So how did YOU get into Fairport?

[Mark]

...............I'm not medically qualified, it's a PhD (in pharmacology)..............

So you will be the board's main dealer in authority on "pharmacological substances" come festival season then?

 

[Big Dave]

...............I'm not medically qualified, it's a PhD (in pharmacology)..............

So you will be the board's main dealer in authority on "pharmacological substances" come festival season then?

 

Nudge, Nudge, Wink, Wink........know what I mean guv? Say no more.......

[abby (tank girl)]

and back on topic..

when i was 18 and at college there was a slightly older, hairy hippy sort of bloke we all hung out who was really into FC with so i first heard fairport through him (thanks john), then some years later i foound them on a compilation i borrowed from the library, and liked them, so i borrowed a couple of albums (jewel in the crown and another i think) and liked them too, so when they played in kettering i got tickets, still liked them, went to my first cropredy in.....er, 2001???  and have been going ever since!

[martin driver]

I got my first FC album "Bonny Bunch of Roses" in 1977, it's to this day still one of my favourite ever FC albums. Then for several years it all sort of passed me by.
Until one sunny day in May 1990, it was the 25th to be precise, I was walking in Brighton when I happened upon a couple of wandering minstrels. The rest as they say...........

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[Amethyst (Jenny)]

Ohh look there's Maart!!

 Groove.. I was at that Kettering gig!!

[davidmjs]

I got my first FC album "Bonny Bunch of Roses" in 1977, it's to this day still one of my favourite ever FC albums. Then for several years it all sort of passed me by.
Until one sunny day in May 1990, it was the 25th to be precise, I was walking in Brighton when I happened upon a couple of wandering minstrels. The rest as they say...........

You could have given us a Mullet Warning with that photo...terrifying stuff...  

[abby (tank girl)]

Ohh look there's Maart!!

 Groove.. I was at that Kettering gig!!

its a small world innit!

[david stevenson]

May have said this before but it was the summer of '67 and I was an adolescent schoolboy in the west of Scotland when listening to John Peel's Saturday afternoon slot on the infant radio 1 and heard a new band called Fairport Convention singing a Joni Mitchell song (whoever she was) called Chelsea Morning, with traffic noise and stuff and a transcendentally beautiful lead vocal by a lady called Judy Dyble.  Hit me for six, and when my birthday occurred some weeks later I turned down the chance of getting Sergeant Pepper, no less, for Fairport's first on Polydor.  Followed them through radio plays, Sandy came in and I bought WWDOOH - still my favourite FC album after nearly (gulp) 40 years.  Saw that lineup (I think) at the old Green's Playhouse in Glasgow and carried on with the next three albums on vinyl.  Started playing guitar in 1971 - influenced/inspired by James Taylor/Ralph McTell - but first performance moves were with several drifting student bands in the early to mid-70s such as Dirty Linen and Sailor's Moon.  Interestingly enough, our contemporaries were the likes of Battlefield Band (headlining St Neots Festival this May, plug, plug) and the Tannahills, but we stuck with the late 60s FC mix of west coast covers and trads, tho our Trads were Scottish rather than English.  Must have seen FC at least annually in those days

Left Uni, moved south, solo singing, marriage, family, career, , no singing, then career hiatus four years ago, started writing and performing again and that's it, apart from renewing my acquaintance with FC live every other year.

[Karl Ernst]

Hit me for six, and when my birthday occurred some weeks later I turned down the chance of getting Sergeant Pepper, no less, for Fairport's first on Polydor.

Good choice. I'd still prefer the first Fairport album over any of the Beatles' albums.

Battlefield Band

They were my very first contact with folk music. They came as support act of a Mike Oldfield tour in 1980 or 81 and left the crowd excited and shouting for more - Mike Oldfield, who is this guy anyway...    Whatever, they woke my passion for English and Scottish folk (although more towards the folk rock side, actually) and here I am, 26 years later, waiting for the Cropredy tickets sales to start...

