BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards
Encyclopedia
The BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards celebrate outstanding achievement during the previous year within the field of folk music
. The awards have been given annually since 2000 by British
radio station
BBC Radio 2
.
The nominees are chosen by a panel of between 100 to 150 music industry representatives, including broadcasters, journalists, festival organisers, record company directors, agents and promoters. The representatives can vary from year to year and are selected by the production team behind the awards, Smooth Operations Ltd. Smooth Operations is run by the long serving BBC producer, John Leonard.
The award ceremony, which takes place early in February, has been presented since its inception by Mike Harding
, and broadcast on BBC Radio 2
. In 2004 the awards were shown on television for the first time, on BBC Four
. In 2011 the entire event was broadcast live on television via the BBC's red button.
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....
. The awards have been given annually since 2000 by British
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...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
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...
.
The nominees are chosen by a panel of between 100 to 150 music industry representatives, including broadcasters, journalists, festival organisers, record company directors, agents and promoters. The representatives can vary from year to year and are selected by the production team behind the awards, Smooth Operations Ltd. Smooth Operations is run by the long serving BBC producer, John Leonard.
The award ceremony, which takes place early in February, has been presented since its inception by Mike Harding
Mike Harding
Mike Harding is an English singer, songwriter, comedian, author, poet and broadcaster. He is known as 'The Rochdale Cowboy' after one of his hit records...
, and broadcast on 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...
. In 2004 the awards were shown on television for the first time, on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
. In 2011 the entire event was broadcast live on television via the BBC's red button.
2011
- Best Duo: Nancy KerrNancy KerrNancy Kerr is an English folk musician, specialising in the fiddle and singing. She is the daughter of London-born singer-songwriter Sandra Kerr and Northumbrian piper Ron Elliott....
& James FaganJames FaganJames Fagan is a folk musician from Sydney, Australia. He in a singer and multi-instrumentalist specialising in the Irish bouzouki.... - Best Traditional Track: Poor Wayfaring Stranger - Eliza CarthyEliza CarthyEliza Carthy is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians singer/guitarist Martin Carthy and singer Norma Waterson.-Life and career:...
& Norma WatersonNorma WatersonNorma Christine Waterson is an English musician, best known as one of the original members of The Watersons, a premier English traditional group. Other members of the group included her brother Mike Waterson and sister Lal Waterson, and in later incarnations of the group her husband Martin... - Best Group: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Young Folk Award: Moore, Moss and Rutter
- Musician of the year: Andy CuttingAndy CuttingAndy Cutting is an English folk musician and composer. Born 18 March 1969 in Harrow, he plays melodeon and has had instruments made by Castagnari to his own specification. He won the Folk Musician of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2008 and 2011...
- Best Original Song: Hollow Point - Chris WoodChris WoodChristopher Wood may refer to:*Christopher Wood *Christopher Wood , English cricketer*Christopher Wood *Christopher Wood...
- Horizon Award: Ewan McLennan
- Best Album: Gift - Eliza CarthyEliza CarthyEliza Carthy is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians singer/guitarist Martin Carthy and singer Norma Waterson.-Life and career:...
& Norma WatersonNorma WatersonNorma Christine Waterson is an English musician, best known as one of the original members of The Watersons, a premier English traditional group. Other members of the group included her brother Mike Waterson and sister Lal Waterson, and in later incarnations of the group her husband Martin... - Lifetime achievement award: DonovanDonovanDonovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
- Best Live Act: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Good Tradition Award: Fisherman's FriendsFisherman's FriendsFisherman's Friends are a 10-strong singing group from Port Isaac, Cornwall, who sing sea shanties a cappella. They have been performing locally since 1995, and signed a record deal with Universal Music in March 2010.-Biography:...
- Roots Award: LevellersLevellers (band)The Levellers are an English rock band, founded in 1988 and based in Brighton, England. Their musical style is said to be influenced by punk and traditional English music.-1988-1990:...
