Liege & Lief
Encyclopedia
Liege & Lief is the fourth album by the English
rock
band Fairport Convention
. It is the third and final album the group released in the UK in 1969, all of which prominently feature Sandy Denny
as lead female vocalist. (Denny does not appear on the group’s debut album
from 1968.) It is also the very first Fairport album on which all songs have either been adapted (freely) from traditional British and Celtic
folk material (e.g., Matty Groves
, Tam Lin
), or else are original compositions (e.g., Come All Ye, Crazy Man Michael) written and performed in a similar style. By introducing songs of this genre into the group’s repertoire, Denny, who had previously sung and recorded traditional folk songs
as a solo artist, was instrumental in this transformation. Although Denny quit the band even before the album’s release, Fairport Convention has continued to the present day to make music almost exclusively within the traditional British folk idiom, and are still one of the artists most strongly associated with it.
The album was moderately successful, peaking at number 17 on the British charts during a 15-week run. It is often credited, though the claim is sometimes disputed, as the first major "British folk rock" album. (This term is not to be confused with American-style folk rock
, which had first achieved mainstream popularity on both sides of the Atlantic with The Byrds
’ early work several years prior.) The popularity of Liege & Lief did a great deal to establish the new style commercially and artistically as a distinct genre. In an audience vote at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2006, the album was voted Most Influential Folk Album of All Time.
, the band were left without a drummer. After the release of Unhalfbricking
, Dave Mattacks
took over the role and, having previously been a drummer at Mecca Ballrooms
, had to "learn a whole new style of drumming." Dave Swarbrick
, a little older than the rest of the band, had already been in a successful duo with guitarist Martin Carthy
. After his appearance on Unhalfbricking, he too joined Fairport full-time.
The band rehearsed and put together Liege & Lief over the summer of 1969 at a house in Farley Chamberlayne, near Winchester
, launching it with a sold-out concert in London's Royal Festival Hall
late in 1969.
Gone were the covers of songs by Bob Dylan
and others, replaced by electrified versions of traditional English folksongs and the first of a long line of instrumental medleys of folk dance tunes driven by Dave Swarbrick's violin playing. Much of this material had been found by Ashley Hutchings in Cecil Sharp
's collection, maintained by the English Folk Dance and Song Society
.
The title is composed of two Middle English
words: liege meaning loyal and lief meaning ready. The cover, a gatefold in grey and purple, featured cameo images of the band along with tracklisting and credits.
Soon after the release of Liege & Lief, Ashley Hutchings
left to further pursue traditional music in a new band, Steeleye Span
; Sandy Denny
also left to form Fotheringay
.
In 2007 a double album "Liege and Lief Deluxe Edition" was released; the second album consisted mainly of BBC radio live performances and two stylistically uncharacteristic outtakes, the Frank Sinatra
songs "The Lady Is a Tramp
" and "Fly Me to the Moon
".
on his Top Gear
radio programme and the album spent fifteen weeks in the UK album chart, reaching number 17.
AllMusic's reviewer summed the album up as "while [it] was the most purely folk-oriented Fairport Convention album to date, it also rocked hard in a thoroughly original and uncompromising way".
The album has come to be regarded as having a major influence in the development of British folk rock
. It was voted the 'most important folk album of all time' by BBC Radio 2
listeners in 2002, and at the 2006 BBC Radio 2
folk
awards Liege and Lief won the award for Most influential Folk Album of all time. At the event, the original line-up of Simon Nicol
, Richard Thompson, Ashley Hutchings
, Dave Swarbrick
, Dave Mattacks
, with Chris While
replacing Sandy Denny
, performed Matty Groves
. Georgia Lucas, the daughter of Sandy Denny and Trevor Lucas
, accepted the award on behalf of her late mother. This commemoration was repeated on 10 August 2007 at Cropredy, when the complete album was performed.
In June 2007, Mojo
magazine listed Liege & Lief at number 58 in its list of "100 Records that changed the world".
Note that tracks 4, 7 and 9 on Disc Two are recorded from the BBC Sessions.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention
Fairport Convention are an English folk rock and later electric folk band, formed in 1967 who are still recording and touring today. They are widely regarded as the most important single group in the English folk rock movement...
