False Lights – Crossing the Bar
My favourite new song of the year so far comes from the new folk-rock sextet, formed by Sam Carter and Jim Moray, whose influences range from hymns to Americana. This track pairs Tennyson’s contemplation on death with a sturdy melody by American fiddler Rani Arbo, along with brass and Latin percussion. But why is Sam Carter floating around in space in the video?
Van Morrison, Lonnie Donegan and others – Midnight Special
Van Morrison is headlining a Lead Belly festival at the Royal Albert Hall in London in June – and quite right, too. Morrison was always a great fan of the American bluesman. He recorded several of Lead Belly’s songs on his Skiffle Sessions album with Lonnie Donegan, and he, Donegan and Ronnie Wood played a special session for Newsnight in 1999 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Lead Belly’s death. Here’s Morrison with Donegan and Wood, joined by Bryan Ferry, who amazingly seems to have forgotten the words to Midnight Special.
Celina González – Santa Bárbara
The undisputed queen of Cuba’s traditional música campesina, Celina González died in Havana on 4 February. She will be remembered not just for her rousing treatments of the music of Cuba’s country regions, but also for her own songs, which often reflected her belief in Santería, the religion brought to Cuba from Africa. Santa Bárbara, her best-known song, was inspired by the life-sized statue she kept in her house as a tribute to the Catholic saint and Yoruba god Changó.
Treacherous Orchestra – Hounds
One of the most exciting bands on the vibrant Scottish folk scene, Treacherous Orchestra are an 11-piece who mix pipes and fiddles with electric guitars. They are influenced by rock as well as traditional Celtic styles. They might only play instrumental pieces, but they host a rousing party. Here they are at the BBC Radio 2 folk awards in Glasgow in 2013.
Fairport Convention with Sandy Denny – Farewell, Farewell
Mick Houghton’s impressive biography of Sandy Denny, I’ve Always Kept a Unicorn – to be published in March – starts, appropriately, with a forward by Richard Thompson, who describes Denny as “the most important singer of my generation”. Here she is singing Thompson’s exquisite song Farewell, Farewell with the Fairports. Don’t be put off by the visual montage, which mixes pictures of the group with Denny performing a different song with another band, Fotheringay.
Moulettes – Glorious Year
One of the best performances I saw last year was by this Brighton band, playing at London’s Cecil Sharp House. It was a wildly varied set that veered from elaborate prog-folk to psych-folk, with a few classical and rock influences added in, and it included this upbeat and optimistic song, Glorious Year.
Iris DeMent – Our Town
This has been one of my favourite heart-tugging, emotional country weepies ever since I first heard it, back in the 90s. DeMent is not what you’d call prolific – there was a 16-year gap before she released an album of new material in 2012 – but she is surely one of the great American songwriters. This live version includes backing vocals by Emmylou Harris and Jerry Douglas.
Ali Farka Touré – Amandrai
Ali Farka Touré died in 2006, but his influence on Malian music continues, as can be heard in the latest albums by Samba Touré or newcomers Songhoy Blues. Touré didn’t like the term “desert blues” – he once told me he played “traditional African music, and for me blues is a type of soap powder” – but he was certainly its finest exponent, not to mention Mali’s greatest guitarist. Here he is with n’goni (lute) star Bassekou Kouyate, playing at the Segou festival, in Mali, a year before his death.
Dub Colossus – Satta Massagana
Dub Colossus are back on tour, and I’m looking forward to seeing them, although there are no Ethiopian musicians in the current lineup, for economic reasons. Their emphasis is now on dub reggae and funk and includes some highly political new songs. Satta Massagana is their version of the Abyssinians’ reggae classic, and is on their Addis Through the Looking Glass album.
Sam Amidon – As I Roved Out
Sam Amidon is an intriguing performer of what he calls “reimagined folk songs”. Brought up in Vermont, he is a multi-instrumentalist, singer and arranger who can switch from a sparse, no-nonsense treatment of traditional material to bursts of unexpected experimentation. As I Roved Out is from his album Bright Sunny South.
