Listen to the Folk On Foot Show: The Unthanks and more

This month’s Official Folk Albums Chart Show features an interview with Becky Unthank about the Unthanks’ new album Sorrows Away; an interview with Angeline Morrison about her album telling stories of the Black British experience; an exclusive film of the Sea Song Sessions – Jon Boden, Seth Lakeman, Ben Nicholls, Emily Portman and Jack Rutter performing on a tall ship in Fowey Harbour; plus music from Magpies, Blackbeard’s Tea Party, Man The Lifeboats, Dan Whitehouse and Sam Sweeney. There’s also news of how to be in an audience of only ten people for an exclusive Front Room Gig from Martin Simpson.

The Folk on Foot Festival of LOVE!

14:00​ Nancy Kerr and James Fagan

14:05​ Heidi Talbot

14:20​ Seth Lakeman

14:35​ Lady Nade

14:50​ Kris Drever

15:05​ O’Hooley and Tidow

15:20​ Chris Wood

15:35​ Nancy Kerr and James Fagan

15:40​ Bella Hardy

15:55​ Sam Lee

16:10​ Rachel Newton

16:30​ Eliza Carthy

16:45​ Beth Porter and the Bookshop Band

17:00​ Gwilym Bowen Rhys

17:15​ Lisa Knapp and Gerry Diver

17:30​ Martin Simpson

17:45​ Kerry Andrew/You Are Wolf

18:00​ Seckou Keita

18:15​ Peggy Seeger

18:30​ Kitty Macfarlane

18:45​ The Breath

19:00​ Steve Knightley

19:15​ Karine Polwart

19:35​ Jon Boden

19:50​ Nancy Kerr and James Fagan

Donate to support the artists and the charity Help Musicians at https://www.folkonfoot.com/festival

💿 Buy CDs at our virtual merch tent at https://www.folkonfoot.com/festival

⌚ Running order (all times GMT and approximate)

Album Review: Martin Simpson “Rooted”

Martin Simpson is our Artist of the Month, read our album review of ‘Rooted’ and watch his new video for “Trouble Brought Me Here”.

You really do get your money and time’s worth from a Martin Simpson album; there is so much variety in instruments used, musical cultures, tunes and musicians on Rooted, that it constantly surprises across thirteen tracks and fifty minutes. That said, it is clear that Martin and producer Andy Bell understand one another very well, because this is a very considerately arranged and recorded set that never feels crowded or over-loaded. Much like 2017’s Trails and Tribulations, which followed on with a fuller sound from the stripped back solo Vagrant Stanzas from 2013, Rooted takes care not to over-stuff and what we get instead are songs that celebrate music, instruments and players. In fact, Rooted feels very much like a continuation of Trail‘s journey, with Nancy Kerr prominent on the fiddle and John Smith and Andy Cutting also present, among others, but perhaps with a slightly lighter approach in parts, even when hitting on big themes.

Take ‘Born Human’, for example, written by Alaska based fisherman and conservationist David L Grimes partly in response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster. Continue reading