TalkAwhile - The Folk Corporation Forum

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/03/dave-swarbrick-dies-at-75-fiddler-fairport-convention?CMP=twt_a-music_b-gdnmusic

News coming through (again!) that Swarb has died:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/03/dave-swarbrick-dies-at-75-fiddler-fairport-convention

RIP, and thanks for the music...

:'(

Farewell, farewell.  :(

Oh God, no!

Oh Christ, no.

As far as I'm concerned, and I know I'm far from alone, this is the saddest one of all this year, and for a very long time.

 :-[

I was so sure he was out of trouble again, at least for a little while.  Goodbye, Swarb, and thanks ever so much for the music, the laughter, the passion, the stories, and for cheating death already more than once.

Jules

Oh... so sad...
 :'( :'( :'(

RIP swarb

Commiserations to all his family and friends. There will be a huge number of people saddened by this news.

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 :'(

RIP Swarb, and thank you for some of my favourite music.

Love and condolences to all his family.

 :'( The end of an era. The version of Fairport that I love can never now convene again.

Condolences to Swarb's family and friends and everyone who loved the man, his music and the laughter.

Very sad news. I was lucky enough to see him a couple of times in recent years and his music was a joy.

I guess the flowers will be plentiful around jonahs oak.

Incredibly sad news, have just played "To Althea From Prison" in his honour, one of his finest recordings...RIP Swarb...

RIP, Swarb, and thank you.
 :(

Sad news. RIP Swarb. Thank you for the music.  :'(

Words fail me.
RIP Swarb

Thanks Swarb for the music & stories. RIP, enjoy playing up there!

I just heard the bews via facebook. I am devastated! . He was very special to ne right from when I fell in love with his cheeky grin when I  was 10 years old. Shine on you crazy Diamond! Your legacy will live on for many years to come !

Rest easy, Swarb. Many, many happy memories.

Tasha, I just read the news of FB, too, I had to come here, here where I know we all feel the same about this gem of a human being.

Thanks Swarb

A miniature titan has left us.

This sad news caps the year. We're only on June 2nd.

Beyond sad here, it's like a close family member has died.
      He was grumpy, irascible, impish, funny and a genius.
      We should be thankful he spent so much of his time with us but it has come and gone in what now seems like a flash, a flash that lasted nearly 60 years and has left us countless recordings that are testament to his greatness, loads of memories that testify to his force of character like when he commandeered the set at Cropredy a few years back.
       The world is much poorer place today.
        My condolences to Jill and all his family on their loss.
   RIP Swarb, we bloody loved you, you old rascal.
  

 :'( Swarb.

So, so sad.  RIP Swarb and condolences to his family.

I guess we never will get to read his autobiography now - it would have been interesting to hear his take on what happened when...

Exactly, Jim.

Swarb!
A sad day.
A sad day.

Oh damn. Just heard, and so sad.

I feel so sad.
Such fond memories.
Rest in Peace

So sad, RIP Swarb :'(

This has affected me a lot more than I thought, sitting in the office trying to stop the tears. So glad to have seen him live and met him several times, especially when I put him on at the Musician a couple of years ago.

He has left us with a wonderful legacy of music. Will get the CDs out tonight.

I suppose that the 2016 Heaven band decided they needed the best fiddler to join them. RIP Swarb.

RIP Swarb.

Thankful to have seen you play often and so well. Commiserations and thoughts to Jill and family.

Cheers

Nick

Just saw this on Fb. I know none of us will last forever but he did seem to be overcoming the odds time and time again. I'm glad I was able to see him, only ever at Cropredy but the strength of his personality shone out.

RIP Swarb. I hope the end was calm and pain-free x

Very sad news. I think i will have a listen to smiddyburn tonight. RIP and thanks for the music.

No words. Though I never got to see him perform live, his music-all his music is among my most favorite things ever. A lot of greats passed this year but this one is the biggest loss for me. R.I.P. Swarb, thank you for everything

RIP Swarb and thanks for all the great music and memories.  Look out for Ces - he'll be waiting with a pint ready for you.

Condolences to Jill and all Swarb's family and friends.

One hopes that various issues between Swarb and other FC members had been resolved and that friendships had been retained.

One more waiting on the ledge.

DW

 All issues are moot now.

Thank you for the music and making the world a brighter place through your amazing talent. RIP Swarb

This just popped on youtube today. Amazing stuff. We'll miss you Swarb!

https://youtu.be/G5IKLoWdGy8

RIP seems so little a thing to say. Really, I'm struggling to find other words.

Great sadness.   :'(
So pleased that I was able to see him play once (at Cropredy).



Sincere condolences to his family.

