Folk clubs
Encyclopedia
A folk club is a regular event, permanent venue, or section of a venue devoted to folk music
and traditional music
. Folk clubs were primarily an urban phenomenon of 1960s and 1970s Great Britain
and Ireland
, and vital to the second British folk revival
, but continue today there and elsewhere. In America, as part of the American folk music revival
, they played a key role not only in acoustic music, but in launching the careers of groups that later became rock and roll acts.
in London and Birmingham to form clubs where traditional music could be performed. A few private clubs, like the Good Earth Club and the overtly political Topic Club in London, were formed by the mid 1950s and were providing a venue for folk song, but the folk club movement received its major boost from the short-lived British skiffle
craze, from about 1955 to 1959, creating a demand for opportunities to play versions of American folk, blues and jazz music, often on assorted acoustic and improvised instruments. This included, as the name suggests, the ‘Ballad and Blues’ club in a pub
in Soho
, co-founded by Ewan MacColl
, although the date and nature of the club in its early years is disputed. As the craze subsided from the mid-1950s many of these clubs began to shift towards the performance of English traditional folk material, partly as a reaction to the growth of American dominated pop and rock n’ roll music. The Ballad and Blues Club became the ‘Singer Club’ and, in 1961 moved to The Princess Louise pub in Holborn
, with the emphasis increasingly placed on English traditional music and particularly on unaccompanied song in the singer’s own voice, leading to the creation of strict ‘policy clubs’, that pursued a pure and traditional form of music. This became the model for a rapidly expanding movement and soon every major city in Britain had its own folk club. By the mid-1960s there were probably over 300 in Britain, providing an important circuit for acts that performed traditional songs and tunes acoustically, where some could sustain a living by playing to a small but committed audience. Some of the most influential clubs in the UK
included Les Cousins
, Bunjies
and The Troubadour, in London and the Bristol Troubadour
in England's West Country
.
Many of these later emerged as major performers in their own right, including A.L. Lloyd, Martin Carthy
, and Shirley Collins
who were able to tour the clubs as a circuit and who also became major recording artists. A later generation of performers used the folk club circuit for highly successful mainstream careers, including Billy Connolly
, Jasper Carrott
, Ian Dury
and Barbara Dickson
.
in Greek Street, where John Renbourn
often played, and The Scots Hoose
in Cambridge Circus, were both casualties. The Singers Club closed its doors in 1991.
The decline began to stabilize in the mid-1990s with the resurgence of interest in folk music and there are now over 160 folk clubs in the United Kingdom, including many that can trace their origins back to the 1950s including The Bridge Folk Club in Newcastle
(previously called the Folk Song and Ballad club) claims to the oldest club still in existence in its original venue (1953). In Edinburgh
, Sandy Bell's club in Forest Hill has been running since the late 1960s. In London
, the Troubadour at Earl's Court, where Bob Dylan
, Paul Simon
, Sandy Denny
and Martin Carthy
sang, became a poetry club in the 1990s, but is now a folk club again.
The nature of surviving folk clubs has also changed significantly, many larger clubs utilise PA systems, opening the door to use of electric instruments, although drums and full electric folk
line-ups remain rare. The mix of music often includes American roots music
, blues and world music as well as traditional British folk music. From 2000 the BBC Radio 2 folk awards have included an award for the best folk club.
since the 1950s, primarily for the descendants of Irish immigrants. Mostly on Friday and Saturday nights these have been folk clubs in all but name. They have been able to book major Irish bands that ordinary folk clubs could not have afforded. Changes in the law mean that players often have to become a member 24 hours beforehand. Since 2002 A "public entertainment licence" is required from local authorities for almost any kind of public performance of music. To avoid the constant need to re-apply for licences for new events, some folk clubs have opted to create a "Private members club" instead. This requires that members of the public join at least 24 hours in advance, not on the night of the actual performance. Previously you could pay on entry.
was the most famous nexus for folk clubs in the Sixties. While some music took place quite informally in Washington Square Park
, a number of clubs, such as The Bitter End
and Gerde's Folk City
were also central to the development of what was originally called "Folk Music
" but would evolve into "Singer–songwriter
" music as more and more acoustic musicians performed original material. The Lovin' Spoonful
is one example of a pop group that started in the folk world.
