So how did YOU get into Fairport?

[Paul JM UK]

Erm, luckily grew up with a mad Uncle we would see at weekends, now sadly departed.  This man had THE largest record collection ever.  Mainly Country (dont laugh), but included lots of Johnny Cash, Elvis, and I do recall a couple of early FC albums and a Richard Thompson or two.

Fast forward a few years, and at about 13 or 14 I suppose listened to some Richard Thompson (not forgetting Linda) - didnt make the connection though.

At about 18 years old had a friend who lent me some Nick Drake on vinyl - checked over the sleevenotes and started seeing names I'd seen before - Richard Thompson for one, but also Simon, Peggy and Danny Thompson - did a bit more digging - found the connection between Danny T and John Martyn (GOD!) - and of course the link back between the track Solid Air and Nick Drake - connecting the whole lot of course, together with another favourite band of mine (the Floyd) was Joe Boyd.

I love all these links I find, and are often the basis of how my record collection expands.  That year got hold of History of Fairport CD on tape and was hooked.  Since then have been steadily building my FC, RT, John Martyn etc collections.  Went to Croppers in 1997 first time, and unfortunately not been since until last weekend.

There you go, in a nutshell!

ps - 33 now and still going strong.  I must admit to sticking to the early stuff (basically up to Full House), but in recent months have been drawn more and more to the later recordings.  at 1997 Cropredy I didnt really have the stomach for things like John Gaudie, Wood and the Wire, Rocky Road etc - but now loving them - am I getting old?!

[MarkV]

I am fairly new to Fairport.  Saturday was the first time I have seen them live.  Some years ago  I bought "an introduction to" and loved it.  From this album I went out and bought virtually every Sandy Denny album that I could get my grubby hands on, Liege and Leaf came a bit later and I was hooked.  

In some ways I am lucky as I am still on a voyage of discovery. There are so many songs that I have not heard, and intend to make sure I do.  

[The Geriatric Hedgehogs]

I was brought up with it really. Parents dragged me to see various fairport gigs and to cropredy at the age of 4 and have been going ever since - the influence parents have on you!!!!

[Jack O Diamonds]

In the beginning was a sampler album called "Bumpers" with "Walk Awhile" on it, as well as "Hazy Jane" from Nick Drake, Just the odd few great tracks, indeed.  Was this the best compilation ever?

Great compilation... as were "You Can All Join In", "Nice Enough to Eat", and "El Pea"... Island really was the UK's answer to Elektra - formidably talented acts given wide degrees of artistic freedom... For Tim Buckley, Love, Judy Collins, The Doors, Tom Rush, David Peel and the Lower East Side, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band etc Island had Fairport, Traffic, Mott the Hoople, Tull, King Crimson, Nick Drake...

The Basing Street studios were also a very cool place to hang out when you were 16 and grooving around, baby! (takes long toke at sadly imaginary splifette)

[Nic]

Friend who was in to them at high school lent me a CD. Since then I've taken up mandolin and we've started a folk group, well, I say group - it's just us two in it really.  Classic stuff.

[Jack O Diamonds]

Friend who was in to them at high school lent me a CD. Since then I've taken up mandolin and we've started a folk group, well, I say group - it's just us two in it really.  Classic stuff.

Good for you Nic! Check out some Swarbrick/Carthy albums for inspiration... also get hold of a bass player and a drummer and go electric!

Good luck!!

 

[Nic]

Got a Carthy album at Croppers - lovely stuff. As for going electric...we'll see

[Mr Cat (Lewis)]

First post here, but nice to see SKirky here (from the sometimes active Delphi Spirit of the West board.).

Anyway, this is the story..Back in 1985 or so I was listening mostly to metal and prog stuff, with some Roy haprer and John Martyn for light relief.  Then out of curiosity and on hearing he was England's greatest guitarist, I bought a copy of RT's Hand of Kindness.  That led to other Rt albums and of course that led on to Fairport.  First FC album I bought was a secondhand vinyl copy of "What We Did.."