Deeply saddened to read about Swarb...rest in peace fine fiddle player...you will be missed by many...we shall find much joy in the music you left behind...off to play Smiddyburn.

Very sad to hear about this. Not much else to say but thoughts to all his family and friends, and thanks for the music.

 :'(  :'(  :'(  Only just heard.....still a bit numb......cheers, Swarb......it's been a hoot. Thank you.

The Telegraph has run a new obit - can anyone find it online? I'm away & posting from my phone making posting a link quite difficult

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/06/03/dave-swarbrick-musician--obituary/

And in the Mirror
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/folk-musician-dave-swarbrick-dies-8109315

Sad day. RIP Dave.

Condolences and prayers for Swarb's family and friends.

Such sad news and the end of a great era, we certainly won't see his like again. Rest in peace Swarb and sincere condolences to his family and friends.

If there is some humour to be had though, the Telegraph have come up trumps again in reporting his death. Here's an extract from their article where they're discussing their mis-reporting of his death in 1999 and this time, they couldn't get his name right:

"In 1999, when he was hospitalised with a chest infection, The Telegraph mistakenly reported that he was dead. Swarbrook took the mistake in good humour, and would proudly sign copies of his obituary for fans, telling them, “It’s not the first time I’ve died in Coventry.”"

It appears to be corrected now but this was copied and pasted from their earlier version of the article.

I've so many happy memories of the man (on a field, at a venue, listening to him) it's hard to think none of us will get another chance.  I'm just processing all those memories this evening.  Seeing the Full House lineup those times at Cropredy has to be the highpoint for me.  I feel blessed to have seen him so many times (and been told to 'f*** off' by the man as well!).  RIP Swarb.  Love and hugs to Jill, his family, colleagues and all those that will be missing him.

Rest in Peace Swarb prayers for Family & friends

Very sad. A true legend! Certainly responsible for turning me on to folk music.

Only just heard, what awful news, condolences to his family.

I came late to folk music, you resist your fathers record collections as long as you can, but Dave Swarbrick dragged me into my dads and I wasn't kicking and screaming, so many happy memories, with Carthy, Alistair Hullett, Simon, Lazarus (indeed), and of course Fairport. I have to say I am numb. So sad, of course condolences to his family and all who knew him.

Very sad news. There have been quite a few times when I've stood in that field and felt privileged.

What Jim said!
I have said elsewhere that it was Swarbs playing on, A a Sailors Life, in 1969, that pulled me in to folk rock in the first place.
Just a very, very sad day.

Well said Jim.

I looked at FB in the car park at Tesco and saw the news. I think people were wondering why I was crying.

This one hurts.

I am so privileged to have heard him play and have met him. I first saw Fairport in 1975 I think. The main thing I remember is Swarb and his playing. I went to the first reunion; a damp day, and they played 'Sloth'. I remember thinking that it was the music of the spheres. Make them ring, Swarb.

Much love to Jill and his family.

Swarb, you were well-loved. Many lives have been enriched by your music.

Farewell Swarbmeister, you will be missed.

Beautifully put, Diane. I've just been playing MOTL from the 1997 Cropredy Box while cooking... so many memories... tears here... Luv ya Swarb.

A great man who will live on in so many hearts. Listening to the old stuff tonight.  [;-)

So very sad especially after he seemed to have made a good recovery after his recent spell in hospital but as Mrs B commented, that can often happen - you have one final burst of life and then the Grim Reaper comes calling.

I remember seeing Lazarus at the Brewery Arts Centre in Kendal and Swarb was at the cd table in the interval and tried to flog me a book of fiddle tunes. The funny thing was that the cover reminded me of a book of Scottish fiddle tunes I'd had as a kid called Kerr's Merry Melodies.

When I get home I will get my fiddle out and see if I can remember how to play one of those old tunes. Thanks for the music and the inspiration Swarb.

Whilst there's nothing to add about the great man and his music, I'd like to spare a thought today for the generous person (and their family) whose organs were donated to Swarb to give him, and us, another 12 years or so of his company and music.

Another part of this person passed away again today.

On a personal note, my four month old daughter Althea will always serve to remind me of Swarb and his music, having derived her name from you know where.

RIP Swarb x

It occurs to me that Fairport are gigging tonight. Can you imagine Meet on the Ledge?  I don't envy the chaps trying to hold it together tonight.

John From Austin, Dave Swarbrick and Mrs. John From Austin, August 5, 2007, before a performance by Swarb's Lazarus.   :(

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Highlights for me:-

The many times I saw him at Cropredy;

Him playing Rosie with Chris Leslie standing next to him singing the words; I think it was his first visit to the Field post transplant;

The day his colleague at Crops (Dempsey or Carthy?) said of him as he inhaled from his oxygen cylinder "Its like being on stage with a second war bomber pilot!"