. It is the third and final album the group released in the UK in 1969, all of which prominently feature 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...
as lead female vocalist. (Denny does not appear on the group’s debut album
Fairport Convention (album)
Fairport Convention is Fairport Convention's debut album. The band formed in 1967, with original line-up Judy Dyble and Ian MacDonald , Richard Thompson and Simon Nicol , Ashley “Tyger” Hutchings and Sean Frater, replaced after their first gig by Martin Lamble...
from 1968.) It is also the very first Fairport album on which all songs have either been adapted (freely) from traditional British and Celtic
Insular Celts
The Insular Celts are the speakers of Insular Celtic languages.-Pre-Celtic Britain:Little is known of the culture and language of pre-Celtic Britain, but remnants of the latter may remain in the names of some geographical features, such as the rivers Clyde, Tamar and Thames, whose etymology is...
folk material (e.g., Matty Groves
Matty Groves
"Matty Groves" is an English folk ballad that describes an adulterous tryst between a man and a woman that is ended when the woman's husband discovers and kills them. It dates to at least the 17th century, and is one of the Child Ballads collected by 19th-century American scholar Francis James Child...
, Tam Lin
Tam Lin
Tam Lin is the hero of a legendary ballad originating from the Scottish Borders. The story revolves around the rescue of Tam Lin by his true love from the Queen of the Fairies...
), or else are original compositions (e.g., Come All Ye, Crazy Man Michael) written and performed in a similar style. By introducing songs of this genre into the group’s repertoire, Denny, who had previously sung and recorded traditional folk songs
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....
as a solo artist, was instrumental in this transformation. Although Denny quit the band even before the album’s release, Fairport Convention has continued to the present day to make music almost exclusively within the traditional British folk idiom, and are still one of the artists most strongly associated with it.
The album was moderately successful, peaking at number 17 on the British charts during a 15-week run. It is often credited, though the claim is sometimes disputed, as the first major "British folk rock" album. (This term is not to be confused with American-style folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
, which had first achieved mainstream popularity on both sides of the Atlantic with The Byrds
The Byrds
The Byrds were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn remaining the sole consistent member until the group disbanded in 1973...
’ early work several years prior.) The popularity of Liege & Lief did a great deal to establish the new style commercially and artistically as a distinct genre. In an audience vote at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2006, the album was voted Most Influential Folk Album of All Time.
History
Following the motorway accident that had killed Martin LambleMartin Lamble
Martin Francis Lamble was the drummer for British electric folk band, Fairport Convention, from just after their formation in 1967, until his death in the Fairport Convention van crash in 1969...
, the band were left without a drummer. After the release of Unhalfbricking
Unhalfbricking
The band's male vocalist Iain Matthews left during the recordings for Unhalfbricking to make his own album Matthews' Southern Comfort, after recording just one track, "Percy's Song". Sandy Denny sang lead vocals on all the other songs, including her own compositions, "Autopsy", and "Who Knows Where...
, Dave Mattacks
Dave Mattacks
Dave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
took over the role and, having previously been a drummer at Mecca Ballrooms
The Rank Group
The Rank Group plc is a European gaming and leisure business. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...
, had to "learn a whole new style of drumming." Dave Swarbrick
Dave Swarbrick
Dave Swarbrick is an English folk musician and singer-songwriter. He has been described by Ashley Hutchings as 'the most influential [British] fiddle player bar none' and his style has been copied or developed by almost every British, and many World folk violin players that have followed him...
, a little older than the rest of the band, had already been in a successful duo with guitarist 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...
. After his appearance on Unhalfbricking, he too joined Fairport full-time.
The band rehearsed and put together Liege & Lief over the summer of 1969 at a house in Farley Chamberlayne, near Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
, launching it with a sold-out concert in London's Royal Festival Hall
Royal Festival Hall
The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...
late in 1969.
Gone were the covers of songs by 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...
and others, replaced by electrified versions of traditional English folksongs and the first of a long line of instrumental medleys of folk dance tunes driven by Dave Swarbrick's violin playing. Much of this material had been found by Ashley Hutchings in Cecil Sharp
Cecil Sharp
Cecil James Sharp was the founding father of the folklore revival in England in the early 20th century, and many of England's traditional dances and music owe their continuing existence to his work in recording and publishing them.-Early life:Sharp was born in Camberwell, London, the eldest son of...
's collection, maintained by the English Folk Dance and Song Society
English 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...
.
The title is composed of two Middle English
Middle English
Middle English is the stage in the history of the English language during the High and Late Middle Ages, or roughly during the four centuries between the late 11th and the late 15th century....
words: liege meaning loyal and lief meaning ready. The cover, a gatefold in grey and purple, featured cameo images of the band along with tracklisting and credits.