I was helped along in my growing appreciation of FC by my one time neighbour, Mr. Andrew Cunningham, who persuaded me to go to Cropredy and sundry other Fairport concerts starting in 1988.  Since then I;ve seen FC and related artists on zillions of occasions.  last time I saw Fairport was in vancouver on the XXXV tour - Peggy was in a terrible mood in the second half of the show due to some **** at customs (every visiting band is treated like they are Courtney Love by Canadian customs)  but it was great to see the Chaps again.

[Portmeirion]

I got into Fairport purely by INSTINCT.

While passing a secondhand record shop , in 1974, I was drawn to an intriguing looking cover.

It had a family tree of a band or bands , I didn't know then, and a rosette you could actually move.
Of course it was THE HISTORY OF FAIRPORT CONVENTION album
So my instinct told me," If these people put this much detail and effort into their cover,its worth finding out do they carry it on into their music."

Brought it home, put it on , absolutely amazing stuff.

Instantly took to , the Book song, Fotheringay and of course it was my first introduction to Who knows where the time goes.

I still have that secondhand album , and I still remember the day I bought it.

Never looked back. Bought everything they have done since.

[Pete Gray]

Fairport albums were around in our early 70's student flats - not that I was ever a student, I was an engineering apprentice but hung out with student friends. My (now) wife Mary shared with 5 other would be teachers in Sheffield and I can remember "What We Did", "Leige and Lief" and "Morris On" being permanently on the DANSETTE record player.
We first saw Fairport at Sheffield University Union 1975 or early 76.
I can vividly remember Swarb prancing about wearing denim bib and braces with a ciggy hanging out of his mouth. The other thing about that gig was that someone standing above the band on the gallery dropped a glass bottle onto Sandy's head - she was taken off stage for quite a while but did come back on apparantly not seriosly hurt.

Seen them live several times, the worst of which was Cambridge Corn Exchange New Year's Eve 1983 or possibly 84 - they were so loud and rocky it was seriously painful and we left early.
Last concert we saw was the April this year accoustic gig at Sheffield Memorial Hall - excellent.

In the late 80's running the Cartwheel Folk Club in Sheffield we got to know Whippersnapper pretty well, their first couple of gigs with Swarb and then later without him - Ask Chris Leslie about the Portrait stunt we pulled on him.

Always felt at home with Fairport and was totally blown away with Saturday night at Cropredy, not to mention the rest of the weekend.

Pete
 

[Zsuzsa]

It was 1970 I think, but maybe '71. Fairport was playing in Hungary with Sandy, and me and my friend got to talk to them somehow. There wasn't much happening in Hungary those days, we used to go to the Jazz festival in Prague to get our kicks. But Fairport was something utterly different and we fell in love with their music. They gave us a lift back to Budapest after the concert and I still cherish the photo's I have with Sandy and of Dave. My friend escaped from Hungary in '71, me in '72. I've seen FC in Holland several times in after that, lost them for a while and found them again in Amsterdam a 4-5 years ago. Been to Cropredy twice and I hope that the spirit of Cropredy will survive.....

[Jim]

It was 1970 I think, but maybe '71. Fairport was playing in Hungary with Sandy, and me and my friend got to talk to them somehow. There wasn't much happening in Hungary those days, we used to go to the Jazz festival in Prague to get our kicks. But Fairport was something utterly different and we fell in love with their music. They gave us a lift back to Budapest after the concert and I still cherish the photo's I have with Sandy and of Dave. My friend escaped from Hungary in '71, me in '72. I've seen FC in Holland several times in after that, lost them for a while and found them again in Amsterdam a 4-5 years ago. Been to Cropredy twice and I hope that the spirit of Cropredy will survive.....

altogether now......"oh what a time you had down by the daniube,eating your goulash and ecaping from communism"apologies to a mr pegg

[Toerag]