- Folk Singer of the year: Chris WoodChris WoodChristopher Wood may refer to:*Christopher Wood *Christopher Wood , English cricketer*Christopher Wood *Christopher Wood...
2010
- Folk Singer of the Year: Jon BodenJon BodenJon Boden is an multi-instrumental musician and English folk singer.-Career:Boden plays fiddle as part of the duo Spiers and Boden, the band Bellowhead and up until 2007, Eliza Carthy's band The Ratcatchers. In 2009 he toured with his new backing band The Remnant Kings. He has also written a...
- Best Duo: Show of HandsShow of HandsShow of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
- Best Group: LauLau (band)Lau is a contemporary folk three-piece from Scotland, named after an Orcadian word meaning "natural light." The band is composed of Kris Drever , Martin Green and Aidan O’Rourke . To date, the band has released two studio albums and a live album.Their debut album, Lightweights and Gentlemen, was...
- Best Album: Hill of Thieves by Cara DillonCara DillonCara Dillon is an Irish folk singer. In 2001, she launched her career as a solo artist in the UK with the eponymous Cara Dillon album...
- Best Original Song: Arrogance Ignorance and GreedArrogance Ignorance and GreedArrogance Ignorance and Greed is the tenth studio album by Show of Hands.The Album was Produced by Stu Hanna of the English folk duo Megson-Notes:...
by Steve KnightleySteve KnightleySteve Knightley is a singer-songwriter, musician and one half of British acoustic roots duo Show of Hands.-Career:...
(performed by Show of HandsShow of HandsShow of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
) - Best Traditional Track: Sir Patrick Spens by Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Horizon Award: Sam Carter
- Musician of the Year: John Kirkpatrick
- Best Live Act: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Nanci GriffithNanci GriffithNanci Griffith, is an American singer, guitarist and songwriter from Austin, Texas.-Biography:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Dick GaughanDick GaughanRichard Peter Gaughan usually known as Dick Gaughan is a Scottish musician, singer, and songwriter, particularly of folk and social protest songs.-Early years:...
- Folk Club Award: The Magpies Nest
- Good Tradition Award: Transatlantic Sessions
2009
- Folk Singer of the Year: Chris WoodChris Wood (folk musician)Chris Wood is an English folk musician and composer who plays fiddle, viola and guitar, and sings. He is an ardent enthusiast for traditional English dance music , including Morris and other rituals and ceremonies, but his repertoire also includes much French folk music and traditional Québécois...
- Best Duo: Chris WhileChris WhileChris 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...
and Julie MatthewsJulie MatthewsJulie Matthews is an award-winning singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. She has been a member of some of the most influential British folk duos and groups and is acknowledged internationally as a major songwriter, with her work being covered by a wide range of artists and... - Best Group: LauLau (band)Lau is a contemporary folk three-piece from Scotland, named after an Orcadian word meaning "natural light." The band is composed of Kris Drever , Martin Green and Aidan O’Rourke . To date, the band has released two studio albums and a live album.Their debut album, Lightweights and Gentlemen, was...
- Best Album: Trespasser by Chris WoodChris Wood (folk musician)Chris Wood is an English folk musician and composer who plays fiddle, viola and guitar, and sings. He is an ardent enthusiast for traditional English dance music , including Morris and other rituals and ceremonies, but his repertoire also includes much French folk music and traditional Québécois...
- Best Original Song: All You Pretty Girls by Andy PartridgeAndy PartridgeAndrew John "Andy" Partridge is an English singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has been known as Sir John Johns and Melchior and rose to fame as a founding member, guitarist and chief songwriter of the pop/new wave band, XTC. He lives in Swindon, Wiltshire, where he was raised.Partridge also...
(performed by Jim MorayJim MorayJim Moray is an English folk singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer.-Recording artist:While studying classical composition at the Birmingham Conservatoire, Moray released the home-recorded I Am Jim Moray EP. During 2002 he appeared at the Glastonbury festival and the Cambridge Folk...
