The careers of Loudon Wainwright III and Yusuf Islam – formerly known as Cat Stevens – will be celebrated at this year’s Radio 2 folk awards.
The lifetime achievement award-winners will also perform at the ceremony, which will take place at the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff on 22 April.
“I’ll be happy and gratified, not to mention a bit smug, to receive my award in Cardiff next month,” said the Grammy award-winning Wainwright in a statement. “Yes, it certainly has seemed like an entire lifetime has whizzed by since the mighty John Peel saturated the UK airwaves in 1969 with my first songs, spinning School Days and The Movies Are a Mother to Me late at night on BBC radio.”
Yusuf Islam spent the first part of his career recording such staples of the folk genre such as Wild World, Father and Son and Morning Has Broken as Cat Stevens. He converted to Islam in 1977, recently returned to the stage with his Peace Train – Late Again international tour, including his first US dates in 38 years.
The 2015 Radio 2 folk awards will also pay tribute to former BBC head of light entertainment, Dr Meredydd Evans, who died in February 2015 at the age of 95. Evans, a Welsh language campaigner, performer and historian of Welsh folk music, will posthumously receive the Good Tradition award for his outstanding contribution to UK folk music.
Ewan MacColl, singer, playwright, actor and political activist, will also be inducted into the Radio 2 folk award hall of fame for his role in helping to initiate the folk revival in Britain.
Full nominees for the Radio 2 folk awards
Folk singer of the year
Cara Dillon
Julie Fowlis
Nancy Kerr
Jez Lowe
Best duo
Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker
O’Hooley & Tidow
Greg Russell & Ciaran Algar
Chris While & Julie Matthews
Best group
Bellowhead
The Furrow Collective
The Gloaming
The Young ’Uns
Best album
Fair Warning – the Rails
Nothing Can Bring Back the Hour – Josienne Clarke & Ben Walker
Sweet Visitor – Nancy Kerr
The Moral of the Elephant – Martin & Eliza Carthy
Tincian – 9Bach
Horizon award
Ange Hardy
Maz O’Connor
Stick In the Wheel
The Rails
Musician of the year
Martin Green
Will Pound
Sam Sweeney
Kathryn Tickell
Best original song
Swim to the Star – Peggy Seeger/Calum MacColl (performed by Peggy Seeger)
The Necklace of Wrens – Michael Hartnett (performed by the Gloaming)
The Pitmen Poets – Jez Lowe
The Spider and the Wolf – Paul Simmonds (performed by Naomi Bedford)
Best traditional track
Bedlam – Stick in the Wheel
Handsome Molly – the Furrow Collective
Manus Mo Rùin – Cruinn
Samhradh Samhradh – the Gloaming
BBC Radio 2 young folk award
Cup O’Joe
Roseanne Reid
Talisk
Wildwood Kin
