Folk on Foot

Kerry Andrew has been described by Robert Macfarlane as “a writer and musician of frankly alarming talent”. She is a composer, novelist and vocalist who performs alt folk under the name You Are Wolf. In this episode she takes Matthew for a walk from her flat in South London, through surprisingly green parkland, to the historic Brockwell Lido where she persuades him to take a dip. Along the way she demonstrates her multi layered vocal technique and sings songs from her albums “Hawk to the Hunting Gone” and “Keld” (fRoots Magazine editor’s choice album of the year 2018).  

Seth Lakeman is the Mercury Music Prize nominated singer, fiddle player and guitarist who will forever be associated with Dartmoor. He grew up in the village of Buckland Monachorum with his two brothers Sean and Sam who are also key players on the folk scene. In this episode Seth takes Matthew to the village church to re-create his 2004 recording "Cape Clear", to the local school to sing “An Educated Man” and to the hills above the Burrator Reservoir where he performs “Kitty Jay”, “The White Hare” and “The Courier”. Along the way he reflects on sibling rivalry, the myths and legends of Dartmoor and his experiences of touring the world with the former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant.

  The former Bellowhead lead singer and winner of eleven Radio 2 Folk Awards takes Matthew on a walk near his home in the Loxley Valley on the outskirts of Sheffield. This landscape inspired his 2009 album “Songs from the Floodplain”, which creates a vision of a post apocalyptic future when industrial architecture is decaying and people are returning to a more rural way of life. As they walk down the valley, Jon sings “Going Down to the Wasteland”; by a whirlpool in the River Loxley, he performs "April Queen." Next we visit a disused brick factory - where empty kilns and rusting girders are being overwhelmed by trees and weeds - the perfect setting for “Dancing In The Factory”. Finally Jon and Matthew clamber up onto a disused World War Two anti aircraft gun emplacement and Jon sings “Aubade” from his latest solo album “Afterglow”. 

A first chance to hear some extracts from Season 2 of Folk on Foot. This time we'll be walking with: Jon Boden in the Loxley Valley Seth Lakeman on Dartmoor Kerry Andrew at the Brockwell Lido Fisherman’s Friends in Port Isaac Stick in the Wheel on the road to Epping Forest Julie Fowlis on the shores of Loch Ness  

Six complete songs recorded on location for Season 1 of Folk on Foot:    Eliza Carthy and Family: “Some Old Salty”   Steve Knightley: “The Dive”  Cara Dillon and Sam Lakeman: “The Leaving Song” The Young’uns: “The Hartlepool Pedlar” Sam Lee: “The Birds in the Spring” Karine Polwart: “The Lark In The Clear Air”.    You’ll also hear Matthew talking about the future of Folk on Foot and appealing for more people to become patrons of the podcast.

The multi award winning singer Cara Dillon comes from the small town of  Dungiven in Northern Ireland. It is a place steeped in myth and legend with a powerful musical tradition. As Cara and her husband and musical collaborator Sam Lakeman take Matthew on a walk through the countryside around the town, she tells stories of a lost princess and a powerful chieftain and his tiny but tough Scottish bodyguards. She also introduces Matthew to the local well which is reputed to be able to cure warts. Standing on an iron bridge over the River Roe, Cara sings “The Winding River Roe” with the water rippling by in the background. Then they climb the local mountain known as “The Hill of Thieves” which is also the inspiration for one of Cara’s songs. As the rain begins to fall, they take refuge in a local sibin where Cara and Sam perform “The Leaving Song” about the living wakes held by families before their children emigrated to the United States.

Steve Knightley is one half of the acclaimed folk duo Show of Hands. He and his musical partner Phil Beer are proud to come from Devon - once beating Sir Francis Drake in a public vote to name the greatest ever Devonians. Steve has been described as “a gravel voiced spokesman for the rural poor” and many of the songs he writes are inspired by the  working people he meets in and around his home town of Topsham. In this episode of Folk on Foot, Steve takes Matthew on a walk from Exmouth - scene of some of his earliest gigs as a teenage musician - along the Exe trail to Topsham. In Exmouth docks Steve performs “The Dive” which tells the true story of a father and son diving drama, as the real life son of the story looks on. On a farm near Topsham Steve sings “Country Life” his angry anthem about the destruction of the countryside by second home owners and agri-barons.  

Eliza Carthy is one of the most influential figures in the UK folk scene. With her exuberant stage presence, she re-interprets the folk tradition for a new generation. She inherited her love of English music from her famous parents. Her Dad Martin Carthy was a key figure in the first folk revival of the 1960s and 70s. He taught Paul Simon the traditional song “Scarborough Fair” and also influenced Bob Dylan. Eliza’s Mum, Norma Waterson, was part of the pioneering family harmony singing group The Watersons. Norma recently suffered a serious illness and Eliza moved back to the family home in the North Yorkshire fishing village of Robin Hood’s Bay to look after her. In this episode of Folk on Foot, Eliza takes Matthew on a walk along the cliffs near her home, reflecting on her family heritage and taking him to the farm where the whole extended family used to live when she was a child. Martin, Norma and Eliza’s aunt Ann and cousin Marry gather at the kitchen table for a rousing and emotional sing.

Season 1 Episode 3: Mercury music prize nominee Sam Lee is a folk singer, a countryman and an impresario. Through his Nest Collective he promotes scores of different folk gigs and events every year. In this episode of Folk on Foot he invites Matthew to join him in a Sussex wood in the middle of the night as he leads a group of people on a silent walk to hear him sing with a nightingale. The bird appears un-phased by the arrival of the group and seems to respond as Sam starts an improvised duet. The next day Sam and Matthew retrace their steps in daylight, reflecting on the power of this mystical experience.

Season 1 Episode 2: Karine was named Folk Singer of the Year at the 2018 Radio 2 Folk Awards. Her solo theatre piece “Wind Resistance” and album “A Pocket of Wind Resistance” were inspired by Fala Moor near her home in Midlothian just south of Edinburgh. She takes Matthew for a walk across the Moor which is a haven for wildlife, particularly birds. As she sings you can hear skylarks and curlews flying around her. Karine tells stories of the people who lived near the moor and the monastic hospital which stood nearby where pioneering herbal treatments were invented. And she reflects on n her own life journey from social worker dealing with survivors of domestic violence to award winning folk singer.

Season 1 Episode 1: Winners of the Best Album award at the 2018 Radio 2 Folk Awards, the Young’uns are three troubadours from Teeside. Sean Cooney, David Eagle and Michael Hughes take Matthew Bannister on a walk round the historic headland of Hartlepool where Sean used to live in a shed in his parents’ back garden. Along the way they tell stories and sing songs inspired by the location, visiting the medieval Sandwell Gate, St Hilda’s Church and the Heugh Battery, site of the only First World War battle to take place on British soil. Here they sing the poignant song “Theo Jones” on the spot where this soldier was killed in the battle. On the seafront they sing about an Elizabethan frying pan ban. They end up in the Pot House pub, where the Young’uns used to run a folk club, singing Cooney’s original composition “The Hartlepool Pedlar”. There may also be time for a pint. 

This is a taster of what is coming up in our first season of Folk on Foot. You'll hear part of our podcasts featuring Karine Polwart on Fala Moor, the Young'uns in Hartlepool and Steve Knightley in the Exe Valley. The full podcasts will be released starting from August 3rd. In the meantime this will give you a good idea what is in store. If you want to know more go to www.folkonfoot.com and subscribe to the newsletter.