) - Young Folk Award: Megan and Joe HenwoodMegan HenwoodMegan Henwood is an English singer-songwriter from Oxfordshire.-Early Life:Born Megan Rosemary Henwood in Reading on 29 October 1987, Henwood grew up in Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire. Her first public performance was at the age of 9 at the Henley Youth Festival. As a teenager Megan performed both...
- Best Traditional Track: The Lark in the Morning by Jackie OatesJackie OatesJackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. In addition to her solo work, she currently performs as part of the folk trio Wistman's Wood and sings with Morris Offspring.She was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983, but grew up in Staffordshire...
- Horizon Award: Jackie OatesJackie OatesJackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. In addition to her solo work, she currently performs as part of the folk trio Wistman's Wood and sings with Morris Offspring.She was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983, but grew up in Staffordshire...
- Musician of the Year: Tom McConville
- Best Live Act: The Demon Barbers
- Lifetime Achievement Award: James TaylorJames TaylorJames Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Judy CollinsJudy CollinsJudith Marjorie "Judy" Collins is an American singer and songwriter, known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records ; and for her social activism. She is an alumna of the University of Colorado.-Musical career:Collins was born and raised in Seattle, Washington...
- Folk Club Award: Black Swan Folk Club, York
2008
- Folk Singer of the Year: Julie FowlisJulie FowlisJulie Fowlis is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic.-Musical career:Fowlis grew up in North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community, and has been involved in singing, piping and dancing since she was a child.She is a...
- Best Duo: John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
and Barry Coope - Best Group: LauLau (band)Lau is a contemporary folk three-piece from Scotland, named after an Orcadian word meaning "natural light." The band is composed of Kris Drever , Martin Green and Aidan O’Rourke . To date, the band has released two studio albums and a live album.Their debut album, Lightweights and Gentlemen, was...
- Best Album: Prodigal Son by Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Best Original Song: Never Any Good by Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Best Traditional Track: Cold Haily Rainy Night by The Imagined VillageThe Imagined VillageThe Imagined Village is a folk musical project founded by Simon Emmerson of the Afro Celt Sound System. It is intended to produce modern folk music that represents modern multiculturalism in the United Kingdom and as such, features musicians from a wide variety of ethnic and cultural backgrounds...
- Horizon Award: Rachel Unthank and the WintersetRachel Unthank and the WintersetThe Unthanks are an English folk group from Northumberland, known for their eclectic approach in combining traditional English folk with other musical genres.-Rachel Unthank and the Winterset:...
- Musician of the Year: Andy CuttingAndy CuttingAndy Cutting is an English folk musician and composer. Born 18 March 1969 in Harrow, he plays melodeon and has had instruments made by Castagnari to his own specification. He won the Folk Musician of the Year at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2008 and 2011...
- Best Live Act: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: John Martyn
- Good Tradition Award: Shirley CollinsShirley CollinsShirley Elizabeth Collins MBE is a British folksinger who was a significant contributor to the English Folk Revival of the 1960s and 1970s...
- Folk Club Award: DartfordDartfordDartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....
Folk Club
2007
- Folk Singer of the Year: Seth LakemanSeth LakemanSeth Bernard Lakeman is an English folk singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, who is most often associated with the fiddle and tenor guitar, but has also mastered the viola and banjo...
- Best Duo: Martin CarthyMartin CarthyMartin 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 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... - Best Group: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Best Album: Freedom Fields by Seth LakemanSeth LakemanSeth Bernard Lakeman is an English folk singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, who is most often associated with the fiddle and tenor guitar, but has also mastered the viola and banjo...
- Best Original Song: Daisy by Karine PolwartKarine PolwartKarine Polwart is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She writes and performs music with a strong folk and roots feel, her songs dealing with a variety of issues from alcoholism to genocide...
- Best Traditional Track: Barleycorn (performed by Tim van EykenTim Van EykenTim van Eyken is an English guitarist and melodeon player of Belgian descent.-Biography:Van Eyken first started playing penny whistle after seeing James Galway on television. He graduated to playing for his mother, then a member of the Beetlecrushers clog dance team. There was pressure from the...