In Boston, the most famous venue was the Club 47, where Joan Baez
got her start. Later, this became Passim's. (During most of the Seventies, local station WCAS (AM) produced a live broadcast from this club called "Live at Passim's"; today the club is known as Club Passim). Other lesser known clubs, such as the Turk's Head and the Sword in the Stone (on Charles Street) and, later, the Idler (in Cambridge), also helped to make up what was known as "The Boston Folk Scene";. A number of lesser-known but still active musicians, such as Bill Staines
and Chris Smither
, also developed in this milieu.
In California, one important San Francisco club was the hungry i
; Los Angeles had The Troubadour and McCabe's Guitar Shop
.
While the folk boom gave way to its rock descendants, forcing many clubs to close or to move to more electric music, in recent years, a number of venues have offered acoustic music (usually original) in a way that continues at least part of the function of the folk clubs. Traditional music, however, which was at the root of these developments, is more often offered by local folk societies, such as Calliope: Pittsburgh Folk Music Society
, Athens Folk Music and Dance Society, etc.
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
and traditional music
Traditional music
Traditional music is the term increasingly used for folk music that is not contemporary folk music. More on this is at the terminology section of the World music article...
. Folk clubs were primarily an urban phenomenon of 1960s and 1970s Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and vital to the second British folk revival
British folk revival
The British folk revival incorporates a number of movements for the collection, preservation and performance of traditional music in the United Kingdom and related territories and countries, which had origins as early as the 18th century...
, but continue today there and elsewhere. In America, as part of the American folk music revival
American folk music revival
The American folk music revival was a phenomenon in the United States that began during the 1940s and peaked in popularity in the mid-1960s. Its roots went earlier, and performers like Josh White, Burl Ives, Woody Guthrie, Lead Belly, Richard Dyer-Bennett, Oscar Brand, Jean Ritchie, John Jacob...
, they played a key role not only in acoustic music, but in launching the careers of groups that later became rock and roll acts.
Origins
From the end of the Second World War there had been attempts by the English Folk Dance and Song SocietyEnglish Folk Dance and Song Society
The English Folk Dance and Song Society was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dance Society. The EFDSS, a member-based organisation, was incorporated as a Company limited by guarantee in 1935 and became a Registered Charity The English Folk...
in London and Birmingham to form clubs where traditional music could be performed. A few private clubs, like the Good Earth Club and the overtly political Topic Club in London, were formed by the mid 1950s and were providing a venue for folk song, but the folk club movement received its major boost from the short-lived British skiffle
Skiffle
Skiffle is a type of popular music with jazz, blues, folk, roots and country influences, usually using homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a term in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, it became popular again in the UK in the 1950s, where it was mainly...
craze, from about 1955 to 1959, creating a demand for opportunities to play versions of American folk, blues and jazz music, often on assorted acoustic and improvised instruments. This included, as the name suggests, the ‘Ballad and Blues’ club in a pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
in Soho
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable...
, co-founded by Ewan MacColl
Ewan MacColl
Ewan MacColl was an English folk singer, songwriter, socialist, actor, poet, playwright, and record producer. He was married to theatre director Joan Littlewood, and later to American folksinger Peggy Seeger. He collaborated with Littlewood in the theatre and with Seeger in folk music...
, although the date and nature of the club in its early years is disputed. As the craze subsided from the mid-1950s many of these clubs began to shift towards the performance of English traditional folk material, partly as a reaction to the growth of American dominated pop and rock n’ roll music. The Ballad and Blues Club became the ‘Singer Club’ and, in 1961 moved to The Princess Louise pub in Holborn
Holborn
Holborn is an area of Central London. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running as High Holborn from St Giles's High Street to Gray's Inn Road and then on to Holborn Viaduct...
, with the emphasis increasingly placed on English traditional music and particularly on unaccompanied song in the singer’s own voice, leading to the creation of strict ‘policy clubs’, that pursued a pure and traditional form of music. This became the model for a rapidly expanding movement and soon every major city in Britain had its own folk club. By the mid-1960s there were probably over 300 in Britain, providing an important circuit for acts that performed traditional songs and tunes acoustically, where some could sustain a living by playing to a small but committed audience. Some of the most influential clubs in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
included Les Cousins
Les Cousins
Les Cousins may refer to:* Les Cousins , a 1960s folk and blues club in Greek Street, Soho, London* Les Cousins , a 1959 film by Claude Chabrol-See also:* Les Cousins Branchaud, folk group from Sainte-Ursule, Quebec...
