FolkCast

The best in folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music from the UK and around the world. In this show: New Scottish folk music, the return of Ken Nicol, and the launch of our hunt for the most ‘Grim and Grimy’ folk songs ever! Music featured: Flash Hard by Mather & Robinson from the album “In Time” Jock Hawk’s Adventures In Glasgow by Fiona Hunter from the album “Fiona Hunter” Rum by Ross Ainsley from the album “Wide Open” The Lads Like Beer by Blazin’ Fiddles from the album “Six” Kilmartin Glen Campsite by Marit And Rona from the album “Turas” Heel And Toe by Nobodaddy from the album “Longing For Flight” The Manchester Rambler Frap by Pete Morton from the album “The Frappin’ And Ramblin’ Pete Morton” Walking In The Footsteps Of Giants by Harp And A Monkey from the album “All Life Is Here” Houses And Vineyards by Robin Mitchell from the EP “Return” Another Grey And Grim Old Grimy Day by John Tams from the album “Home” Beedle Um Bum by The Jake Leg Jug Band from the album “Cotton Mouth” To My Old Brown Earth by Pete Seeger & The Cathedral Singers from the album “Pete” See the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

This week the world lost Pete Seeger, a true giant of the folk music scene. For seven decades, Pete was at the heart of American folk music and personifies protest music. Here, as a tribute to the great man, we at FolkCast have dipped into our archive to present an edition of our long-running Story Behind The Song feature, to showcase a song that was intimately tied to Pete Seeger throughout his long career. Originally aired in November 2011, here is FolkCast’s history man, Babba, with The Story Behind “We Shall Overcome”. For regular updates from the worlds of folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music, keep focused on FolkCast - at folkcast.co.uk. Search for FolkCast on Facebook and Twitter, and check out our blog at folkcasters.blogspot.co.uk FolkCast - it’s our finger in your ear!

The best in folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music from The UK and around the world. New year, new music - plus a pause for thought about the true nature of sacrifice. The Men With Strong Arms by The Men With Strong Arms from the album “Sunshine Street” We Won’t Go Home Tonight by Leatherat from the album “Snake Eyes” Not Peace, But A Sword by Robin Mitchell from the EP “Return” A Beggin’ I Will Go by Nigel Parry from the album “Row Out To Your Ship Of Dreams” Father’s Footsteps by Luke Jackson from the album “Fumes And Faith” A Precious Place by Patsy Reid from the album “The Brightest Path” Towards The Sun by Calum Stewart & Heikki Bourgault from the album “Hunter’s Moon” Drunken Sailor by Chris Ricketts from the album “Outward Bound” The Wicker Man by Damh The Bard single release Buain Ná Rainich (Fairy Love Song) by Eddi Reader from the album “Vagabond” Hate by Ian Roland from the EP “Helicopter” Babba presents The Story Behind The Song: High Germany by Isambarde Room For Company by Brillig from the album “Comrades” Your Time Is Now by Ralf Dee from the album “Your Time Is Now” See the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

An end-of-year special: more songs by some of the artists featured on FolkCast throughout 2013 Presented and Produced by Phil Widdows Music: Marching Through The Green Grass by Lucy Ward Blackjack, Whiskey And Gin by Jenna Let’s Have A Drink by True Gents When A Knight Won His Spurs by Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker Crudetés by Blanche Rowan and Mike Gulson We Shall Wear Midnight by Steeleye Span Flash Company by The Outside Track Ford O’ Kabul River by Blackbeard’s Tea Party Morecambe Bay by Union Jill Emerald Green by Merry Hell The Captain’s Daughter by The Longest Johns The Landlord’s Daughter by Fabian Holland The Landlord’s Daughter by Magnet and Paul Giovanni Coming Up For Air by Zeptepi For Peace And For Green by Helen Dorothy Babba presents The Story Behind The Song The Boar’s Head Carol by Maddy Prior & The Carnival Band Canu Cwnsela / Pwnco by Allan Yn Y Fan Hymn For The New Year by Gavin Davenport For full details and links see the Shownotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