Karl

[Suzanne66]

I'm a bit of a late comer, my mum bought my dad a fairport CD (then and now) for his birthday about 3 years ago. unfortunately it turns out that my mum mixed up fleetwood mac with fairport (how I have no idea!) so my dad didn't really listen to it. So I nicked it as I had heard a few of their songs on the radio....and I fell in love with it. And then I bought Liege and Lief. And wow....

[MPinelli]

Being a big Jethro Tull fan I had always known of the band Fairport Convention because Mr. Pegg was almost always referred to as "former Fairport Convention bassist", but I had never heard the music until they opened up for Tull on the US tour back in '87. I was immediately hooked, as I am to this day. At the time they were promoting "In Real Time". These were the days before the easy and convenient access of information from the internet and I was unable to find a record/cd shop that actually carried Fairport discs. About a year later I finally stumbled into a shop that actually had a selection of Fairport discs. I bought "In Real Time", loved it and went back the next day to buy the rest which included "Leige", "Gladys Leap" and "Full House". Because I came on in the band's "latter" days I have much more fondness and connection with the Allcock/Leslie versions of Fairport. Chris' playing is just fantastically tasteful and Maart?? What can be said? I just LOVED the way he would weave in and out of a tune with his bouzar. Just a fantastic sound imho. Now if only we could get Maart and Chris in the band at the same time...

[Dr Clive]

I think Chris and Maart did play together at the Cropredy when Chris stood in for Ric after the latter's "arm/window interface" problem - can't remember the year?

DC

[David W]

'92 I think - 25th Anniversary Year

[MPinelli]

I think Chris and Maart did play together at the Cropredy when Chris stood in for Ric after the latter's "arm/window interface" problem - can't remember the year?

DC

I was hoping for something of a more permanent nature!!  

[Amethyst (Jenny)]

Definitely 1992.

[PLW (Peter)]

Definitely 1992.

And the resulting double live album is sensational - one of the best of all Fairport's album. Well, I think so anyway.

[Dr Clive]

I do have this album, and I agree that it's absolutely fab! A great "History of..." for anyone wanting an introduction to the band over it's history (musically and personnel-wise) up to that point.

DC

[simon frisby]

First saw them in 98 on DMs last tour, had only vaguely heard of them beforehand, brought an album(Angel Delight) prior to the gig to get a feel. Was totally blown away by the gig especially the twin fiddles, which is probably why the current lineup is my fave.

Promptly bought every othe album, except bonny and tipplers (soon to be rectified, thanks to the rereleases ) and have been to Cropredy every year since.

My bank balance and sanity have been in ruin eversince, but i love the band and the music and ive made some good friends. And in this world that cant be a bad thing can it?

[Ollie]

I've only just found this topic, and I have an interesting story to tell....

It all started about 2 years ago in my last year of Primary school when one of the teachers played Fairport's Portmeirion from XXXV as we came into assembly. I thought to my self, mmmm, I like this and went up and asked her if I could borrow the CD. She was worried about giving a student a CD case with a oint of beer on the back and worried about what my parents might think!! Anyway, I took the CD home and liked all of the different tracks, becuase they were so different from each other. After that, I brought the Some of Our Yesterdays double CD a) becuase it had Portmeirion on it (from the original album) and b) becuase I couldn't find XXXV in the shops. And it all took of from their. My liking of Fairport has meant that I got into Steeleye Span, Dave Swarbrick and all sorts of Folk music. It has also meant that my parents have had to pay for 3 Winter Tours, 1 Cropredy, about 70 CD's and some DVDs and vinyls. It has also meant that I took up the mandolin, guitar and tin whistle. I now have 3 mandos, 2 guitars, a new amp and several tin whistles. My teacher has cost my parents a lot of money!! She is still really impressed that she has managed to, well, transform my life, I guess.

[gower flower (Shirl)]

Good for you, Ollie!