TalkAwhile - The Folk Corporation Forum

  [;-) Looking through the summer music agenda for Banbury's Mill theatre
     http://www.themillartscentre.co.uk/wps/wcm/connect/MillArts/Music/

  made me realise just how well off we are for good live music in this area, and I genuinely think this is in large measure due to Fairport Convention, and particularly the Cropredy Festival.

  In the last twenty years the interest in folk and folk-rock has grown immeasurably round here, I suspect partly from people going along to the Festival as a local 'event', but ultimately being impressed and stimulated by the music and the atmosphere into seeking other opportunities to listen, play and share that unbeatable fun of sharing a great time and a great vibe  :) .

    Without Fairport I don't think we'd get acts like Bob Fox, Ashley Hutchings, Little Johnny England, Pentangle, Vin Garbutt and others all playing the same venue within a couple of months, and I'm not sure that events like the Folk and canal Festival or the Adderbury day of dance, or even the Hobby horse Festival, would posess the following they now have if it weren't for the interest in  folk art and music-making that Fairport have stimulated. They might even have contributed something to the character of new bands like Olly's WRants!

   It's great that one band, by focusing on a place and making it special for no reason other than their own allegiance to it, can have such a big influence on the cultural life of a region.

                           Thankyou Fairport Convention!   :D   [;-)

That's great if you live in North Oxfordshire - I was rebuked a couple of years ago for pointing out that people in the rest of the country aren't quite so lucky.  

Apparently, it's because we don't live in the middle of the country.  

I'm still not convinced that it is.  :-\

While Fairport have been a large influence, Banbury has always had a great music scene, from jazz to classical, r&b to folk. (And even the d&b music scene has a substancial following, I'm told.)
The main reason why the likes of Bob Fox, Little Johnny England and Vin Garbutt can be enjoyed here, is because of the hard work by Derek & Mary at the Ride A Cock Horse Folk Club, where all the above mentioned have apeared on many occasions. The good reputation they have developed over the years has ensured that we get to see many musicians we wouldn't have otherwise, in the friendly setting of the club.

Please raise a glass for Derek & Mary,

Jules

Hmmm - it's the wrong thread to take issue with this here, but I'm not sure you're right. Morris Dancing pre-dates Fairport arriving, for example. I would suggest that Fairport arrived *because* the area was already steeped in the English Tradition....

 Well, I'm not claiming to be right, but I've lived round here for 39 years and I don't remember the 'Folkish' scene being as vibrant or extended twenty years ago as it is today. And do you know, I was aware that local Morris dancing existed before Fairport Convention.... :o

Indeed - the Day of Dance preceeded Fairport too....

I thought they arrived because it was handy for the M40 into London, where all the session work is.

M40? In the 1970s?.......Hmmmm!

1960's actually Chris...although admittedly at the 'wrong' end http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M40_motorway

I remember the M40 at the beginning of the 90's as a great new road that no-one, other than the locals, had yet discovered. I remember Ralph McTell enthusing about it then too.

Actually *read* the article, Dave! It says.....
"The Beaconsfield bypass (Junction 2) which was part of the motorway was built in 1971 and the Gerrards Cross Bypass (Junctions 1-2) connecting to this was completed in 1973. Junctions 5-8 Pitmore to Chilworth just outside of Oxford were completed in 1974. Construction from Birmingham to Oxford (the "missing link") started in 1988 from the M42 near Hockley Heath (Junction 3A) and finishing with construction through Warwickshire and the Cherwell Valley in 1990

So that'd be the 1980s & 1990s then.....

dare i say
TOPIC DRIFT
 or will everyone start throwing things at me???

Nah - I'm busy throwing things at Chris - who seems to be having problems with the concepts of 'started' and 'completed'  :)

(http://www.recognised.org.uk/topicdrift.jpg)

why, thankyou cocker - d'ya fink i look good in cubic zircona {:-)

abby you look great in anything!!

keep em comin' fellas, i need to feel good this morning to save me from falling back to sleep.......... ^-^

I'm losing the will to live here. ^-^

As far as I know, one or two of them moved to Oxfordshire and the rest of them followed and it remains a good starting place to travel to everywhere from, whether before the M40 or after.... that just makes it even easier now.

 :D

 ::) Wow!!  :D ;D Did he really? Have you mentioned it over in McMansions? We need to know everything!

David - go & re-read the thread again.....


Was the quote to which I queried the mention of the M40.

When they arrived in Cropredy - there was NO M40 north of High Wycombe. So it wouldn't have been a consideration when moving there. THat was MY point. What was yours?

Ok this is beyond topic drift so stop.

There has to be a board somewhere for those of us fascinated by the building of the British Motorway system.

Now we all know that the members of Fairport Convention moved to Oxfordshire as a staging point for Mr Swarbrick's planned invasion of Scotland and then to Australia, it was a carefully thought out plan as in those days the roads were so bad or incomplete that one had to walk everywhere and it was too far to go in one day.

I heard this from a feral cat who lives in the barn two fields away from Maart so it must be true.

Anyway, there's a perfectly good train service from Banbury. So ya boo sucks to everyone who deserves it :D