Getting his autograph on his first obituary, which is carefully filed away.

RIP, Swarb.

Some lovely words from Simon in the paper today.

A great loss to music.  As we raise a glass tonight I would echo an earlier post may we quietly give a nod of respect to the family who agreed to donate a loved ones organs many years ago which in consequence gave Dave a few more years and us a bit more joy.

My first introduction to Fairport came when some of the musicians in my 6th form college did an assembly based on Babbacome Lee. I immediately got hold of the album, and was amazed. I think the whole thing is brilliant, and highlights Swarb's talents as a writer, fiddler, and singer. All three of which were excellent.

Paul

Just listening to Smiddyburn and marvelling at the wonderful musicality of the album. RT and Swarb together is simply wonderful and more than just two musicians playing the right notes, they just sound so right and exciting, along with the many other fine musicians Swarb called on to help out. A great legacy to his talent.

Particularly remember the Cropredy when both Swarb, and John Martyn, played solo sets, getting right down the front, to be as close to Music Gods as is decent, aware of the privilege even then.
'Rosie' and tears here, Thank You David Swarbrick. Meet on the Ledge.

Oh Swarb, Swarb, Swarb

Always the best

love to you Jill and all  x x x  

Farewell Swarb. Here's to you...

RIP Swarb, and thanks for the wonderful music.
Condolences to Jill and family, and all those who counted him among their friends and collaborators.  
We may never see his like again.

Simply the Best.
Just heard a great tribute from Peggy on Radio 5 Live on the 'Up All Night ' show at around 1.25am

Oh I remember seeing him play with RT at Ashby de la Zouch, Leicester . A joy.

It's been a bad year for musical losses, which goes with the territory of our certain demographic..  but this is different. I felt bad about the others (especially Keith Emerson), but I'm crying tonight. If I have to name one single musician who influenced me in those formative mid-teenage years, then Swarb is the man. I'd go further... he turned me into a folkie, for which I'm eternally grateful. Yeah, the musical creativity, and the boundless energy; but it might have been for nothing without that impish grin, which seemed, right to the end, to just sum up an attitude to life.

Thanks for the memories...

Thanks for that.

There are a lot of other people I would have expected to hear from by now.  ???

It's on the I-Player at around 22m15s here :

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07cy3r2

Thanks for the link Dan !...I'd never have found it otherwise...Lovely chat with Peggy...

Farewell Farewell Swarb...Rest in Peace...

Great to hear Peggy, the presenter was completely clueless, however.

For those who are looking for such things but don't have access to Facebook, ex bandmates Maartin Allcock & Jerry Donahue have both posted tributes there. Here is Maart's

I was probably the only teen who had a poster of Swarb on my bedroom wall. I even persuaded my dad to buy me the same electric mandolin as in the photo. I knew him for about 41 years, although I'd had his autograph a couple of years before that. The book of all of his fiddle music that we worked on together took seven years (with distractions). I liked the wives I met over the years, but there were more I never met.
“I’m not so much a romantic, I just like parties.”

He was my hero, my mentor, my teacher, my stage companion, my inspiration, my worst critic, my wicked uncle, my drugs counsellor, my motivator, but most of all my friend.

He told me off for rolling **** joints when I was 18 and taught me how to make them properly (past history now), he boosted my confidence a zillion times when he told me I was playing the tunes as well as anyone he’d heard play them before, he taught me how to be naughty in my 20s, he told me to get more exercise when I was in my late 40s, we worked hard together to get his fiddle tune book out in my 50s, and after the recent loss of my fellow road warrior Pete Zorn, he was one of the first on the phone as soon as he had a voice again to send condolences. I am once again plunged into the numbness of loss before realisation sets in.

As for the rest of it, you’ll have to wait for my memoirs. There’s a great story about Cropredy, the McGarrigles first album and a canoe...

Swarb, you are without doubt one of the biggest ever influences on my life and I will miss you and love you until the day I die.
Sleep well ya little fecker xxxxx

And Jerry's

Lost another long-time close friend/colleague this morning, with the sad news of David Swarbrick's passing! During my tenure in Fairport (1972 through 1975) and in the many years since, we shared so many good times and laughs together! In Fairport he was also a brilliant teacher, as he'd patiently sit down to show me all the fiddle lines we would do together in unison and/or harmony. That was an enormous challenge, but his support and encouragement got me through it all and the result was a whole new style of my playing that he'd opened up. Thank you so much, Dave, for all the time you reserved for me, and the confidence and love you've provided along the way. It all has meant so much! RIP, my friend.