Early Eighties I recorded a song that struck my youthful heart ("My God" by Tull - heard of them before on this topic) from the radio. Friday Rock Show I think - thank you Tommy Vance! My friends listened to the song and thought it was probably Jethro Tull. Scoot forward to the point where I could afford tapes, and I met a girl at a bedsit in Newcastle. She had "Aqualung" on and I recognised the song on side two - My God! Talked to her all night - partially to listen to the album  . Bought several Tull albums, then had the good fortune to move in with Nick who bought their entire back catalogue - I was hooked.
Saw Jethro Tull many times in the late eighties, then one of our friends desperately wanted to go to a two day festival in Oxfordshire starring most of Jethro Tull. August 1990 dawned and a group of us turned up with a borrowed tent. Then again, and again and again.....
Early on we got rained on (1991 or 1992?) and so we bought our leather hats from one of the stalls, then we made cloaks and waterproofed them. This made us capable of staying entirely dry through the worst rains over the years. We grew up, got old, got kids, got chairs (very old!) and still keep coming back in variable numbers.
I'm hooked and love the music - one of us hates folk music, camping and any time away from internet access, but still turns up - must be out wit and charm 

[Zsuzsa]

"altogether now......"oh what a time you had down by the daniube,eating your goulash and ecaping from communism"apologies to a mr pegg" from Jim
  Didn't think many remember this song, not one to be played at on festivals or concerts I guess. The goulash communism had it's uses though, otherwise I would have had to discover FC in the west 

Zsuzsa

[Jim]

 it's almost a quote from"hungarian rhapsody" from the rosie album,but it doesnt say owt about escaping communismit goes"eating our goulash and drinking our wine"
sorry to mess you about, but we are glad to have you here

[Zsuzsa]

it's almost a quote from"hungarian rhapsody" from the rosie album,but it doesnt say owt about escaping communismit goes"eating our goulash and drinking our wine"
sorry to mess you about, but we are glad to have you here

yeh, I know  , I just followed you on in the same spirit. It's nice to be on "talkawhile".
Zsuzsa

[BPTNT]

it's almost a quote from"hungarian rhapsody" from the rosie album,but it doesnt say owt about escaping communismit goes"eating our goulash and drinking our wine"

Has anyone checked out the very end of the fade-out of this tune? A fantastic Trevor Lucas moment that almost justifies the songs inclusion on the 'Rosie' record....Go on....crank it up now. It's wonderful!

[Jim]

best of order gentlemen please ,yes we know what he says but his excuse for such language is that he was from a penal colony and they know no better

[mik]

It was 1970 I think, but maybe '71. Fairport was playing in Hungary with Sandy, and me and my friend got to talk to them somehow. There wasn't much happening in Hungary those days, we used to go to the Jazz festival in Prague to get our kicks. But Fairport was something utterly different and we fell in love with their music. They gave us a lift back to Budapest after the concert and I still cherish the photo's I have with Sandy and of Dave. My friend escaped from Hungary in '71, me in '72. I've seen FC in Holland several times in after that, lost them for a while and found them again in Amsterdam a 4-5 years ago. Been to Cropredy twice and I hope that the spirit of Cropredy will survive.....

that is quite amazing!!!

could do with a few more observations from you Zsuzsa

mik

[Nigels]

It goes somthing like this;
Top 40
Pop music
Rock music
Quo, Floyd, etc
Roy Harper
Led Zep
Four Symbols
Battle Of Evermore
Sandy Denny
Fairport
Always thought Sandy and Fairport brought the best out of each other. Never really got into Fairport without her though Sloth is something special. Cropredy 2004 was the first time I'd seen Fairport live and Sloth was awesome.
Being a big fan of Roy Harper and listening to Sandy and Fairport got me into other folk too;
Eric Bogle's No Mans's Land is so moving. No one I chatted to at Cropredy had heard of the Tannahill Weavers but they are another favourite (in fact I'd suggest a good band for Cropredy next year).
Thats enough waffling.
Cheers, Nigels.