Music and poetry for the season of Winter, of Christmas & Yuletide. Presented by Babba - Produced by Phil Widdows - Readings by Phil Widdows Song For A New Beginning by Secret Garden, from the album Winter Poem …. with Winter Begins by Phil Widdows Winter Song by Anne Marie Almedal, from the album Memory Lane Winter Rose by Fairground Attraction, from the album The Very Best Of Fairground Attraction …. with Winter Bonus, a limerick… Cold Blow December Winds by Winter Wilson, from the album Cutting Free Wintersongs by Judy Dyble, from the album Flow And Change The Invisible Waltz by Howard Haigh, from the album Ride Forever and A Winter Snowscape by Martin Barre, from the album Stage Left …. with London Snow by Robert Bridges Bring Us In Good Ale by Maddy Prior And The Carnival Band, from the album A Christmas Caper The Company Makes The Feast by Kathryn and Bob Tickell, from the album Northumbrian Voices All In The Winter Time by Life And Times, from the album Charivari Christmas Bells by Bellowhead Gower Wassail by Blast From The Past, from the album A Victorian Christmas Wailey Wailer by Jim Causley, from the album Dumnonia The Holly & The Ivy by Kerfuffle, from the album Lighten The Dark Deck The Halls/Ding Dong by Andrews Massey Duo Wexford Carol by Gareth Davies-Jones, from the album Nine Lessons North Pole Express by Nick Lowe, from the album Quality Street I Believe In Father Christmas by Lisa Redford Canadian Christmas Song by Eric Bogle from the album The Dreamer That Sleigh by Steve Folk It’s This Time Of Year by Neils Cremer A Light Out Of The Dark by The Halstead Clan Advent Polka/Saint Nick’s Brawl by The Albion Christmas Band, from the album An Albion Christmas … with About Socks by Dr Seuss (take #61) Big Daddy C by Roy Mette We Wish You A Merry Christmas by Brian Brink, from the album Christmas In The Grove … with Another Spring by Patience Strong We Wish You A Merry Christmas by Bella Hardy, from the album Bright Morning Star For full details, see the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk Published December 11th 2013 This is a FolkCast podcast. All original content is copyright FolkCast 2013 ©

FolkCast 091 - November 2013 Delights, surprises and new releases from the worlds of folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music, plus a journey into the catastrophic past of Old London Town in The Story Behind The Song, telling the tale of The Fire Of ’66. Robbing On The Highway by James Bell Wintersmith by Steeleye Span Katie Cruel by Salt House Burnwood by Moonrakers Eyes by Elliott Morris The Heart Of It All by The Speedbumps Don’t Feel The Same by Annie Dressner Who Killed JFK? by Tommy Sands Kennedy And The Warren Commission by Bill Hicks… New Deal by Gareth Davies-Jones Alien Forces by Monster Ceilidh Band Bushes And Briars by DJ Ualdemar Babba presents The Story Behind The Song: Fire Of ’66 by Roy Mette I’m Going Now by Kevin Doherty Presented and produced by Phil Widdows For more details see the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

The FolkCast Halloween Scream 2013 The Beast In The Attic A tale of terror illustrated with music and poetry Presented and produced by Phil Widdows A Time That Never Was… by Lonesome Wyatt and the Holy Spooks Souling Song by Kristen Lawrence It’s Halloween by Laura Warfield Annabel Lee by Edgar Allen Poe Ghost by Matt Stevens Introduction To Horror, presented by Arch Oboler Watching Ghosts by Helen Dorothy Graveyard by True Gents Along Destiny Road, a poem by Dave Alton with Dreaming Of Ditches by Hermione Harvestman The Bet by Show Of Hands O! Death by Sproatly Smith The Gravedigger by Jake Thackray The “Other Dance”… from Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett, read by Babba. The Dark Morris by Steeleye Span Seven Years Old by Sedayne ”Tis Now The Very Witching Time Of The Night”, from Hamlet, read by Richard Burton The Unquiet Grave by Moonrakers The Moonwraith by Bonfire Night Halloween Radio Broadcast by Bing Crosby and Lena Home Goetia AD72 by English Heretic Samhain Eve by Dahm The Bard Death Is Just A Dream by Ken Nicol See the ShowNotes at See the ShowNotes for full details at www.folkcast.co.uk