Soon after the release of Liege & Lief, Ashley Hutchings
Ashley Hutchings
Ashley Stephen Hutchings is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founder member of three of the most noteworthy English folk-rock bands in the history of the genre; Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band...
left to further pursue traditional music in a new band, Steeleye Span
Steeleye Span
Steeleye Span are an English folk-rock band, formed in 1969 and remaining active today. Along with Fairport Convention they are amongst the best known acts of the British folk revival, and were among the most commercially successful, thanks to their hit singles "Gaudete" and "All Around My Hat"....
; 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...
also left to form Fotheringay
Fotheringay
Fotheringay was a short-lived British folk rock group, formed in 1970 by singer Sandy Denny on her departure from Fairport Convention. The band drew its name from her 1968 composition "Fotheringay" about Fotheringhay Castle, in which Mary, Queen of Scots had been imprisoned...
.
In 2007 a double album "Liege and Lief Deluxe Edition" was released; the second album consisted mainly of BBC radio live performances and two stylistically uncharacteristic outtakes, the Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
songs "The Lady Is a Tramp
The Lady Is a Tramp
"The Lady Is a Tramp" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical Babes In Arms in which it was introduced by former child star Mitzi Green. This song is a spoof of New York high society and its strict etiquette...
" and "Fly Me to the Moon
Fly Me to the Moon
"Fly Me to the Moon" is a popular standard song written by Bart Howard in 1954. It was originally titled "In Other Words", and was introduced by Felicia Sanders in cabarets...
".
Reception and influence
Liege & Lief was promoted by John PeelJohn Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
on his Top Gear
Top Gear (radio show)
Top Gear was originally a short-lived pop music show on the BBC Light Programme in the mid-1960s.- Origin and format :It was one of the Corporation's few attempts to compete with the pirate radio stations and Radio Luxembourg, who had attracted large audiences of young British pop music listeners...
radio programme and the album spent fifteen weeks in the UK album chart, reaching number 17.
AllMusic's reviewer summed the album up as "while [it] was the most purely folk-oriented Fairport Convention album to date, it also rocked hard in a thoroughly original and uncompromising way".
The album has come to be regarded as having a major influence in the development of British folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
. It was voted the 'most important folk album of all time' by BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
listeners in 2002, and at the 2006 BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
folk
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....
awards Liege and Lief won the award for Most influential Folk Album of all time. At the event, the original line-up of Simon Nicol
Simon Nicol
Simon John Breckenridge Nicol is a guitarist, singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He was a founder member of British folk rock, or electric folk group Fairport Convention and is the only founding member still in the band...
, Richard Thompson, Ashley Hutchings
Ashley Hutchings
Ashley Stephen Hutchings is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founder member of three of the most noteworthy English folk-rock bands in the history of the genre; Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band...
, Dave Swarbrick
Dave Swarbrick
Dave Swarbrick is an English folk musician and singer-songwriter. He has been described by Ashley Hutchings as 'the most influential [British] fiddle player bar none' and his style has been copied or developed by almost every British, and many World folk violin players that have followed him...
, Dave Mattacks
Dave Mattacks
Dave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
, with Chris While
Chris While
Chris While is an award-winning songwriter, singer and musician, known particularly for her powerful and moving vocals and the quality of her compositions and live performances. She has enjoyed success both as a solo artist, a songwriter and as a member of a number of notable and influential...
replacing 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...
, performed Matty Groves
Matty Groves
"Matty Groves" is an English folk ballad that describes an adulterous tryst between a man and a woman that is ended when the woman's husband discovers and kills them. It dates to at least the 17th century, and is one of the Child Ballads collected by 19th-century American scholar Francis James Child...
. Georgia Lucas, the daughter of Sandy Denny and Trevor Lucas
Trevor Lucas
Trevor George Lucas was an influential folk artist, a member of Fairport Convention and one of the founders of Fotheringay...
, accepted the award on behalf of her late mother. This commemoration was repeated on 10 August 2007 at Cropredy, when the complete album was performed.
In June 2007, Mojo
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
magazine listed Liege & Lief at number 58 in its list of "100 Records that changed the world".
Side one
- "Come All Ye" (Sandy DennySandy DennySandy 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...
, Ashley HutchingsAshley HutchingsAshley Stephen Hutchings is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founder member of three of the most noteworthy English folk-rock bands in the history of the genre; Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band...
) - 4:55 - "ReynardineReynardineReynardine is a traditional old English ballad; in versions most commonly sung and recorded today, Reynardine is a werefox who attracts beautiful women to him so that he can take them away to his castle...
" (traditionalTraditional musicTraditional 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...
, arranged by Fairport) - 4:33 - "Matty GrovesMatty Groves"Matty Groves" is an English folk ballad that describes an adulterous tryst between a man and a woman that is ended when the woman's husband discovers and kills them. It dates to at least the 17th century, and is one of the Child Ballads collected by 19th-century American scholar Francis James Child...