 There's a longish thread on Steve Hoffman already. Very, very sad for all of us, though not altogether unexpected.

Can you provide a link?

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/dave-swarbrick-in-hospital-with-lung-infection-update-rip.494648/

This news has come as a rather unpleasant surprise, I thought he was feeling/getting better after he was trasferred to another hospital.

I am very glad I saw him with Fairport in November 1969 playing the songs and tunes from Liege and lief, it was amazing.

Rest in peace Dave.

I remember that.  It was Kevin Dempsey and Swarb's response was something like:
"Don't make me laugh, you'll bleedin' kill me!"

Always a wicked sense of humour.

Damn. I met him several times and even had some -ahem- not exactly legal inhalations with him once upon a time. Heavily into his playing ever since I was about 12 years old, a huge influence on my taste. Man... Here's a photo from that same boat trip from which John From Austin posted a shot... it's been my photo ID on Google ever since...

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I've just remembered, and chuckled at, something he said on stage at The Lowry a few years back, when he was playing with Martin Carthy:

CARTHY: This next song is I think probably the cleverest song I've ever heard.

SWARB: Have you heard all of mine?

from one rosie creator to another....

" you won't remember rosie, but you were there "...

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Never seen this before:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5IKLoWdGy8

Jules

Really interesting song and absolutely stella work by Jerry D, perhaps not as wild as RT would have been, but beautifully crafted lead work and perfect for the song. I'd like to see/hear Fairport cover this at Cropredy. I hope they make a suitable tribute to Swarb by covering and dedicating at least one of his songs. Meet On The Ledge will be very poignant this year.

Facebook post from Jill: https://www.facebook.com/david.swarbrick.182/posts/1131746810215296

It was actually his Australian colleague. Somebody Huellet?

Paul

That is so beautiful. My heart is breaking for Jill. And tears have finally come.  :'(

Damn you Sam.  :)

I had managed to fight back the tears up until now. And then you posted that.  :'(

Paul

And that finished me off.  :'(

Just finished listening to Babbacombe Lee again, and Liege and Leif now playing.

Paul

Damn you Sam.  :)

I had managed to fight back the tears up until now. And then you posted that.  :'(

Paul

[/quote]

sorry <3

Alastair Hulatt, I think

Hulett

Thanks Jim, I knew I hadn't got the spelling quite right.

Sadly, I don't have permission to look at that. I may have been blocked by Jill and Dave at some point, I haven't a clue why.

As a detester and avoider of BaceFook who managed to access the post from the link..I presume I'm not breaking any rules - and if I am, I think under the circumstances I'll take my chances. So here it is, in all it's painful beauty:

_______________________________________________

David Swarbrick
9 hrs ·

To all Swarb's Facemates

Where to begin......

I am in total shock and deep grief, it is very difficult to just live at the moment.

It is still a shock for me, a massive shock, that Dave has passed on.

It was the most beautiful and fitting passing that he so very much deserved after so many years of suffering from the awful emphysema and lately, the sepsis and double pneumonia both of which he survived with nearly 12 years of fabulous health and music and merriment gifted by an unknown, anonymous hero who we should all salute for allowing so much wonderful music and joy that was Swarb to be seen and listened to!
My bloke was a one off! A huge character. How do I live on any such level after him? Impossible.
He was totally unique. You add the words you think guys...
He was GREAT!
I loved him so very much, even though he could be , erm..."tricky", but then, aren't we all? He was open though and there was never any chips on his shoulders, he wanted everyone to be pals and impossibly, live on his standard of music.
He did a lot for charity secretly.
Visiting people/fans in hospices and encouraging anyone young or old to follow their hearts and practice hard if they wanted to play the fiddle better etc.
He had loads of time for youngsters and loved all his children, grandkids and great grandkids.

His last three weeks when he came home from hospital were sublime!
The sun shone, he enjoyed so much the view of the meadow from his studio and bedroom of all the buttercups and visiting birds singing... Glorious weather too.
We were both so happy, and of course so was Ruby dog. They slept together and she was always on his lap wagging her tail.

What a life! Music! What genius! To have been married to this man is a gift and I am enriched by having known him and been loved by him.
So, Life it carries on. But definitely without the sparkle, the sound of that fiddle in the house, the fun and love...

Thank you for, well, impossible to say what...just EVERYTHING! You made his life so happ and colourful and you gave Dave so much joy backTOO you know. Yeah!

I must just give a huge thank you to Bronglais Hospital in Aberystwyth, especially the ICU team.
What a jewel we have in these people! Treasure them, for they are rare.
I have never known such love and compassion in my whole life.
Dave's time there, on both addmissions, but especially this week, was very, very special. He slid off and away over 24 hours on a slow beautiful "glissando", without a second of pain or struggle. He was treated with the utmost love and dignity including after he had gone. A fitting passing for such a difficult life of knackered lungs and disability. Thank you Bronglais xxx

Dave was crystal clear that he did not like honours and awards, in fact he was very embarassed by them, he believed that the music should stand as his testament and legacy.