, Bunjies
Bunjies
Opened in 1953 or 1954, and one of the original folk cafés of the 1950s/1960s, Bunjies Coffee House & Folk Cellar was situated at 27 Litchfield Street , London WC2. Below the café, in a 400 years old wine cellar, was an influential music venue which changed little until its closure in 1999...
and The Troubadour, in London and the Bristol Troubadour
Bristol Troubadour Club
In the late 1960s and early '70s, a thriving contemporary folk music scene in Bristol was centred on the short lived but influential Bristol Troubadour Club in Clifton village, the student quarter above the city centre...
in England's West Country
West Country
The West Country is an informal term for the area of south western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. It is often defined to encompass the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset and the City of Bristol, while the counties of...
.
Nature
Although the name suggest a fixed space, most clubs were simply a regular gathering, usually in the back or upstairs room of a public house on a weekly basis. These clubs were largely an urban phenomenon and most members seem to have been from the urbanised middle classes, although the material that was increasingly their focus was that of the rural (and to a lesser extent industrial) working classes. The clubs were known for the amateur nature of their performances, often including, or even focusing on local ‘floor singers’, of members who would step up to sing one or two songs. They also had ‘residents’, usually talented local performers who would perform regular short sets of songs.Many of these later emerged as major performers in their own right, including A.L. Lloyd, Martin Carthy
Martin Carthy
Martin Carthy MBE is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon and later artists such as Richard Thompson since he emerged as a young musician in the early days...
, and Shirley Collins
Shirley Collins
Shirley Elizabeth Collins MBE is a British folksinger who was a significant contributor to the English Folk Revival of the 1960s and 1970s...
who were able to tour the clubs as a circuit and who also became major recording artists. A later generation of performers used the folk club circuit for highly successful mainstream careers, including Billy Connolly
Billy Connolly
William "Billy" Connolly, Jr., CBE is a Scottish comedian, musician, presenter and actor. He is sometimes known, especially in his native Scotland, by the nickname The Big Yin...
, Jasper Carrott
Jasper Carrott
Jasper Carrott OBE is a British comedian, actor, television presenter and personality.-Early life:...
, Ian Dury
Ian Dury
Ian Robins Dury was an English rock and roll singer, lyricist, bandleader and actor who initially rose to fame during the late 1970s, during the punk and New Wave era of rock music...
and Barbara Dickson
Barbara Dickson
Barbara Ruth Dickson, OBE is a Scottish singer whose hits include "I Know Him So Well" and "January February"...
.
Later years
The number of clubs began to decline in the 1980s, in the face of changing musical and social trends. In London Les CousinsLes Cousins (music club)
Les Cousins was a folk and blues club in the basement of a restaurant in Greek Street, in the Soho district of London. It had its heyday during the British folk music revival of the mid-1960s and was notable as a venue in which musicians of that period met and learnt from each other...
in Greek Street, where John Renbourn
John Renbourn
John Renbourn is an English guitarist and songwriter. He is possibly best known for his collaboration with guitarist Bert Jansch as well as his work with the folk group Pentangle, although he maintained a solo career before, during and after that band's existence .While most commonly labelled a...
often played, and The Scots Hoose
The Scots Hoose
The Scots Hoose was a pub, now disappeared, at Cambridge Circus in London's Charing Cross Road, originally founded as "The George & Thirteen Cantons" in or before 1759, and later, by 1975, known as "The Spice of Life"....
in Cambridge Circus, were both casualties. The Singers Club closed its doors in 1991.
The decline began to stabilize in the mid-1990s with the resurgence of interest in folk music and there are now over 160 folk clubs in the United Kingdom, including many that can trace their origins back to the 1950s including The Bridge Folk Club in Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
(previously called the Folk Song and Ballad club) claims to the oldest club still in existence in its original venue (1953). In Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Sandy Bell's club in Forest Hill has been running since the late 1960s. In London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, the Troubadour at Earl's Court, where Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
, Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
, Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny
Sandy Denny , born Alexandra Elene Maclean Denny, was an English singer and songwriter, perhaps best known as the lead singer for the folk rock band Fairport Convention...
and Martin Carthy
Martin Carthy
Martin Carthy MBE is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon and later artists such as Richard Thompson since he emerged as a young musician in the early days...
sang, became a poetry club in the 1990s, but is now a folk club again.
The nature of surviving folk clubs has also changed significantly, many larger clubs utilise PA systems, opening the door to use of electric instruments, although drums and full electric folk
Electric folk
Electric folk is the name given to the form of folk rock pioneered in England from the late 1960s, and most significant in the 1970s, which then was taken up and developed in the surrounding Celtic cultures of Brittany, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the Isle of Man, to produce Celtic rock and its...
line-ups remain rare. The mix of music often includes American roots music
American Roots Music
American Roots Music is a 2001 multi-part documentary film that explores the historical roots of American Roots music through footage and performances by the creators of the movement: Folk, Country, Blues, Gospel, Bluegrass, and many others....
