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Previous Appearances
- Barking Spider Promotions - February 2001 - The Gaiety Bar
- Barking Spider Promotions - February 22nd 2002 - The Gaiety Bar
Next Appearance
- Barking Spider Promotions - May 7th 2003 - The Gaiety bar
STORY:
DISCOGRAPHY:
LINE-UPS
FAIRPORT CONVENTION - NOT SO MUCH A BAND, MORE A HISTORY OF FOLK ROCK...
In 2002 Fairport Convention are celebrating their 35th anniversary with a
brand new
CD, entitled "XXXV" and a world wide tour. On February 22nd the tour comes
to
Southsea's South Parade Pier, where they appeared before a packed house
last year.
Late comers to Britain's best and most enduring folk-rock band, are often
surprised
when they delve into the back catalogue and discover that Fairport's roots
were
initially based on American folk rock. The first permanent line up (Shaun
Frater, the
original drummer, only played their first gig!) was Ian Matthews and Judy
Dyble on
vocals, Simon Nicol and Richard Thompson on guitars, Ashley Hutchings on
bass, and Martin Lamble on drums. In 1967 on their eponymous debut album,
Fairport sounded more like an Anglicised version of the Byrds, and featured
songs by American writers such as Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and Joni
Mitchell.
By the time of their second album, "What We Did On Our Holidays", Sandy
Denny
replaced Judy Dyble, and the sound of the band veered away from Stateside
influences as they found their feet. The album features a taste of what was
to come in a staggering version of the traditional ballad, "A Sailor's
Life". Starting with Sandy's distinctive vocals, the song builds into an
amazing twelve-minute epic, more rock than folk, featuring great interplay
between Richard Thompson's stunning guitar work and the violin wizardry of
special guest Dave Swarbrick. Not many people realise that Sandy was
suffering dreadfully with a streaming cold on the day "A Sailor's Life" was
recorded.
The changes of personnel continued; Ian Matthews left the band soon after
the second album was released. And then tragedy struck. Simon Nicol,
Richard Thompson, Richard's girlfiend Jeannie Franklyn, Ashley Hutchings
and Martin Lamble were on the M1 on the way home from a gig when their
roadie fell asleep at the wheel, and the van in which the band were
travelling somersaulted forty feet over an embankment. The roadie went
straight through the windscreen and broke both of his legs. Richard
Thompson suffered broken ribs and concussion, Ashley Hutchings sustained
a broken nose and cheekbone, whilst Simon Nicol, who had been asleep in the
back of the van, escaped with concussion. Jeannie Franklyn and Martin
Lamble lost their lives. Martin was still in his teens.
After the band gradually came to terms with the trsagedy, they slowly got
back together, with Dave Mattacks becoming their band's drummer. Dave
Swarbrick was
persuaded to join the band on a permanent basis. It was this line up
released and the seminal folk rock album "Liege and Lief". To say that
this album blew the folk scene away is no exaggeration; it still stands the
test of time as a true classic. Traditional songs such as "Matty Groves"
and "Tam Lin" had new life breathed into them and the "Liege & Lief "
versions have for many become the definitive interpretations.
As the sixties were ending, Ashley Hutchings left to join Steeleye Span,
and was
replaced by Dave Pegg. Sandy Denny then left to form Fotheringay, with her
husband, Trevor Lucas. "Full House" was released in 1970 - it was to be
Richard Thompson's final album with Fairport.
Now Simon Nicol was the only original member - until he also left in 1971!
Sandy
Denny returned to the group for a short while in the 1970s, and Simon Nicol
rejoined
in 1976. Sadly, in 1978 Sandy Denny died of a brain hemorrhage after
falling down a
flight of stairs.
Feeling despondent and irrelevant in the post punk seventies, in 1979 the
line up of
Nicol, Pegg, Swarbrick, and Rowland announced that Fairport Convention
would
break up after a farewell tour. The last gig was the farewell concert at
Cropredy, a
sleepy little Oxfordshire village on August 4, 1979. where many of the band
live.The
day before they had played the massive Knebworth rock festival. Fairport's
swan song album was aptly named "Farewell, Farewell", after a Richard
Thompson song from"Liege & Lief".
However, in 1980 they decided to hold a reunion concert, and the
institution now
known as the Cropredy Festival started. What originally started as a small
gathering
has now evolved into one of biggest (and probably the best) weekend folk
festivals in
Europe. The last day always features a marathon Fairport gig, often
lasting over three hours, in which many members of the previous line-ups
appear, with special guests augmenting the line up.