After hearing particularly about Bowie's death which was quiet, private and discreet , he was absolutely adamant that he didn't want a funeral " What's the fun in it when people just cry and feel sad? I don't want that. Iwant everyone to celebrate and be happy. Perhaps a big bash with all my mates and anyone else you can arrange "Gorge" a bit later " - He called me "Gorge" a lot and I always took it as short for gorgeous not the chasm !
So, following Dave's instructions, there will be no official funeral which follows his own definite wishes to me, his next of kin.
Other family members may wish to have their own loving tribute and farewell of sorts and I truly bless them with their own plans
XXX

So, when his ashes have cooled down a bit, keep watching this space regarding the final big gig he wanted. I have no idea how it will pan out yet, I am not able to think of long term plans, but he did want to make his last gig the Royal Albert Hall!
Food for thought guys.

He loved you all and loved this Facebook lark.
I heard him chuckling at night as he read your stuff. Brilliant.

Remember that Life and Lives are ALL about LOVE.
Keep loving, keep being nice and a final rousing round of applause for Swarb !
ps. Keep playing his music too x

So much love to you all

Thank you

Jill and Ruby dog xx

Haven't been online as away on holiday then came back to such dreadful news. Feel very blessed to have seen and met the man who was for me the greatest folk musician of my time. The ferry crossing back from France was almost exactly the same length as the Swarb box set, so it passed very quickly. Particularly lovely to hear Byker Hill from Carthy's 60th party and Sloth with Simon. Some of the instrumentals are exhausting.

I saw Swarb and Carthy at Didcot a few years ago and have never seen such obvious love between two musicians. Carthy told a lovely story from their early years. Swarb was filming Madding Crowd in Dorset and was late for their gig in London. Carthy soldiered on and then suddenly Swarb arrived, rushed on stage and opened his violin case to find...nothing. He had left his fiddle on the film set back in Dorset!

He was a unique genius and we are lucky to have shared time with him.

Dear Swarb

I only met you once, but you have been with me for most of my life.  You have inspired me. Every time I lift up the lid and listen, I am swept away.

Thanks, Swarb.  See you later.

Love to all who miss you.  May their hearts remember how to sing.

We were none of us worthy.

Steve

I just follow his instructions and move my body to an earbleeding loud Sir B. MacKenzie from Live Convention

Mark and I feel numb and I woke up thinking it was a bad dream. We had the pleasure of working with him and more importantly he was a chum. He was there for me when I needed encouragement, using colourful language that made me howl with laughter. We shall miss him more than words can express xx

Caz

A very moving and beautiful message from Jill.  Was in tears reading that....

Very, very moving tributes. So pleased I got to see him live on numerous occassions in recent years, both with Fairport and solo

Hugs m'dears

RIP Swarb.
Thank you for your great music.
Your music and its beauty and joy will stay with us.
 

Nice piece by Dewey Gurell in Poland, lifted from FB:

"A (rambling stream-of-consciousness) TRIBUTE TO THE MAN THEY CALLED "SWARB"