FolkCast 090 - October 2013

FolkCast Autumn Crackler 2013: a collection of songs and quotations for the season "Summer swift becomes memory, and autumn falls to the ground in a harvest of gold leaf and ripe berries, as the year rolls around And here is the FolkCast Crackler, a harvest of verse and of song, a salute to the season's quality as the year rolls along." The Boys Of Summer by Show Of Hands The Green Man by Roy Harper “Autumn -- that season of peculiar and inexhaustible influence on the mind of taste and tenderness -- that season which has drawn from every poet worthy of being read some attempt at description, or some lines of feeling.” ― Jane Austen, Persuasion September (Alternative Version) by Nick Cook Autumn by Paolo Nutini Brambles On A Hill by Ashley Hutchings “Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.” ― George Eliot Gathering Summer In by Talis Kimberley “But then fall comes, kicking summer out on its treacherous ass as it always does one day sometime after the midpoint of September. It stays awhile like an old friend that you have missed. It settles in the way an old friend will settle into your favourite chair and take out his pipe and light it and then fill the afternoon with stories of places he has been and things he has done since last he saw you.” ― Stephen King, Salem's Lot Fire At Midnight by Jethro Tull Sparkle Eyes by Gill Sandell "Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night." — Hal Borland Half The Way by Marco Catracchia “It was one of those days you sometimes get latish in the autumn when the sun beams, the birds toot, and there is a bracing tang in the air that sends the blood beetling briskly through the veins.” ― P.G. Wodehouse Paris In Spring by Mark Handley Mist In Autumn by FolkLaw Things Behind The Sun by Luluc “Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves, We have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!” ― Humbert Wolfe Wind That Cracks The Leaves by In Gowan Ring Sycamore Tree by Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker “October proved a riot; a riot to the senses and climaxed those giddy last weeks before Halloween.” ― Keith Donohue October by Tuung “The tints of autumn: a mighty flower garden blossoming under the spell of the enchanter, frost.” ― John Greenleaf Whittier Autumn Snow by The Last Bison “Use what you have, use what the world gives you. Use the first day of fall: bright flame before winter's deadness; harvest; orange, gold, amber; cool nights and the smell of fire. Our tree-lined streets are set ablaze, our kitchens filled with the smells of nostalgia: apples bubbling into sauce, roasting squash, cinnamon, nutmeg, cider, warmth itself. The leaves as they spark into wild colour just before they die are the world's oldest performance art, and everything we see is celebrating one last violently hued hurrah before the black and white silence of winter.” ― Shauna Niequist, Bittersweet: Thoughts on Change, Grace, & Learning the Hard Way A Leaf Must Fall (intro) by Prydwyn And Kira with Quickthorn Marigold by Maddy Prior “Crying, whistling, calling, they skimmed the placid sea and left the shore. Make haste, make speed, hurry and begone; yet where, and to what purpose? The restless urge of autumn, unsatisfying, sad, had put a spell upon them and they must flock, and wheel, and cry; they must spill themselves of motion before winter came.” ― Daphne du Maurier, The Birds & Other Stories Migrating Bird by Anthony Thistlethwaite Remembrance Day by Mark Knopfler "November comes And November goes, With the last red berries And the first white snows. With night coming early, And dawn coming late, And ice in the bucket And frost by the gate. The fires burn And the kettles sing, And earth sinks to rest Until next spring." — Clyde Watson November by Steven Lindsay Strangers We Meet by The Black Feathers

It's oh so quiet as we fill this month's show with folk, singer-songwriter and roots music from the chilled end of the scale. It's all low-key, laid back, and decidedly delicious, including an exclusive live session from our special guest, Sarah McQuaid. Music featured: To Make You Stay by Tinkerscuss from the album "The Best Of Tinkerscuss" Pretty Young Things by Becky Mills from the album "Dandelion" Money And Gold by Day Of The Rabblement from the album "Night Time Rallies" Church On Sunday by Jont from the album "Hello Halifax" The FolkCast Live Session The Sun Goes On Rising by Sarah McQuaid recorded live at MVS Sound, Preston The Private Still by Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer from the album "Red House" Sly Whispers by Jenna from the album "Hitchhiker" Sportsman's Hornpipe/Banks Of The Nile by Phillip Henry And Hannah Martin from the album "Mynd" The Story Behind The Song The tale of Mary Queen of Scots is told by Babba featuring Fotheringay by Fairport Convention Shipping Song by Lisa Knapp from the album "Hidden Seam" The FolkCast Live Session The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face by Sarah McQuaid recorded live at MVS Sound, Preston The Last Place You Said Goodbye by Skylark Song Released as a double-A side single. Banks Of The Dee by Fabian Holland from the album "Fabian Holland" For full details see the Shownotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

New sounds from the worlds of folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music. Excerpts from two very different musical journeys, a version of Raggle Taggle Gypsies like you've never heard before, and some music that's so chilled out it moves at just 1mph. Music featured: The Last Pirouette by Lucy Ward from the album "Single Flame" Overcome/Override by The Freedom/Guilt Equation from the album "Breathe" Gazing At The Stars All Night by Chris Flegg from the album "Gazing At The Stars All Night" Forlorn Land by Ange Hardy from the album "Bare Foot Folk" Vagabonds And Rogues by Tess Of The Circle from the album "Thorns" You Are On Beach by One Mile An Hour from the album "One Mile An Hour" Lady Maisery by Lady Maisery from the album "Mayday" The Border by Gill Sandell from the album "Light The Boats" Bird Above Snake Below by Jet McDonald from the album "Soft Soft Soft The Sparrow Sings" Raggle Taggle Reggae by Celtic Reggae Revolution from the album "Everything Comes To Those Who Wait" Ducks On The Roof by Whalebone from the album "Runes" Afraid Of Death by Between The Wars from the album "Won't Go Quietly" The Story Behind The Song The tale of King Richard III and Henry Tudor is told by Babba featuring Richard Of York by Lord Zarquon and The Legendary Ten Seconds Head Full Of Stars by Judy Dyble from the album "Flow And Change" Mud, Blood & Beer by The Bad Shepherds from the album "Mud, Blood & Beer" For full details see the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