In 1984, Fairport's most enduring line up was formed. Simon Nicol, Dave
Pegg and
Dave Mattacks were joined by Maartin Alcock on guitar and Ric Sanders on
violin,
replacing Dave Swarbrick, whose health was ailing. The stayed together
over ten
years - no other line up had even managed to stay together two years!
Fairport Convention have become a much loved national institution. They've
now been
performing for over 34 years, as an ever evolving concept, carried on by
musicians
dedicated to the electrified British folk style that they pioneered on "
Liege and Lief".
Though members come and go, the bands that members of Fairport Convention
were also involved in are a veritable "who's who" of the folk rock
aristocracy. Amongst these are Steeleye Span, (Ashley Hutchings);
Fotheringay, (Sandy Denny, Trevor Lucas, Gerry Conway, and Jerry
Donahue), Mathews Southern Comfort (Ian Mathews),Plainsong (Ian Mathews).
he Etchingham Steam Band (Ashley Hutchings, Dave Mattacks & Simon Nicol);
The Albion Band (Ashley Hutchings, Dave Mattacks, Richard Thompson, Ric
Sanders & Simon Nicol), Sour Grapes (Richard Thompson & Simon Nicol), The
G.P.'s (Dave Pegg, Dave Mattacks, Richard Thompson), and The Dylan Project
(Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg, Gerry Conway, Ric Sanders, Chris Leslie and
Maartin Allcock). This is
by no means a definitive list - a list of Richard Thompson's sessions alone
would fill an entire issue of "Folk OnTap"!
The latest Fairport line up - which have been together sice late 1997 - is
Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg, Gerry Conway, Chris Leslie, and Ric Sanders. They
will appear at South Parade Pier, Southsea, on February 22nd, where they
are supported by Vicki Clayton. Tickets are £14.00
Tickets available from The Wedgewood Rooms Box Office, (023) 9286 3911 -
credit
card booking may be made.
Or write to:
Barking Spider Promotions,
41, Festing Grove,
Southsea,
Hants.
Cheques should be made out to BARKING SPIDER..
Please enclose a stamped addressed envelope.
STORY:
DISCOGRAPHY:
LINE-UPS
FAIRPORT CONVENTION - THE ALBUMS
- Fairport Convention (1968)
- What We Did On Our Holidays (1969)
- Unhalfbricking (1969)
- Liege and Lief (1969)
- Full House (1970)
- Angel Delight (1971)
- Babbacombe Lee (1971)
- History Of Fairport Convention (1972)
- Fairport Chronicles (1972)
- Rosie (1973)
- Nine (1973)
- A Moveable Feast - Live Convention (1974)
- Rising For The Moon (1975)
- Gottle O'Geer (1976)
- Live at the L.A. Troubadour (1977)
- The Bonny Bunch of Roses (1977)
- Tipplers Tales (1978)
- Farewell, Farewell (1979)
- Moat on the Ledge (1982)
- The Boot (1984)
- Gladys' Leap (1985)
- House Full (1986)
- Expletive Delighted! (1986)
- Heyday - BBC Radio Sessions 1968-1969 (1987)
- In Real Time - Live '87 (1987)
- The Other Boot (1987)
- Red and Gold (1988)
- The Third Leg (1988)
- House Full (1989)
- The Five Seasons (1990)
- 25th Anniversary Concert (1993)
- The Jewel in the Crown (1995)
- Old New Borrowed Blue (1996)
- Who Knows Where The Time Goes (1997)
- Close to the Wind (1998)
- The Cropredy Box (1998)
- Encore, Encore (1999)
- Cropredy '98 (1999)
- Meet on the Ledge: the Classic Years, 1967-1975 (1999)
- Kind Fortune (2000)
- The Wood And The Wire (2000)
- AT2/The Boot (2000)
STORY:
DISCOGRAPHY:
LINE-UPS
"FAIRPORT CONFUSION" - THE LINE UPS
(Including the Cropredy Reunion line ups)
- June 1, 1967
Ashley Hutchings (bass) , Ian Matthews (vocals), Richard Thompson (guitar),
Judy
Dyble (vocals/autoharp), Simon Nicol (guitar/vocal), Shaun Frater (drums).
- June 1967- Spring 1968
Martin Lamble (drums), Ashley Hutchings, Ian Matthews, Richard Thompson,
Simon Nicol., Judy Dyble.