The great Dave Swarbrick has left us. I know that name may not be as familiar to some of you as the music royalty that have recently passed on, but for many of us, this is more than just the latest death in this very cruel year. Chances are pretty good that Swarb had more influence on the music you grew up listening to than you realize as well. Please allow me a moment to pay tribute to this incredible musician, colorful character, and from all accounts, wonderful human being.
Although starting as more of a kind of West-Coast-Jefferson-Airplane-sounding-Bob-Dylan-covering-folk-influenced-psychedelic-rock-band, by the recording of their third album (Unhalfbricking), Fairport Convention had devised the completely original concept of marrying traditional British folk music with electric rock instruments. Seriously, no one had ever done it before - Jethro Tull were still a blues rock outfit in 1969, and there was yet to be any signs of "rock" in The Strawbs acoustic songs or Pentangle's jazzy folk. Violinist (that's fiddler to the folkies) Dave Swarbrick was already well- established in the British folk world for his work with the Ian Campbell Folk Group and the great singer/songwriter Martin Carthy, and when Fairport needed violin for their trippy exploration on the traditional English lament, "A Sailor's Life" (as well as a few others on the album), he was the perfect counterbalance to Richard Thompson's mind-blowing languid guitar, and the plaintive mournful beauty of the voice of Sandy Denny. Not only was he up to the task, his playing gave the song a timeless quality that transformed Fairport into innovators forging a new path none had previously walked - one foot in antiquity and tradition, the other unafraid to ROCK.
Seriously, there was NOTHING like it before. In the same fashion as In The Court Of The Crimson King, or Pet Sounds, or the first Black Sabbath and Ramones albums, this was something NEW! Fairport had found its voice, and in doing so invented British Folk Rock. Their next album, first with Swarb as a full member, Liege And Lief, is one of the greatest and most influential albums ever, and still tops many critics' and fans' lists of the greatest folk rock LPs of all-time almost a half century later, because...well, it still sounds amazing. The traditional storytelling drama of epics like "Matty Groves", and "Tam Lin", the beautiful melancholy of "Reynardine" and "Crazy Man Michael", and the high energy rocking adaptation of jigs and reels in "The Lark in the Morning" medley, all combining acoustic and electric progressive-minded arrangements, broke down barriers and inspired a generation to explore the folk tradition, and make it their own. You may have heard of a few of them - Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and Ian Anderson are some of the most famous, but a direct line of influence can be traced from Fairport through other influential bands of the 1970s like Gentle Giant, who added it to their 'anything goes' prog rock ethos, and bands such as Horslips and later The Pogues who took the folk rock concept but put their inimitable Irishness into it.
In the 1980s, All About Eve came from the British goth scene, but although she sounded a bit like Siouxsie on their earliest recordings, singer Julianne Regan's true spirit in performance, voice, and songwriting had more in common with Sandy Denny. AAE brought folk rock to the black clad masses weaned on The Cure and Bauhaus, and Fairport's Ric Sanders, as well as Swarb's band mate in Whippersnapper (and future Fairporter) Chris Leslie both appeared with 'the Eves'. The band were also featured guests at Fairport's annual Cropredy festival. Their first two albums are absolute classics that laid the groundwork for a new kind of dark gothic folk rock, and both were reissued last year in fantastic 2 disc Deluxe Editions that are stunning, if you're interested.
In America, along came the mighty Tempest, led by the great Norwegian Lief Sørbye, whose playful exuberance onstage and many fine albums embody the spirit of Fairport to this day. They are still one of the greatest live bands that you could ever hope to see, and they tour often.
In the 1990's, The Wonder Stuff - one of my absolute favorite bands of all time - became an enormous stadium act in Britain with a sound that was born of equal parts Fairport, the attitude of punk rock, the melodic sense of Lennon, and a heavy dose of the nineties 'Age of Irony.'
And still it goes on - in the progressive rock world, Steven Wilson, probably the most important musician in that genre of this century, has been effusive in his praise of FC, and just this week, prog artists Big Big Train released the tellingly titled Folklore, which owes a huge debt to the 1970s British folk rock era in general, and Fairport in particular.
Meanwhile in Italy, there's a band called Cirque des Rêves who are taking the whole idea of the folk rock aesthetic as created by Fairport, and mixing it with Italian romanticism and a dream-like cabaret atmosphere - all led by an absolutely astounding young singer named Lisa Starnini. They are the next step in this evolution, and definitive proof that, as long as imagination lives, originality is still possible, even in a music business that punishes true artists and rewards the insipid. Soon you will get the chance to hear their incredible Mirabilia album, and I predict that many of you will be amazed. They are truly doing something you've never heard before.
And that's without even considering the many types of heavy metal that have developed in this century which integrate elements of British and Celtic folk in a progression that can be directly traced back to...you know who.

So why am I talking about a bunch of other artists in a tribute to Dave Swarbrick? Because...dominoes, you know? He was part of the creation of something that is still evolving today. And if that, along with the incredible music he made, was the sum total of Swarb's legacy, it would be pretty impressive. But it's only part of the story...
As a band, Fairport Convention weathered tragedies and major personnel changes too numerous to detail here - look it up, you won't believe it. But suffice to say, they have had one of the most eventful histories in rock, and Swarb is a major part of why they were able to survive losing such one of a kind brilliant talents as Sandy Denny and Richard Thompson. During Swarb's era, under his care, they crafted some fantastic, underrated albums (Tipplers Tales, Nine, The Bonny Bunch Of Roses), and at least one that is better forgotten (Gottle O'Geer), but problems with his hearing from loud amplification led him to leave and form the acoustic Whippersnapper in the early 1980s, though he reappeared with them (and they with him) countless times since.
And he never really stopped touring and recording as long as he was at all able, despite health issues that would have sidelined a much younger man. He was a mentor to future Fairport members Maartin Allcock and Chris Leslie, without whom the band might never have survived (although there's no killing off Fairport - not EVER!) but beyond all of that, I think there's a bigger picture, a legacy beyond a resumé of musical accomplishments.