, blues and world music as well as traditional British folk music. From 2000 the BBC Radio 2 folk awards have included an award for the best folk club.
Irish clubs
In Dublin, Irish music pubs are now part of a well-advertised tourist trail. Also, Irish cultural centres have existed in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
since the 1950s, primarily for the descendants of Irish immigrants. Mostly on Friday and Saturday nights these have been folk clubs in all but name. They have been able to book major Irish bands that ordinary folk clubs could not have afforded. Changes in the law mean that players often have to become a member 24 hours beforehand. Since 2002 A "public entertainment licence" is required from local authorities for almost any kind of public performance of music. To avoid the constant need to re-apply for licences for new events, some folk clubs have opted to create a "Private members club" instead. This requires that members of the public join at least 24 hours in advance, not on the night of the actual performance. Previously you could pay on entry.
American clubs
New York's Greenwich VillageGreenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
was the most famous nexus for folk clubs in the Sixties. While some music took place quite informally in Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park is one of the best-known of New York City's 1,900 public parks. At 9.75 acres , it is a landmark in the Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village, as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity...
, a number of clubs, such as The Bitter End
The Bitter End
The Bitter End is a nightclub in New York City's Greenwich Village. It opened its doors in 1961 at 147 Bleecker Street under the auspices of owner Fred Weintraub. The club changed its name to The Other End during the 1970s...
and Gerde's Folk City
Gerde's Folk City
Gerdes Folk City was a music venue in the West Village in New York City. Initially opened as a restaurant called Gerdes, by owner Mike Porco, it eventually began to present occasional incidental music. It was located at 11 West 4th Street , having moved in 1970 to 130 West 3rd Street before finally...
were also central to the development of what was originally called "Folk Music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
" but would evolve into "Singer–songwriter
Singer–songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
" music as more and more acoustic musicians performed original material. The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful
The Lovin' Spoonful is an American pop rock band of the 1960s, named to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. When asked about his band, leader John Sebastian said it sounded like a combination of "Mississippi John Hurt and Chuck Berry," prompting his friend, Fritz Richmond, to suggest the name...
is one example of a pop group that started in the folk world.
In Boston, the most famous venue was the Club 47, where Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
got her start. Later, this became Passim's. (During most of the Seventies, local station WCAS (AM) produced a live broadcast from this club called "Live at Passim's"; today the club is known as Club Passim). Other lesser known clubs, such as the Turk's Head and the Sword in the Stone (on Charles Street) and, later, the Idler (in Cambridge), also helped to make up what was known as "The Boston Folk Scene";. A number of lesser-known but still active musicians, such as Bill Staines
Bill Staines
Bill Staines is an American folk musician and singer-songwriter from New England, who writes and performs in a traditional vein. He has also written and recorded children's songs....
and Chris Smither
Chris Smither
Chris Smither is an American folk/blues singer, guitarist, and songwriter. His music draws deeply from the blues, American folk music, modern poets and philosophers.-Early life, influences and education:...
, also developed in this milieu.
In California, one important San Francisco club was the hungry i
Hungry i
The hungry i was originally a nightclub in North Beach, San Francisco. It was launched by Eric "Big Daddy" Nord, who sold it to Enrico Banducci in 1950.-The name:How the club's name came about is something of a mystery...
; Los Angeles had The Troubadour and McCabe's Guitar Shop
McCabe's Guitar Shop
McCabe's Guitar Shop is a musical instrument store and live music venue on Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, California. Opened in 1958, McCabe's specializes in acoustic and folk instruments, including guitars, banjos, mandolins, dulcimers, fiddles, psaltries, bouzoukis, sitars, ouds, and ethnic...
.
While the folk boom gave way to its rock descendants, forcing many clubs to close or to move to more electric music, in recent years, a number of venues have offered acoustic music (usually original) in a way that continues at least part of the function of the folk clubs. Traditional music, however, which was at the root of these developments, is more often offered by local folk societies, such as Calliope: Pittsburgh Folk Music Society
Calliope: Pittsburgh Folk Music Society
Calliope: Pittsburgh Folk Music Society is an organization that promotes folk music and folk dance in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, area. The Society started in the late 1960s, when performances were often held in George Balderose's house. As time went on, the Society grew and eventually began...
, Athens Folk Music and Dance Society, etc.