- Spring 1968 - mid 1968
Martin Lamble, Ashley Hutchings, Ian Matthews, Richard Thompson, Simon
Nicol.
- Mid 1968 - May 1969
Sandy Denny (vocals), Martin Lamble .Ashley Hutchings, Ian Matthews,
Richard Thompson, Simon Nicol,.
- Mid 1969 - late 1969
Dave Swarbrick (fiddle/vocals), Dave Mattacks (drums), Sandy Denny, Ashley
Hutchings, Richard Thompson, Simon Nicol.
- Late 1969 - early 1971
Dave Pegg (bass/vocal), Dave Swarbrick, Dave Mattacks, Richard Thompson,
Simon Nicol.
- Early 1971 - late 1971
Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick, Dave Mattacks, Simon Nicol
- Late 1971 - early 1972
Roger Hill (guitar.vocal), Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick, Dave Mattacks.
- Early 1972 - June 1972
Tom Farnell (drums), Roger Hill, Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick
- June & July 1972
David Rea (guitar), Tom Farnell, Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick
- July 1972 - early 1974
Dave Mattacks (drums), Trevor Lucas (guitar/vocal), Jerry Donahue
(guitar), Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick.
- Early 1974 - early 1975
Sandy Denny (vocals), Dave Mattacks, Trevor Lucas, Jerry Donahue, Dave
Pegg, Dave Swarbrick.
- Early 1975
Paul Warren (drums), Sandy Denny, Trevor Lucas, Jerry Donahue, Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick.
- Early 1975- early 1976
Bruce Rowland (drums), Trevor Lucas, Jerry Donahue, Dave Pegg, Dave
Swarbrick, Sandy Denny.
- Early 1976 - mid 1976
Bob Brady (piano), Dan Ar Bras (guitar), Roger Burridge (mandolin/fiddle),
Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick.
- Mid 1976- 4 August, 1979
Simon Nicol (guitar/vocal), Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg, Dave Swarbrick.
Fairport Convention then disband, but from 1980 onwards get together in
various line ups for the annual Cropredy reunions ....
- August 30, 1980 (the first Cropredy reunion)
Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg,
with special guests:
Ralph McTell, Richard Thompson, Linda Thompson, Dave Mattacks, Robert
Jordan
- August 1981 (second reunion, Broughton Castle, Banbury)
Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg,
with special guests:
Richard Thompson Judy Dyble, Ralph McTell, Dave Mattacks
- August 1982: (Cropredy)
Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg,
with special guests:
Trevor Lucas, Jerry Donahue, Dave Mattacks, Linda Thompson, Brian Maxine, Phillipa Clare, Dan
Ar Bras, Judy Dyble.
- August 1983 (Cropredy)
Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg,
with special guests:
Cathy LeSurf, Dave Mattacks, Ashley Hutchings, Richard Thompson, Linda Thompson, Alastair
Anderson, Andy (of The Marksmen), Dave Whetstone
- August 1984 (Cropredy)
Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Ric Sanders, Cathy LeSurf, Wally Whyton, Matt Pegg, Ian & Lorna Campbell, Bob Davenport,
Adderbury Theatre Workshop, Richard Thompson.
- 1984 (first "reformed" Fairport line-up)
Ric Sanders (fiddle), Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg
- August 1985 (Cropredy)
Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Bruce Rowland, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Billy Connolly, Richard Thompson, Cathy LeSurf, Ralph McTell, Trevor Lucas
Jerry Donahue.
- 1986 - late 1996
Dave Mattacks (drums), Maartin Allcock (guitar/vocals), Ric Sanders, Simon
Nicol, Dave Pegg.
- August 1986 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maartin Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Ian Matthews, Robert Plant, Cathy LeSurf, Richard Thompson, Clive
Gregson, Christine Collister, Mike Silver, Jerry Donahue, Bill Zorn, Jon
Benns, Johnny Coppin, Gerry Conway
- August 1987 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maartin Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Richard Thompson, Dave Swarbrick, Ian Anderson, Martin Barre, Ralph
McTell, Jerry Donahue, Cathy LeSurf, June Tabor
- August 1988 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Richard Thompson, Jerry Donahue, Sheila And Sheryl Parker, Tim
German, Diz Disley
- August 1989 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with special guests:
Ian Anderson, Steve Harley, Gary Brooker, Julianne Regan, Mike Read,
Richard Thompson, Bruce Rowland, Sheila And Sheryl Parker, Chris Leslie,
Fergus Feely, Dave Swarbrick, Gerry Conway, Martin Barre, Mark Tucker, Nigel Seymour,
Tim Bricheno, Danny Thompson, Jerry Donahue.
