A quick after-work trip back up to Lexington, KY, Monday night made possible my 3rd A&M British Invasion concert stop in recent weeks. Like the Strawbs show I attended May 19, the venue was the Kentucky Theater, where the 'Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour' is taped before a live audience each Monday. Luckily I arrived a few minutes before the 7:00 p.m. starting time, paid my grand total of $5 for a ticket and found a good seat on the third row. The audience was almost a "FULL HOUSE" (title of SP 4265).
The featured act was the British folk-rock Fairport Convention, A&M label artists from 1968-73. The current five-member lineup included Founding Member Simon Nicol (guitar), Dave Pegg (bass) and Gerry Conway (drums), along with newer members Ric Sanders (violin) and Chris Leslie (playing a large Grecian mandolin called a 'mazooki').
Pegg also played bass in Jethro Tull (1982-95), and both he and Conway appear on the BROADSWORD & THE BEAST album. Conway first appeared on THE BUNCH (A&M SP 4354) with other Fairport members.
Sharing the stage with the guys was Irish Singer Effa Clancy, who is the daughter of the late Bobby Clancy of the Clancy Brothers. She was accompanied by Ted Davis of Boston on guitar.
Woodsongs Regular Michael Jonathan, self-proclaimed 'folk singer and tree hugger,' opened the program with "Mountains O'Morn" and interviewed the performers between numbers.
The remainder of the set included:
"My Love is in America" (Fairport - written by Chris Leslie)
"Woodworm Swing" (Fairport -- a folk/jazz instrumental)
"There's Hope" (Clancy)
"Sleepin' Maggie" (Clancy)
"The Happy Man" (Fairport -- Nicol & Pegg harmonizing)
"Across the Blue Mountains" (Clancy - accapella)
"Trip to Brittany" (Davis solo instrumental)
"John of Dreams" (Clancy)
"Frozen Man" (Fairport -- written by James Taylor)
Jonathan noted Fairport had recently observed their 35th anniversary and asked the band where they saw themselves in five years. Acknowledging Fairport being more successful as an influence to other musicians than commercially, Pegg replied "Still broke and doing what we love best, touring and performing." He added the nearest thing to a hit song the group had ever had was "Who Knows Where the Time Goes," written by the late Sandy Denny and covered by Judy Collins. Guitarist Richard Thompson is another well known former member.
At the end of the taping, I hung out in the theater lobby briefly, long enough to meet each band member and get a few album covers signed. Then I got back on the road quickly, enabling me to get home at a decent hour.
The Woodsongs program is run by an enthusiastic all-volunteer crew who take pride in creating a good vibe and informal, fun atmosphere. Cheap tickets and reasonable show times are an important attraction. However, future show plans include a host of other A&M alumni, including Joan Armatrading, Michael Martin Murphy, the Neville Bros. and Richard Thompson.
I hope to return for one or more of these events; and I look forward to hearing the radio broadcasts. The Woodsongs program is syndicated to 404 stations internationally and is broadcast online.
JB
The featured act was the British folk-rock Fairport Convention, A&M label artists from 1968-73. The current five-member lineup included Founding Member Simon Nicol (guitar), Dave Pegg (bass) and Gerry Conway (drums), along with newer members Ric Sanders (violin) and Chris Leslie (playing a large Grecian mandolin called a 'mazooki').
Pegg also played bass in Jethro Tull (1982-95), and both he and Conway appear on the BROADSWORD & THE BEAST album. Conway first appeared on THE BUNCH (A&M SP 4354) with other Fairport members.
Sharing the stage with the guys was Irish Singer Effa Clancy, who is the daughter of the late Bobby Clancy of the Clancy Brothers. She was accompanied by Ted Davis of Boston on guitar.
Woodsongs Regular Michael Jonathan, self-proclaimed 'folk singer and tree hugger,' opened the program with "Mountains O'Morn" and interviewed the performers between numbers.
The remainder of the set included:
"My Love is in America" (Fairport - written by Chris Leslie)
"Woodworm Swing" (Fairport -- a folk/jazz instrumental)
"There's Hope" (Clancy)
"Sleepin' Maggie" (Clancy)
"The Happy Man" (Fairport -- Nicol & Pegg harmonizing)
"Across the Blue Mountains" (Clancy - accapella)
"Trip to Brittany" (Davis solo instrumental)
"John of Dreams" (Clancy)
"Frozen Man" (Fairport -- written by James Taylor)
Jonathan noted Fairport had recently observed their 35th anniversary and asked the band where they saw themselves in five years. Acknowledging Fairport being more successful as an influence to other musicians than commercially, Pegg replied "Still broke and doing what we love best, touring and performing." He added the nearest thing to a hit song the group had ever had was "Who Knows Where the Time Goes," written by the late Sandy Denny and covered by Judy Collins. Guitarist Richard Thompson is another well known former member.
At the end of the taping, I hung out in the theater lobby briefly, long enough to meet each band member and get a few album covers signed. Then I got back on the road quickly, enabling me to get home at a decent hour.
The Woodsongs program is run by an enthusiastic all-volunteer crew who take pride in creating a good vibe and informal, fun atmosphere. Cheap tickets and reasonable show times are an important attraction. However, future show plans include a host of other A&M alumni, including Joan Armatrading, Michael Martin Murphy, the Neville Bros. and Richard Thompson.
I hope to return for one or more of these events; and I look forward to hearing the radio broadcasts. The Woodsongs program is syndicated to 404 stations internationally and is broadcast online.
JB