) - Musician of the Year: Chris ThileChris ThileChristopher Scott Thile is an American musician, best known as the mandolinist and a singer for the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek. His current band is Punch Brothers whose most recent album is Antifogmatic...
- Horizon Award: Kris DreverKris DreverKris Drever is a Scottish contemporary folk musician and songwriter, who came to prominence in 2006 with the release of his debut solo album, Black Water...
- Best Live Act: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: PentanglePentangle (band)Pentangle are a British folk rock band with some folk jazz influences. The original band were active in the late 1960s and early 1970s and a later version has been active since the early 1980s...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Danny ThompsonDanny ThompsonDaniel Henry Edward 'Danny' Thompson is an English multi-instrumentalist best known as a double bassist and businessman...
- Good Tradition Award: Nic JonesNic JonesNicolas Paul "Nic" Jones is an English folk singer, fingerstyle guitarist and fiddle player whose professional career spanned the years 1964-1982. He recorded five solo albums, and was a frequent guest performer.-Biography:...
- Folk Club Award: The Ram ClubThe Ram Folk ClubThe Ram Folk Club is a folk club in Thames Ditton, Surrey. Established in 1983, it runs on Friday evenings featuring music by folk and acoustic artists and bands. It is run by a small group of regulars and is not for profit. The evening usually consists of a main 'guest' preceded by several floor...
- Favourite Folk Track Award: Who Knows Where The Time Goes (performed by 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...
/ Fairport ConventionFairport ConventionFairport 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...
(public vote)
2006
- Folk Singer of the Year: John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
- Best Duo: John Spiers and Jon BodenSpiers and BodenSpiers and Boden are an English folk duo. John Spiers plays melodeon and concertina, while Jon Boden sings and plays fiddle and guitar while stamping the rhythm on a stomp box.-Biography:...
- Best Group: Flook
- Best Album: The Reckoning by John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
- Best Original Song: One In A Million by Chris WoodChris Wood (folk musician)Chris Wood is an English folk musician and composer who plays fiddle, viola and guitar, and sings. He is an ardent enthusiast for traditional English dance music , including Morris and other rituals and ceremonies, but his repertoire also includes much French folk music and traditional Québécois...
and Hugh Lupton - Best Traditional Track: Bitter WithyThe Bitter WithyThe Bitter Withy is an English folk song reflecting an unusual and apocryphal vernacular idea of Jesus Christ. The withy of the title is the Willow and song gives an explanation as to why the willow tree rots from the centre out, rather than the outside in...
(performed by John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
) - Horizon Award: Julie FowlisJulie FowlisJulie Fowlis is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic.-Musical career:Fowlis grew up in North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community, and has been involved in singing, piping and dancing since she was a child.She is a...
- Musician of the Year: Michael McGoldrickMichael McGoldrickMichael McGoldrick is a flute and tin whistle player. He also plays the Uilleann pipes and low whistle. He is well known for his ability to skate switch and regular with the same level of ability.-Bands:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Paul BradyPaul BradyPaul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Richard Thompson
- Best Live Act: Kate RusbyKate RusbyKate Anna Rusby is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. Sometimes known as The Barnsley Nightingale, she has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times...
- Good Tradition Award: 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...
- Folk Club Award: Red Lion, BirminghamBirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
- Most Influential Folk Album Of All Time: Liege and Lief by Fairport ConventionFairport ConventionFairport 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...
(public vote)
2005
- Folk Singer of the Year: Martin CarthyMartin CarthyMartin 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...