" (trad., arr. Fairport) - 8:08 - "Farewell, Farewell" (Richard Thompson) - 2:38
Side two
- "The Deserter" (trad., arr. Fairport) - 4:10
- Medley (trad., arr. Dave SwarbrickDave SwarbrickDave Swarbrick is an English folk musician and singer-songwriter. He has been described by Ashley Hutchings as 'the most influential [British] fiddle player bar none' and his style has been copied or developed by almost every British, and many World folk violin players that have followed him...
) - 4:00- "The Lark in the Morning"
- "Rakish Paddy"
- "Foxhunters' Jig"
- "Toss the Feathers"
- "Tam LinTam LinTam Lin is the hero of a legendary ballad originating from the Scottish Borders. The story revolves around the rescue of Tam Lin by his true love from the Queen of the Fairies...
" (trad., arr. Swarbrick) - 7:20 - "Crazy Man Michael" (Thompson, Swarbrick) - 4:35
CD reissue bonus tracks (previously unreleased)
- "Sir Patrick SpensSir Patrick Spens"Sir Patrick Spens" is one of the most popular of the Child Ballads , and is of Scottish origin.-Historicity:The events of the ballad are similar to, and may chronicle, an actual event: the bringing home of the Scottish queen Margaret, Maid of Norway across the North Sea in 1290...
" (trad., arr. Fairport) - "Quiet Joys of Brotherhood" (Take 1) (trad., arr. by Denny, Thompson, Swarbrick, Dave MattacksDave MattacksDave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
, wordsLyricsLyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
by Richard FariñaRichard FariñaRichard George Fariña was an American writer and folksinger.-Early years and education:Richard Fariña was born in Brooklyn, New York, of Cuban and Irish descent. He grew up in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn and attended Brooklyn Technical High School...
;)
Disc Two: Studio Out-takes & BBC Sessions
Released in the 2007 Deluxe Edition only:- "Sir Patrick Spens" (Sandy Denny Vocal Version) - 3:59
- "The Quiet Joys of Brotherhood" (Take 4) - 5:59
- "The Ballad of Easy Rider" - 4:53
- "Tam Lin" - 7:46
- Medley - 4:13
- "The Lark in the Morning"
- "Rakish Paddy"
- "Foxhunter's Jig"
- "Toss the Feathers"
- "Sir Patrick Spens" - 3:44
- "Reynardine" - 4:19
- "The Quiet Joys of Brotherhood" (Take 1) - 7:50
- "The Lady Is a Tramp" - 2:11
- Medley - 2:21 (hidden track)
- "The Lady Is a Tramp"
- "In Other Words (Fly Me to the Moon)"
Note that tracks 4, 7 and 9 on Disc Two are recorded from the BBC Sessions.
Production
- Recorded at Sound Techniques Ltd., London
- Engineered by John WoodJohn Wood (music producer)John Wood is an English sound engineer and producer, best known for his work with Fairport Convention, John Martyn, Cat Stevens, Sandy Denny, Nick Drake, the Incredible String Band, Pink Floyd, Nico and Squeeze.-Career:...
- Cover photography - Eric Hayes
- Sleeve concept & design - Fairport & Roberta Nicol
- Design coordination - Diogenic Attempts Ltd
Personnel
- Sandy DennySandy DennySandy 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...
- vocals - Dave SwarbrickDave SwarbrickDave Swarbrick is an English folk musician and singer-songwriter. He has been described by Ashley Hutchings as 'the most influential [British] fiddle player bar none' and his style has been copied or developed by almost every British, and many World folk violin players that have followed him...
- fiddle, viola - Richard Thompson - electric & acoustic guitars, backing vocals
- Simon NicolSimon NicolSimon John Breckenridge Nicol is a guitarist, singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. He was a founder member of British folk rock, or electric folk group Fairport Convention and is the only founding member still in the band...
- electric, 6-string & 12-string acoustic guitars, backing vocals - Ashley HutchingsAshley HutchingsAshley Stephen Hutchings is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founder member of three of the most noteworthy English folk-rock bands in the history of the genre; Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and The Albion Band...
- bass guitar, backing vocals - Dave MattacksDave MattacksDave Mattacks is a rock and folk drummer. Best known for his work with Fairport Convention, Mattacks has also worked both as a session musician, and as a performance artist...
- drums, percussion
External links
- [ Liege & Lief at Allmusic.com]
- Fairport Website
- Fansite