It's to do with music and spirituality. And while there's surely a better way to put it, please bear with me as I try;
Every time some young person hears Liege And Lief or Full House, and FEELS a resonance, an odd ancestral thread like a spiritual link that joins our subconscious with the past in a supernatural way - they will then embark on a lifelong journey of exploration of this incredible musical world outside the mainstream that, for those of us who can feel it, is more powerful than any religion. For lots of people - especially American kids in the 1970s like myself who didn't grow up knowing a lot about English folk music - Fairport (and subsequently Steeleye Span, The Strawbs, Jethro Tull, and so many others) were nothing less than musical time travel agents who changed our lives by introducing us to a parallel universe. One that we felt far more connected to than the one in which we lived.

I never met Mr. Swarbrick or even got to see him perform, but in the late 1980s, I became friendly with the Fairport guys, particularly the great multi-instrumentalist Maartin Allcock and bassist extraordinaire Dave Pegg (both of whom were also in Jethro Tull for a time), and some of the greatest nights of my life were spent in bars, hotel rooms, and even parking garages across the northeastern United States drinking, smoking, laughing, and hearing fantastic stories about Swarb, and Sandy, and the British folk revival of the 1960s. I am very honored to say that Maart has been a very good friend to me throughout the years.
I only mention that because I think that there's a sense of family around Fairport that supersedes who comes and goes in the lineup, or how much one happens to like the current incarnation. Over 25 people have come and gone, at least 6 of which are no longer with us, and, like most of this 'family', I consider myself a Fairport fan for life, regardless of whatever my opinion of the new album or current lineup is.
It's bigger than that. It's about longevity and tradition and survival. It's about thousand year old murder ballads that are as fresh as yesterday's headlines. And it's about the sound of a fiery fiddle "to rouse the spirit of the earth and move the rolling sky."
That's the legacy of Dave Swarbrick.

In my fantasy vision of the afterlife, there's a mighty session going on tonight with Swarb, Sandy, Trevor Lucas, Martin Lamble, Bruce Rowland (two drummers - the mind reels!), and all the other greats who have gone.
And I hope someday I can check it out (not too soon, of course...)

Thank you Mr. Swarbrick.

- Dewey
4th June 2016"

Apologies for double posting, but I thought this obit from the New York Times worth sharing:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/05/arts/music/dave-swarbrick-british-folk-fiddler-dies-at-75.html

It was 1988. I was 20, and read something in a Dutch music magazine called OOR ("Ear") about one Sandy Denny, a singer/songwriter who had passed away aged just 32, 10 years earlier. I was intrigued by what I read, and in a weird impulse I bought the just-released 4-LP box set on the Hannibal label, at the Concerto record store in Amsterdam.
I was absolutely hooked and totally gobsmacked by what I heard. It was as if I had found my musical home. Many an evening with curtains closed, lights out, headphones on.
From Sandy I got to Fairport Convention, and once there I discovered such a vast wealth of varied music, from traditional to rock - Albion Band, Richard/Linda Thompson, Whippersnapper, Steeleye, Carthy, etc etc.
Hovering over all this were a few key figures. David Swarbrick was one.
So. Less than a year after discovering Sandy's music, which truly opened musical floodgates for me, I found myself at the holy ground of Cropredy, and how delighted I was when Swarb guested with Fairport on, I believe, Sir Patrick Spens. It was 1989 and it felt like witnessing The Beatles!
After that I of course found out these people were all rather down to earth and approachable. Cropredy was the base of many an international friendship.  
But I never forget discovering this music. Be it in the dark with headphones on and curtains (and eyes) closed, or on a walkman (remember those?) whilst walking long distance footpaths in England - THIS was my musical world, and it basically remained so ever since - and Dave Swarbrick was one of its prime movers and shakers.
So though in the light of his health issues over the years Swarb's passing may not come as the hugest of surprises, and though I did meet, but not actually know him, and though in 1999 it would have been wholly incomprehensible that he'd live for another seventeen years, most of these as an active and gigging musician too, it does kinda feel like losing part of - well, youth, whatever it is.

So long, Swarb. Now there was a one-off.