- Best Duo: Aly BainAly BainAly Bain MBE is a Shetland fiddler who learned his instrument from the old-time master Tom Anderson. Bain is now considered one of the finest fiddlers in the Scottish tradition. In the early days of his career he formed part of the band The Humblebums with two other ‘unknowns’ Gerry Rafferty and...
and Phil CunninghamPhil Cunningham (folk musician)Phil Cunningham, MBE, born 1960 in Edinburgh, Scotland is a Scottish folk musician and composer.-Biography:Phil played accordion and violin from a very young age. He attended school in Portobello, and was raised Mormon, attending church regularly and playing organ... - Best Group: OysterbandOysterbandOysterband is a British electric folk or folk rock band formed in Canterbury in or around 1976.-Early history:...
The Big Session - Best Album: FaultlinesFaultlines (album)Faultlines is the debut studio album by Scottish folk musician Karine Polwart, released on January 19, 2004.Faultlines won the Best Album award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, with the track "The Sun's Comin' Over The Hill" winning Best Original Song and Polwart herself receiving the Horizon Award...
by Karine PolwartKarine PolwartKarine Polwart is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She writes and performs music with a strong folk and roots feel, her songs dealing with a variety of issues from alcoholism to genocide... - Best Original Song: The Sun's Comin' Over The Hill by Karine PolwartKarine PolwartKarine Polwart is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She writes and performs music with a strong folk and roots feel, her songs dealing with a variety of issues from alcoholism to genocide...
- Best Traditional Track: Famous Flower Of Serving Men (performed by Martin CarthyMartin CarthyMartin 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...
) - Horizon Award: Karine PolwartKarine PolwartKarine Polwart is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She writes and performs music with a strong folk and roots feel, her songs dealing with a variety of issues from alcoholism to genocide...
- Musician of the Year: Kathryn TickellKathryn TickellKathryn Tickell is an English player of the Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle. She has recorded over a dozen albums, and toured widely.-Life and career:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Ramblin' Jack ElliottRamblin' Jack ElliottRamblin' Jack Elliott is an American folk singer and performer.-Life and career:Elliot Charles Adnopoz was born in Brooklyn, New York to Jewish parents in 1931. Elliott grew up inspired by the rodeos at Madison Square Garden, and wanted to be a cowboy...
- Lifetime Achievement Award (Songwriting): Tom PaxtonTom PaxtonThomas Richard Paxton is an American folk singer and singer-songwriter who has been writing, performing and recording music for over forty years...
- Best Live Act: BellowheadBellowheadBellowhead are an English contemporary folk band originally brought together by John Spiers and Jon Boden. The eleven-piece band plays traditional dance tunes, folk songs and shanties, with arrangements drawing inspiration from a wide diversity of musical styles and influences...
- Best Dance Band: Whapweasel
- Good Tradition Award: Steeleye SpanSteeleye SpanSteeleye 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"....
- Folk Club Award: HitchinHitchinHitchin is a town in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 30,360.-History:Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people mentioned in a 7th century document, the Tribal Hidage. The tribal name is Brittonic rather than Old English and derives from *siccā, meaning...
Folk Club
2004
- Folk Singer of the Year: June TaborJune TaborJune Tabor is an English folk singer.- Early years :June Tabor was inspired to sing by hearing Anne Briggs' EP Hazards of Love in 1965. "I went and locked myself in the bathroom for a fortnight and drove my mother mad. I learned the songs on that EP note for note, twiddle for twiddle. That's how I...
- Best Duo: John Spiers and Jon Boden
- Best Group: DanúDanúDanú is an Irish traditional music band.The members of Danú met in Waterford in Southeastern Ireland in 1994. After performing in the Festival Interceltique de Lorient in 2005, the then thrown-together group decided to consolidate as a band....
- Best Album: Sweet England by Jim MorayJim MorayJim Moray is an English folk singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer.-Recording artist:While studying classical composition at the Birmingham Conservatoire, Moray released the home-recorded I Am Jim Moray EP. During 2002 he appeared at the Glastonbury festival and the Cambridge Folk...
- Best Original Song: Co. Down by Tommy SandsTommy Sands (Irish folk singer)Tommy Sands , Mayobridge, County Down, Northern Ireland, is a folk singer, song writer, radio broadcaster, and political activist. He performs with his 3 siblings as The Sands Family; solo as Tommy Sands; and with his son and daughter as Tommy Sands with Moya and Fionán Sands...