- August 1990 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Richard Thompson, Julieanne Regan, Vikki Clayton, Ralph McTell,
Gerry
Conway, B.J. Cole, Duane Perry, Francis Dunnery with Blinder, Jerry
Donahue, Gary
Brooker, Matt Pegg
- August 1991 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Andy Fairweather-Lowe Richard Thompson, Julianne Regan, Vikki
Clayton,
Chris Leslie, Dan Ar Bras, Beryl And Roger Marriott, Anthony
Thistlethwaite,
Gerry Conway, Jerry Donahue, The Cropredy Horns.
- August 1992 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Ralph McTell, Julianne Regan, Bruce Rowland, Dave Swarbrick, Vikki
Clayton, Gerry Conway, Heather Wood, Geoff Hughes, Bryn Haworth, Richard
Thompson, Jerry Donahue, Billy Bragg, Ashley Hutchings
- August 1993 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Roy Wood, Robert Plant, Vikki Clayton, Heather Wood, Everything But
The
Girl, Matt Pegg, Jerry Donahue, Bryn Haworth, Chris Leslie, Ashley Reed,
Ian Cutler,
Tom Leary, Ben Bennion.
- August 1994 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Vikki Clayton, Chris While, Gerry Conway, Roy Harper.
- August 1995 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
The Roy Wood Big Band, Joe Brown, Jerry Donahue, Chris Leslie, Neil
Gordon, Gill And Bobbi (from Nice Girls Don't Explode), Spencer Richards,
Richard
Thompson, Tom Farnell.
- August 1996 (Cropredy)
Dave Mattacks, Maart Allcock, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Dave Swarbrick, Jerry Donahue, Allan Taylor, Sam Brown, Richard
Thompson.
- Late 1996 - late 1997
Chris Leslie, (fiddle, mandolin, vocals), Dave Mattacks, Ric Sanders, Simon
Nicol,
Dave Pegg.
- August 1997 (30 year celebration reunion, Cropredy)
Chris Leslie, Dave Mattacks, ,Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg, and
past
members Richard Thompson, Ashley Hutchings, Dave Swarbrick, Jerry Donahue,
Ralph McTell, Bruce Rowland, Maartin Allcock and Dan Ar Bras -
with special
guests:
Vikki Clayton Cathy LeSurf .
- Late 1997 - present day
Gerry Conway (drums), Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg.
- August 1998 (Cropredy)
Gerry Conway, Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Loudon Wainwright III, Pete Zorn, Tommy Connolly Dancers, Anna
Ryder,
Rabbit Bundrick, David Hughes, Jacqui McShee, Matt Pegg, Maartin Allcock,
Dave
Cousins, Chris While, P.J. Wright, Steve Gibbons.
- August 1999 (Cropredy)
Gerry Conway, Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Steve Ashley, Tom Leary, Gareth Turner, Tommy Connolly Dancers, Anna
Ryder, Jerry Donahue, Maartin Allcock, Kristina Donahue, Dave Swarbrick,
Maddy
Prior, Jacqui McShee, Richard Thompson, David Hughes, Eddi Reader.
- August 2000 (Cropredy)
Gerry Conway, Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Geoffrey Hughes, Maartin Allcock, Jerry Donahue, Kristina Donahue,
Ashley
Hutchings, Ian Matthews, Eddi Reader, Dave Swarbrick, Martin Carthy, Bob
Fox,
Roger Hodgson, Alan Simon, Alan Thomson, Steve Gibbons, Jacqui McShee,
Beryl Marriott.
- August 2001 (Cropredy)
Gerry Conway, Chris Leslie, Ric Sanders, Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg
with
special
guests:
Maartin Allcock, Vikki Clayton, Ashley Hutchings, Steve Tilston,
Anna Ryder
Chris Knibbs, Chas McDevitt, Kate Luxmoore, Chris While, Julie Matthews,
Beryl &
Roger Marriott, Dave Swarbrick, Tommy Connolly Dancers, Ian Anderson,
Geoffrey
Hughes, Martin Carthy, Norma Waterson, Jacqui McShee, David Hughes, Fraser
Nimmo, Paul Kovits, Keith Donnelly.
Researched by John Roberts, October 2001.
Additional information about Fairport Convention can be found at their web-site
www.fairportconvention.co.uk.
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