Took a road trip with Viking friends last year, Jurassic Coast. En route they saw Corfe, but it was sunny sunday, and I wanted to show them Maiden anyway. Explained to them about Hardy Country, and the only film ever to adequately represent and celebrate the place in it's time, 'Far from the Madding Crowd'. Not sure, or bothered, whether they really got it but on retiring later, put the telly on to get the weather. Flicking through to find it I got Troy, cajouling Bathsheba at Maiden, so had to see it through, Swarb's 2 Seconds in the barn at Abbotsbury being very special, and intrinsic to the feel of that whole piece. G

I saw Swarb (and FC, for that matter) for the first and only time in 1976, in a place called Vlaardingen, during a folkfestival that was held there.
It was the time just before the release of the  'Bonny bunch of roses' album. I have vivid memories of him singing the song of the same name, which he did very well. Swarb was more than a fine fiddleplayer. Although never a purist, traditional folkmusic was under his skin and he could 'live' a long ballad, as well as play lightning fast jigs and reels. He was there at the birth of traditional folkrock. From 1971 on, Swarb was FC for ten years.
And thats only Fairport. He and Martin Carthy were a duo off-and-on for almost fifty years. And there was much more
He was there, all the time. And now he is not, anymore. He will be missed.

Most of you can't read Dutch, I suppose, but I have written my own small obituary on my blog: http://moedwil-en-misverstand.blogspot.nl/2016/06/dave-swarbrick.html

Whilst cleaning the house this morning I put on Swarb playing , My hearts in New South Wales.
The song Sheen and I got married to. She sat down, listened and shed a tear for the past and for Swarb. Beautiful.

This is such sad news....my thoughts and prayers go to Jill and all Swarb's family and friends.

Me, I'm trying to stop tears and, I think, boring my summer tenants with repeated playing so of every bit of Swarb's music. So happy I was blessed with seeing him in person, devastated I won't have the chance to see him again till we meet on the ledge.

That is where you are mistaken. We can read it. We just can't understand it!  ;)






(Wasn't sure whether to risk a little levity on this thread. But I don't think Swarb would mind.)

Ace.  :)

Have seen this on Fairports site:

Swarb Obituary on BBC Radio 4.

The BBC Radio Four series 'Last Word' will feature an obituary for former Fairport fiddler Dave Swarbrick who died on Friday 3 June.
Simon Nicol will speak on the programme which goes out at 16.00 on Friday 10 June (repeated at 20.30 on Sunday 12 June) on  92.5 - 96 FM, DAB and online.

I found this on BBC Radio Leeds: Martin Carthy on Swarb and a live recording of them playing 'Carthy's March', which Swarb claims to have written in his sleep..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03wffsw#play

Looking through old pictures and found these two of Swarb onstage in 2006 with Kevin Dempsey and Maart.

[Photo over 400 days old. Removed by Admin.]

I heard about Swarb's death from Fairport themselves, at a gig in Kemsing Village Hall, Kent on Friday. Very sad loss, but of course Fairport still played a fine gig.

Recently I went to the Bristol Folk Festival - always worth a visit - and stayed at a B&B near Clifton Bridge. The owners were telling us about the many folk musicians who'd stayed at their place in recent years, including the Carthy clan, John Renbourne, Steve Knightly and many more, but their favourite guest was Swarb. They had to re- allocate rooms to get him downstairs accommodation, but he repaid them (and other guests) with first class entertainment over the breakfast table, a man of a thousand stories amusing all and sundry.

RIP

No mention of Swarb on Last Words ��... Shaffer, Ali and Dame Peggy Spencer.

I wondered about that. Is it a different prog?

It's the same programme but they often change the "line-up" at the last minute if someone famous dies towards the end of the week.

That'd probably be Ali then, possibly extended?

Chance for next week if its a  'light' week

Nice mention for Swarb by Show of Hands at Stepping Stines festival......lots of applause and cheers followed

A very good obit from the Sydney Morning Herald (at least one typo notwithstanding)...

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/dave-swarbrick-the-fairport-convention-violinist-who-fell-in-love-with-an-australian-girl-20160610-gpg4r8.html

The Swarb obit was on today's 'Last Word'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07flhlf

Annoyingly, the prog you get seems to be something from R3  >:( I've emailed them but it probably won't get fixed until tomorrow.

I got it ok yesterday, but I did a search online rather than use the link

Normal service has been resumed...you can now listen to the Radio 4 programme from the link (above).

Sorted! Nice tribute to him :)

A belated but extremely sincere RIP.

Those of us who are members of the Fairporters fb group may well have seen Issy Swarbrick's post that there will be a memorial "ceremony" outside the Brasenose at 1630 on Sat 13 August. No idea what form this may take... but a bench with plaque has been mentioned.

Mods - I hope it's ok to post this here, apologies if not and feel free to remove if you see fit.

Right in the middle of Ashley's gig on the villsge hall....wonder whether he'll have a long interval?

What a lovely idea 😀 and probably not the only tribute to the great man over the weekend

Sam Sweeney's tribute to Swarb at Shrewsbury: Dirty Linen - played on a fiddle Swarb gave Sam.

http://www.folkicons.co.uk/swarbmenu.htm

Well done,sir!  :)