(performed by DanúDanúDanú is an Irish traditional music band.The members of Danú met in Waterford in Southeastern Ireland in 1994. After performing in the Festival Interceltique de Lorient in 2005, the then thrown-together group decided to consolidate as a band....
) - Best Traditional Track: Hughie Graeme (performed by June TaborJune TaborJune Tabor is an English folk singer.- Early years :June Tabor was inspired to sing by hearing Anne Briggs' EP Hazards of Love in 1965. "I went and locked myself in the bathroom for a fortnight and drove my mother mad. I learned the songs on that EP note for note, twiddle for twiddle. That's how I...
) - Horizon Award: Jim MorayJim MorayJim Moray is an English folk singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer.-Recording artist:While studying classical composition at the Birmingham Conservatoire, Moray released the home-recorded I Am Jim Moray EP. During 2002 he appeared at the Glastonbury festival and the Cambridge Folk...
- Musician of the Year: Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: 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...
- Lifetime Achievement Award (Songwriting): Steve EarleSteve EarleStephen Fain "Steve" Earle is an American singer-songwriter known for his rock and Texas Country as well as his political views. He is also a producer, author, a political activist, and an actor, and has written and directed a play....
- Best Live Act: Show of HandsShow of HandsShow of Hands is an English acoustic roots and folk duo comprising singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and multi-instrumentalist Phil Beer. In recent years they have been accompanied on tour and in the studio by jazz double-bassist Miranda Sykes.-Origins:...
- Good Tradition Award: Celtic ConnectionsCeltic ConnectionsThe Celtic Connections festival started in 1994 in Glasgow, Scotland, and has since been held every January. Featuring over 300 concerts, ceilidhs, talks, free events, late night sessions and workshops, the festival focuses on the roots of traditional Scottish music and also features international...
- Folk Club Award: Rockingham Arms, WentworthWentworth-People:* Baron Wentworth , the Wentworth peerage, several men and women.* D'Arcy Wentworth , surgeon in the early days of Sydney, Australia, and father of William Charles Wentworth I....
2003
- Folk Singer of the Year: Eliza CarthyEliza CarthyEliza Carthy is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians singer/guitarist Martin Carthy and singer Norma Waterson.-Life and career:...
- Best Duo: Nancy KerrNancy KerrNancy Kerr is an English folk musician, specialising in the fiddle and singing. She is the daughter of London-born singer-songwriter Sandra Kerr and Northumbrian piper Ron Elliott....
and James FaganJames FaganJames Fagan is a folk musician from Sydney, Australia. He in a singer and multi-instrumentalist specialising in the Irish bouzouki.... - Best Group: Altan
- Best Album: Anglicana by Eliza CarthyEliza CarthyEliza Carthy is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians singer/guitarist Martin Carthy and singer Norma Waterson.-Life and career:...
- Best Original Song: No Telling performed by Linda ThompsonLinda Thompson (singer)Linda Thompson is a British singer. Born Linda Pettifer in Hackney, Thompson became one of the most recognised names—and voices—in the British folk rock movement of the 1970s and 1980s, in collaboration with her former husband and fellow British folk rock musician, guitarist Richard...
- Best Traditional Track: Worcester City performed by Eliza CarthyEliza CarthyEliza Carthy is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians singer/guitarist Martin Carthy and singer Norma Waterson.-Life and career:...
- Horizon Award: John Spiers and Jon Boden
- Instrumentalist of the Year: John McCuskerJohn McCuskerJohn McCusker is a Scottish folk musician, record producer and composer. An accomplished fiddle player, he had a long association as a member of the Battlefield Band beginning in the 1990s and was later a band member and producer for folk singer Kate Rusby...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Christy MooreChristy MooreChristopher Andrew "Christy" Moore is a popular Irish folk singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He is well known as one of the founding members of Planxty and Moving Hearts...
