as part of Thompson’s 1991 album, Rumor and Sigh. Time magazine included the song in its list of 100 songs since the magazine began publishing in 1923. Time says the song is “a glorious example of what one guy can accomplish with just a guitar, a voice, an imagination and a set of astonishingly nimble fingers.” The ballad, says Time, “takes you to the emotional edge of love and theft, then soars right over it.” If you want to truly geek out on this amazing song, visit Sing Out! magazine for an incredibly thorough discussion of the way the song has evolved over years of performances, both by Thompson and by other musicians who have covered the song. If you’re not familiar with Richard Thompson’s “1952 Vincent Black Lightning,” take a listen – and see if you don’t get a lump in your throat as James says goodbye to Red Molly and his fine motorbike. You can listen to the song online – but better yet, you might want to purchase Rumor and Sigh, the album on which he released “1952 Vincent Black Lightning,” as there are lots of other great songs on the album as well. And if you fall in love with Richard Thompson’s music (and really, who wouldn’t?), you might want to add RT: The Life and Music of Richard Thompson, a five-CD box set that features classic, rare, and previously unreleased Thompson recordings. And if you want to learn to play like the fleet-fingered Thompson, check out his book Richard Thompson Teaches Traditional Guitar Instrumentals: Unique Arrangements of Irish, Scottish and English Tunes. Visit thestoryweb.com/Thompson for links to all these resources and to watch Richard Thompson perform “1952 Vincent Black Lightning.”

tracklist comizio 187 in onda oggi alle 13,20; Pier Paolo Pasolini - Comizi D'Amore; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E' Illuminata; David Axelrod - The Human Abstract; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E' Illuminata; Dj Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E' Illuminata; Jack and Amanda Palmer- 1952 Vincent Black Lightning; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E' Un Paese Per Vecchi; Sohn - Dead Wrong; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E' Un Paese Per Vecchi; Kid Koala & Emiliana Torrini - Beneath The Heat; Ermanno Olmi – Il Mestiere Delle Armi; Angel Ros – Storia Di Due Guerrieri; Jean-Luc Godard – 2 o 3 cose che so di lei; Arcade Fire - We're All Leaving

tracklist comizio 187 in onda oggi alle 13,20; Pier Paolo Pasolini - Comizi D’Amore; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; David Axelrod - The Human Abstract; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; Dj Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; Jack and Amanda Palmer- 1952 Vincent Black Lightning; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E’ Un Paese Per Vecchi; Sohn - Dead Wrong; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E’ Un Paese Per Vecchi; Kid Koala & Emiliana Torrini - Beneath The Heat; Ermanno Olmi – Il Mestiere Delle Armi; Angel Ros – Storia Di Due Guerrieri; Jean-Luc Godard – 2 o 3 cose che so di lei; Arcade Fire - We're All Leaving

tracklist comizio 187 in onda oggi alle 13,20; Pier Paolo Pasolini - Comizi D’Amore; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; David Axelrod - The Human Abstract; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; Dj Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World; Liev Schreiber - Ogni Cosa E’ Illuminata; Jack and Amanda Palmer- 1952 Vincent Black Lightning; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E’ Un Paese Per Vecchi; Sohn - Dead Wrong; Joel & Ethan Coen - Non E’ Un Paese Per Vecchi; Kid Koala & Emiliana Torrini - Beneath The Heat; Ermanno Olmi – Il Mestiere Delle Armi; Angel Ros – Storia Di Due Guerrieri; Jean-Luc Godard – 2 o 3 cose che so di lei; Arcade Fire - We're All Leaving

#Octaver15 #Octaver15

PODCAST: 10 May 2015    01 - 52 Vincent Black Lightning – Robert Earl Keane – Happy Prisoner 02 - Billy O’Shea – Michael Black – Michael Black 03 - The Trooper and The Maid - The Duhks - Your Daughters and Your Sons 04 - Brendan Begley’s Polkas – Jon Sanders – Twigs Of The Neem Tree 05 - Raglan Road – Paul Carroll – The Road You Take 06 - Fir-Hammag Yioogh – Barrule – Manannan’s Cloak 07 - The Gypsies – Michele Burke – Step Into My Parlour 08 - Vlad The Inhaler – Sheelanagig – Cirque Insomnia 09 - The Lone Pilgrim – Socks In The Frying Pan – Return Of The Giant Sock Monsters From Outer Space 10 - Under The Chicken Tree – The Carolina Jug Stompers – Rooster On A Limb 11 - Murphy Can Never Go Home – Donie Carroll – Down The Slippery Gap 12 - Pig Foot Clinch – North Atlantic Trio –  Some Part Of Something 13 - God Loves A Drunk - Norma Waterson – Norma Waterson 14 - Wheel Of Fortune – Alan Taylor – Colour To The Moon 15 - Bonnie Woodall – Robyn Stapleton – Fickle Fortune 16 - Cajun Queen – Kent Duchaine and Leadbessie – Broke and Lonely Hungry and Homeless But Still Smiling  