New sounds from the worlds of folk, folk-rock, singer-songwriter and roots music. Songs of travel, of love, of loss and of a life well lived … and if you thought you knew what bagpipes sound like we'll be changing your mind. Plus…. an exclusive interview with singer-songwriter Luke Jackson! Music featured: The Bones by Rusty Shackle from the album "The Bones" These Are The Songs by Chris Ricketts from the album "Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea" Mary Anne by The Fisherman's Friends from the album "One And All" Green Grow The Laurels by Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker from the album "Fire And Fortune" Emily by Cocos Lovers from the album "Gold Or Dust" Late Last Summer by Dick Hyman and Judy Hyman from the album "Late Last Summer" East of Woodstock, West of Vietnam by Tom Russell And The Norwegian Wind Ensemble from the album "Aztec Jazz" The Silver Spear by The Red Hot Chilli Pipers from the album "Breathe" Midnight Train/New by Man's Ruin from the album "Health And Safety" Eyes To The Sky by James Duncan MacKenzie from the album "James Duncan MacKenzie" Gimme All Your Lovin' by The Red Hot Chilli Pipers from the album "Breathe" LUKE JACKSON INTERVIEW Fumes And Faith by Luke Jackson from the EP "Live at Hitchin Folk Club 2013" Man's Best Friend by Luke Jackson from the EP "Luke Paul Jackson" We Aren't All The Same by Luke Jackson from the album "More Than Boys" Sailor's Daughter by The Jon Hart Band from the album "Level With Me"

THE PODCAST PROGRAMME FolkCast Theme Music: Fisherman's Priest by Ken Nicol Podcast presented and produced by Phil Widdows * School's Out by Alice Cooper Interview with Dave Pegg (part 1) Preview of Thursday's line-up * Peggy's Pub by Dave Pegg and PJ Wright * Festival Bell by Fairport Convention * Fantastic Day by Romeo's Daughter * List Of A Sailor by Edward II * No More Mr Nice Guy (live) by Alice Cooper Interview with David McCloud of the Clan McBastard * The Clumsy Lover Set by Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar Interview with Dave Pegg (part 2) Preview of Friday's line-up * Two Magicians by Greg Russell and Ciaran Algar * You Don't Know by Danny & The Champions Of The World * Lusty Smith by Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman * Uca's Dance by Moulettes * Island Paddy by Lunasa * Just The One by The Levellers * Dreadlock Holiday (live, acoustic) by 10CC Village Fringe Focus at the Red Lion and Brasenose Arms Babba meets Ann Voce of Fair-mobility Interview with Dave Pegg (part 3) Preview of Saturday's line-up * Albert & Ted by Fairport Convention * One Thousand Years by Richard Digance * Queen & Huntress by Mediaeval Baebes * Follow The Road by The Dunwells * Abhainn a Nathair by Peatbog Faeries * Spanish Main by Fairport Convention (live at Cropredy) Interview with Simon Nicol * Dirty Linen by Fairport Convention (live at Cropredy) * Meet On The Ledge by Fairport Convention (live at Cropredy)

A soundtrack for the season: summery songs and songs of the summer, with poetry and quotations to match. Music from Eddi Reader - The True Gents - Candidate - Co-Pilgrim - Blanche Rowan & Mike Gulston - Lola & The Bludgies - Uku The Mighty - Union Jill - Jack Harris - Alexandre Nestorov - Damh The Bard - Jon Airdrie - Mike Moerlin - Paul Mosley - Nick Drake - Mark Knopfler - Nigel Brown - Show Of Hands - Martin Francis - Folk On - Man's Ruin - Ben Estherby - Eric Pukos Poetry and quotations from: Enid Blyton - James Dent - Susan Polis Schutz - William Cullen Bryant - F. Scott Fitzgerald - William Shakespeare - Deb Caleti For full details, see the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk

The best in new releases from the worlds of Folk, Folk-Rock, Singer-Songwriter and Roots music, presented by Phil Widdows with guest Ken Nicol, freshly returned from his latest tour of Australia and New Zealand. NOTE: An Extra Large version of this show, with added chat and more music, can be found at our website: www.folkcast.co.uk * Loving The Skin You're In by Merry Hell * Fire And Fortune by Josienne Clarke and Ben Walker * Angra Mainyu by Nick Edward Harris * Australia by Men Of Folk * Don't Cry by Ann Vriend * One Step Ahead Of The Blues by Gary Hall * Download by CLive Gregson * The Retirement Song by The Longest Johns * Together We're Fine by Dougie Crosbie * Emerald Green by Merry Hell * Meet Me On The Corner by Lindisfarne * Babba presents The Story Behind The Song: She Wore A Yellow Ribbon * Alright by Men Of Folk For further details see the ShowNotes at www.folkcast.co.uk