- Lifetime Achievement Award (Songwriting): John PrineJohn PrineJohn Prine is an American country/folk singer-songwriter. He has been active as a recording artist and live performer since the early 1970s.-Biography:...
- Best Live Act: Roy BaileyRoy Bailey (folk singer)Roy Bailey MBE , is a British socialist folk singer. Roy began his singing career in a skiffle group in 1958.Colin Irwin from the music magazine Mojo said Bailey represents "the very soul of folk's working class ideals.....
and Tony BennTony BennAnthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC is a British Labour Party politician and a former MP and Cabinet Minister.His successful campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963... - Good Tradition Award: OysterbandOysterbandOysterband is a British electric folk or folk rock band formed in Canterbury in or around 1976.-Early history:...
- Folk Club Award: EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh 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...
2002
- Folk Singer of the Year: Martin CarthyMartin CarthyMartin 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...
- Best Album: The Bramble Briar by Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Best Original Song: Lullabye by Kate RusbyKate RusbyKate Anna Rusby is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. Sometimes known as The Barnsley Nightingale, she has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times...
- Best Traditional Track: Black is the Colour performed by Cara DillonCara DillonCara Dillon is an Irish folk singer. In 2001, she launched her career as a solo artist in the UK with the eponymous Cara Dillon album...
- Best Group: Cherish the LadiesCherish the LadiesCherish the Ladies is an American all-female Irish-American super group. The band began as a concert series in New York in January 1985, the brainchild of Mick Moloney who wanted to showcase the brightest female musicians in America in what had been a male-dominated scene...
- Horizon Award: Cara DillonCara DillonCara Dillon is an Irish folk singer. In 2001, she launched her career as a solo artist in the UK with the eponymous Cara Dillon album...
- Instrumentalist of the Year: Martin SimpsonMartin SimpsonMartin Simpson is an English folk singer, guitarist and songwriter. His music reflects a wide variety of influences and styles, rooted in the British Isles, America and beyond.-Biography:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: The ChieftainsThe ChieftainsThe Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award (Songwriting): Ralph McTellRalph McTellRalph McTell is an English singer-songwriter and acoustic guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s....
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Fairport ConventionFairport ConventionFairport 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...
- Folk Club Award: NettlebedNettlebedNettlebed is a village in England in the Chiltern Hills about northwest of Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire and southeast of Wallingford.-History:Archaeological finds show that the area around Nettlebed has been inhabited since Palaeolithic times....
- Best Live Act: Rory McLeod
2001
- Folk Singer of the Year: Norma WatersonNorma WatersonNorma Christine Waterson is an English musician, best known as one of the original members of The Watersons, a premier English traditional group. Other members of the group included her brother Mike Waterson and sister Lal Waterson, and in later incarnations of the group her husband Martin...
- Best Album: Unity by John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
- Best Original Song: Harry Stone (Hearts of Coal) by John TamsJohn TamsJohn Tams is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician.- Folk musician :John Tams was a member of Derbyshire folk group Muckram Wakes in the 1970s, then worked with Ashley Hutchings as singer and melodeon-player on albums including Son of Morris On, and as a member of the...
- Best Group: DanúDanúDanú is an Irish traditional music band.The members of Danú met in Waterford in Southeastern Ireland in 1994. After performing in the Festival Interceltique de Lorient in 2005, the then thrown-together group decided to consolidate as a band....
- Horizon Award: Bill Jones
- Instrumentalist of the Year: Michael McGoldrickMichael McGoldrickMichael McGoldrick is a flute and tin whistle player. He also plays the Uilleann pipes and low whistle. He is well known for his ability to skate switch and regular with the same level of ability.-Bands:...
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Bert JanschBert JanschHerbert "Bert" Jansch was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s, as an acoustic guitarist, as well as a singer-songwriter...
- Radio 2 Special Roots Award: Taj MahalTaj Mahal (musician)Henry Saint Clair Fredericks , who uses the stage name Taj Mahal, is an American Grammy Award winning blues musician. He incorporates elements of world music into his music...
