Fans Still Flock to Hear Folk Favorites Fairport Convention |
| by Tom
Lounges (Hammond Times Correspondent ) |
The article below was published in " The Hammond Times" , Northwest Indiana, USA on 27 October 2000 |
| The members of
Fairport Convention describe their traveling show as more of a gathering of
friends than a concert event. " We all just love to go out and play music for
people," violinist Ric Sanders says. " We are not big rock stars or anything
like that. For us, a Fairport Convention show is like a meeting of friends. We
go out and talk to these friends before the shows, during the breaks, and after
the shows." On the longevity of the band he has played with for 15 years, Sanders is quick to give credit to the many loyal fans who have always been there for them. " When people ask me about why we've been around all these years, they expect me to say something about the music or the band, but I don't. I always say that it is the audience that keeps us going. I have found that Fairport fans are some of most loyal, unique, and special people in the world." Fairport Convention is not a chart-topping band whose music one might hear while twirling the radio dial. Theirs is a career built not on trends, but on history and sheer talent. The band has long been one of the most respected, albeit under appreciated and overlooked, musical groups of modern times. To put the group's impact in perspective, consider Fairport Convention as the U.K. equivalent to such artists as The Kingston Trio or The Weavers. This band seeded the British folk-rock scene and forged an indelible imprint on acoustic-inspired music throughout Europe ever since its formation in 1967. Fairport Convention is back on this side of the Atlantic to support The Wood and the Wire, the group's newest disc. This latest road sojourn is an all-acoustic romp, so the group is touring without drummer Gerry Conway, who replace Dave Mattacks in 1998. Fairport's core quartet will be doing many songs off the new release, as well as plenty of old favorites when they perform their only Chicago area concert on November 1st at FitzGerald's in suburban Berwyn. Like so many of our own folk artists of the 1960's, Fairport Convention jump-started their career by covering the songs of, amongst others, Bob Dylan, along with traditional folk songs of the Isle and some self-penned material. Fairport Convention took traditional British folk songs of acoustic origins and rearranged them to fit electric instruments. The group - briefly called Tim Turner's Narration - was unstable in terms of personnel from the onset and many members have filtered through its ranks over the years, including original bassist Ashley Hutchings, guitarists Jerry Donahue and Dan Ar Braz, vocalist/guitarist Trevor Lucas, vocalist Ian Matthews, drummers Martin Lamble, Dave Mattacks, and Bruce Rowland, and the great folk fiddler, Dave Swarbrick. But when Fairport first appeared on the London pub scene, they fast became known for the soulful songs and stylish guitar playing of Richard Thompson, and the evanescent vocals of Sandy Denny, who replaced original vocalist Judy Dyble shortly after the band's first album. Though both Denny and Thompson departed the group after only a handful of releases, including the classics What We Did On Our Holidays, Unhalfbricking, Leige and Lief, and Full House, this colorful ensemble has carried on through the years with their rotating cast of players. Most music critics believe that this element of constant change is what has made Fairport Convention a lasting musical treasure. Having disbanded in 1979, Fairport Convention was re-formed in 1985 by stalwart bassist Dave Pegg (the only member once, having joined the band in 1970, never left it), guitarist, vocalist, and only remaining original member Simon Nicol, and Dave Mattacks to make their " comeback" album, Gladys' Leap. Sanders guested on the album, then joined on a permanent basis. Since then, the group has continuously toured and released albums with, of course, the inevitable member changes along the way. One of the most recent changes has been the replacement of the great multi-instrumentalist Maartin Allcock with another great multi-instrumentalist, Chris Leslie, who is regarded as one of the finest folk players in the U.K. The other notable replacement is that of Dave Mattacks by Gerry Conway, who also plays in another U.K. group, Pentangle. Reflecting on the part he has played in the legacy that is Fairport Convention, Sanders says he feels humbled. " I think about this band's tremendous past, as well as in its present," he said, " because the past is what brought us to where we are today and where we will go tomorrow." Sanders hopes that the music and name of Fairport Convention continue on for a long time to come. " Being asked to join this band and to be Dave Swarbrick's successor was quite an honor, if not a little daunting. Swarb's playing and personality helped establish the spirit of Fairport since he joined them in 1969. Being asked to join Fairport at that time was like being asked to play trumpet for Miles Davis, or something of that sort. Swarb was one of my biggest folk influences, and he has been very supportive and encouraging ever since I joined his old band. Swarb still guests with us from time to time when our paths cross, and I absolutely love playing with him. He is one of the true greats on our instrument." |
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