PODCAST: 22 Feb 2015 01 – Yarmouth Town – Bellowhead – Hedonism02 – I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight – Richard Thompson – Acoustic Classics03 – Gypsy – Addison’s Uncle – I’d Like To Tell A Story04 – The Streets Of New York – The Wolftones – The Greatst Hits05 – Dashing Away – Edward II – Wicked Men06 – The One I Love Is Gone – Hazel Dickens And Alice Gerrard – Pioneering Women Of Bluegrass07 – Limbo People – Kieran Halpin – Crystal Ball Gazing08 – Little Musgrave 1 & 2 Sword In Hand – Hanz Araki and Kathryn Claire09 – Made Of Light – Kara – Waters So Deep10 – The Orchard – Sean Tyrell – The Orchard11 – 1952 Vincent Black Lightning – Del McCoury Band – Del and The Boys12 – Circle For Danny – Duncan McFarlane Band – Marked Out In Pegs13 – Barratts Privateers – The McCalmans – Peace and Plenty14 – The Heart Of The World – Iarla Ó Lionáird – Foxlight15 – Gweebarra Shore – Maggie Boyle – Gweebarra

PODCAST: 09 Nov 2014 01 - Polka Girl - The Colourblind James Experience - Hootenanny 1990 02 - Keep Your Hand On The Plough - Jimmy Aldridge And Sid Goldsmith - Let The Wind Blow High or Low 03 - The Spirit Of Mother Jones - Andy Irvine - Abocurragh 04 - The Entertainer - Ragtime Skedaddlers - Ragtime Skedaddlers 05 - Three A Penny - Charlie Dore - Milk Roulette 06 - Summat - Laura Smyth And Ted Kemp - The trooper Cut Down In His Prime - The Charcoal Black And The Bonny Grey 07 - Never Tire Of The Road - Andy Irvine - Transatlantic Session 6 Vol 1 08 - Hares On The Mountain - Johnny Kearney And Lucy Farrell - The North Farm Sessions 09 - Hare In A Hollow Hole - Betty and the Boy - The Wreckage 10 - Vincent Black Lightning - Dick Gaughan - Sail On 11 - Better Boot That Thing - The Pocket Orchestra - Boot That Thing 12 - Cumberland Gap - Bruce Molsky - If It Ain't Here When I Get Back 13 - O’Donoghues - Andy Irvine - 70th Birthday Concert 14 - A River Runs Between - The Changing Room - A River Runs Between 15 - Sittin’ On Top Of The World - Wooden Horse - This Kind Of Trouble 16 - Lass of Hexhamshire - Jez Lowe - The Ballad Beyond

John Wilson continues with the second series of Mastertapes, in which he talks to leading performers and songwriters about the album that made them or changed them. Recorded in front of a live audience at the BBC's iconic Maida Vale Studios. Each edition includes two episodes, with John initially quizzing the artist about the album in question, and then, in the B-side, the audience puts the questions. Both editions feature exclusive live performances. Programme 3, A-side. "Rumor And Sigh" - Richard Thompson Named by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the Top 20 Guitarists of all time, Richard looks back at the making of what is not just his most commercially successful album, but also one of the high points of his career. It was album that earned him a Grammy Nomination for the Best Alternative Music Album (he lost out R.E.M.) and it captures Thompson's obsession with romantic despair and the more miserable quirks of fate. And yet, like all good tragedy, it does not sound depressing - it is instead life affirming. Richard has said that the albums he considered "successful" were those where his initial concept most closely matched the finished product. By this yardstick, 'Rumor And Sigh' was one of his most successful albums, containing such tracks as "1952 Vincent Black Lightning", "God Loves A Drunk" and "Why Must I Plead". Producer: Paul Kobrak.

PODCAST: 14 Apr 2013 Sig - Doon Reel - Frankie Lane 01 - Vincent Black Lightning - Ewan Robertson02 - The Last Thing On My Mind - Tom Paxton03 - Lula, Lula, Don't You Go To Bingo - Boozoo Chavis04 - Jaybird / Cherokee Shuffle - Bill Spence05 - Saints and Sinners - Jeana Leslie and Siobhan Miller06 - Isobel - Jake Thackray07 - Blackbird Song - Rebekah Findlay08 - Bagpipe Music - Battlefield Band09 - One Hand on the Radio - Coope, Boyes and Simpson10 - The Show - Anna Corcoran11 - The Young Sailor Cut Down In His Prime - Dave Burland12 - Inisheer - Tim Edey and Brendan Power13 - The Blarney Roses / Going to the Well - Alistair Russell and Chris Parkinson14 - Sweet Nightingale - Kirsty Bromley15 - Now I’m Easy - Martyn Wyndham Reed16 - Sliding Delta - Hans Theesink Sig - Doon Reel - Frankie Lane

Hi there, Our Foot Stompin' Free Scottish music podcast this features the new release from The Chair - The Road to Hammer Junkie and we follow it with An Dealachdh (The Parting) By Calum Martin. Next up is Love at the Swimming Pool by the Nuala Kennedy band and then a kind of members of Breabach celebration! First up is Ewan Robertson (Breabach singer) singing Vincent Black Lightning from his solo album Some Kind of Certainty and the we play Some Boy John from Calum MacCrimmon's (Breabach piper) debut CD. We leave Breabach to finish the podcast with Simple Life by Skerryvore. Visit www.footstompin.com for all your Scottish music and culture needs.