- Good Tradition Award: Bob Copper
- Folk Club Award: The Davy Lamp
- Best Live Act: Vin GarbuttVin GarbuttVin Garbutt , though second generation Irish, is an English folk singer and songwriter...
2000
- Folk Singer of the Year: Kate RusbyKate RusbyKate Anna Rusby is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. Sometimes known as The Barnsley Nightingale, she has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times...
- Best Album: Sleepless by Kate RusbyKate RusbyKate Anna Rusby is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. Sometimes known as The Barnsley Nightingale, she has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times...
- Best Original Song: A Place Called England by Maggie HollandMaggie HollandMaggie Holland is an English singer and songwriter. She was born and raised in Alton, Hampshire and became involved in the local folk club scene in the late 1960s. She has played in a number of bands and formed a number of collaborations with other artists, but has become well-known in recent times...
- Best Traditional Track: Raggle Taggle Gypsy performed by Waterson:CarthyWaterson:CarthyWaterson:Carthy are an English folk group originally comprising Norma Waterson on vocals, her husband Martin Carthy on guitar and vocals and their daughter Eliza Carthy on fiddle and vocals....
- Best Group: Waterson:CarthyWaterson:CarthyWaterson:Carthy are an English folk group originally comprising Norma Waterson on vocals, her husband Martin Carthy on guitar and vocals and their daughter Eliza Carthy on fiddle and vocals....
- Horizon Award: Nancy KerrNancy KerrNancy Kerr is an English folk musician, specialising in the fiddle and singing. She is the daughter of London-born singer-songwriter Sandra Kerr and Northumbrian piper Ron Elliott....
and James FaganJames FaganJames Fagan is a folk musician from Sydney, Australia. He in a singer and multi-instrumentalist specialising in the Irish bouzouki.... - Instrumentalist of the Year: Martin HayesMartin Hayes (musician)Martin Hayes is a fiddler, born in Maghera in East County Clare, Ireland, and now living in West Hartford, Connecticut. He has been the All Ireland Fiddle Champion six times, and has won a National Entertainment Award, and the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2000 award for Instrumentalist of the Year...
- Radio 2 Special Award: Joan BaezJoan BaezJoan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
- Radio 2 Special Roots Award: Youssou N'DourYoussou N'DourYoussou N'Dour is a Senegalese singer, percussionist and occasional actor. In 2004, Rolling Stone described him as, in Senegal and much of Africa, "perhaps the most famous singer alive." He helped develop a style of popular music in Senegal, known in the Serer language as mbalax, a type of music...
- Andy Kershaw Roots Award: Joe BoydJoe BoydJoe Boyd is an American record producer and former owner of the Witchseason production company. Boyd was instrumental in launching the careers of Nick Drake, Fairport Convention, and The Incredible String Band.-Career:...
and Lucy DuranLucy DuranLucy Durán is a ethnomusicologist, record producer and radio presenter. In the 1980s, Durán worked as a curator at the National Sound Archive. She is now a lecturer in African music, an undergraduate tutor and an undergraduate admissions tutor in the Department of Music School of Oriental and... - Good Tradition Award: Topic RecordsTopic RecordsTopic Records is a British folk music label, which played a major role in the second British folk revival. It began as an offshoot of the Workers' Music Association in 1939, making it the oldest independent record label in the world.-History:...
- Folk Club Award: WesthoughtonWesthoughtonWesthoughton is a town and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is southwest of Bolton, east of Wigan and northwest of Manchester....
- Best Live Act: La Bottine SourianteLa Bottine SourianteLa Bottine Souriante is a folk band from Quebec specialising in traditional Québécois music, often with a modern twist.Formed in 1976, they have toured extensively through North America and Europe. As well as the traditional accordion, fiddle, guitar, piano and double bass, the band added a...
External links
- BBC's Folk Awards site
- Acoustic Magazine The UK's only dedicated Acoustic magazine