Episodes
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Jon Boden is Matthew’s guest on this month’s Official Folk Albums Chart Show, bringing an exclusive performance of one of the Parlour Ballads from his new album. There’s also music from Talisk, Mairearad Green and Rachel Newton, Henry Parker and David Ian Roberts, The Shovel Dance Collective, The Rheingans Sisters, Naima Bock and Nina Nesbitt.
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Subscribe to the Folk Forecast to explore all the gigs and album news we ran through in the show: https://thefolkforecast.substack.com/
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Enjoy this classic episode from August 2020
The award winning singer, songwriter and guitarist Chris Wood has lived in Kent all his life. “If you keep moving around, how much can you trust your judgement?” he asks. “If you stop where you are, the world does eventually come to you.” Since the Brexit referendum and election of 2019, Chris has been in challenging mood. On this walk with his dog Dancer and Matthew Bannister, Chris performs his song “Take Back Control” and contrasts the commuters on the London-bound platform at 6 every morning with what he calls “the slope-shouldered, whey-faced broken people” in Faversham’s greasy spoons and declining market place. “This is my muse,” he tells us. “This darkness and this hypocrisy and these contradictions – I thrive on it”.
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Find out more about Chris at chriswoodmusic.co.uk
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Missing episodes?
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For four hundred years, Stourbridge in the West Midlands was at the heart of Britain’s glass making industry. The local landscape was dotted with distinctive brick built cones, or chimneys, where the glass was made. The local singer and songwriter Dan Whitehouse made an album called “Voices From The Cones” based on recordings of the memories of glass workers. In this extraordinary episode he takes us to a former glass works - now a college teaching craft skills to neurodivergent students - and sings the songs inspired by this fascinating industry. And Matthew gets to try his hand at glass blowing!
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Find out more about Dan at https://www.dan-whitehouse.com/
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The cellist, singer and environmental campaigner Sarah Smout takes us for a beautiful summer walk along the River Wharfe in North Yorkshire. Along the way she explains how her love of the natural world inspires her music and stops to play, sing and read one of her poems. Then we head up to Fleet Moss where a five-year-long project has been restoring the badly damaged peat bog - which is vital for carbon capture. Jenny Sharman of the Yorkshire Peat Partnership joins us to tell the fascinating story behind the work - then Sarah sings the song inspired by it.
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Find out more about Sarah at https://www.sarahsmoutmusic.co.uk/
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The Anglo-Irish band Ranagri take us for a walk on the farm that gave them their name. The family of guitarist and singer Dónal Rogers have worked this land in County Carlow since the 1600s. His Mum, Lena, still lives there and tells stories of growing up in the three room thatched farm house she shared with her mother and ten siblings. There was no electricity or running water and all cooking was on the open fire. Horses were used to pull the plough. Then Ranagri play the music inspired by her memories.
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We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Ranagri at https://ranagri.com/
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On a beautiful day in May the novelist, nature writer and podcaster Melissa Harrison and the composer and multi instrumentalist Laura Cannell take us for a walk in the glorious Suffolk countryside. Laura plays a recorder duet with a nightingale, Melissa reads from her acclaimed novel “All Among The Barley” - appropriately enough in a field of ripening barley - and we hunt for barn owl pellets “like dark Kinder Eggs” as Melissa has it. Then Laura takes out her fiddle and - using her distinctive “overbowing” technique - plays music inspired by ancient traditions and a deep sense of place.
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Find out more about Melissa at https://melissaharrison.co.uk/ and Laura at https://lauracannell.com/
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Frankie Archer brings traditional folk tunes rushing into the 21st Century. The singer, fiddle player and electronics wizard made an acclaimed appearance on Later With Jools Holland, who described her music as “astonishing”. In this episode, Frankie takes Matthew for a walk in Consett and the surrounding countryside, pausing to set up her loop pedals and perform in the lee of an abandoned crucible, the engine shed of the world’s oldest railway and in front of a spectacular view across the fields to the Newcastle skyline.
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Find out more about Frankie at https://frankiearchermusic.com/
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Our wettest episode ever features the wonderful duo Megson (Stu and Debs Hanna) walking, talking and playing along the River Tees between Stockton and Middlesborough. This is where Stu and Debs grew up, began making music and fell in love. Their powerful songs tell vivid stories about the industrial heritage of the area through the eyes of the people who live there. With instruments wrapped in bin bags and recording gear hidden under producer Natalie’s all-encompassing poncho, we head for the Tees Barrage - pausing under bridges and even on a bandstand for Stu and Debs to perform. Then Stu tells Matthew that if he claps his hands, a seal will arrive. He does - and, amazingly, up it pops!
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We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Megson at https://www.megsonmusic.co.uk
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The singer and fiddle player Jackie Oates is joined by the squeezebox maestro John Spiers for a walk along the mighty River Thames in Oxfordshire. Between a song or two from the lace making industry, and a gorgeous “Lament To The Moon” Jackie talks about her passion for folk song and her recent training as a music therapist which took her into a hospice to help those nearing the end of their lives capture memories in song. She also recalls her folk-style wedding while John muses on the best way to make dandelion wine. It’s a fascinating walk with two of England’s finest folk musicians.
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We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Jackie at https://www.jackieoates.co.uk/ and John at https://johnspiers.co.uk/
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A chance to hear one of our favourite podcasts: The Outdoors Fix, presented by hiker and journalist Liv Bolton and featuring an interview with Matthew Bannister. Liv’s aim is to inspire you to get outside and make the outdoors a bigger part of your life. An idea which – as you know – we’re very much in favour of.
Normally the Outdoors Fix is recorded – well – outdoors. But that wasn’t possible during the Covid lockdowns. So, when Matthew was a guest in 2020, he connected with Liv online. If you’ve ever wondered what inspired Matthew to start Folk on Foot or what it feels like to record some of the most spectacular episodes, here’s your chance to find out.
The Outdoors Fix is available wherever you get your podcasts. They’re on Instagram @theoutdoorsfix with loads of lovely videos and photos of their adventures in the great outdoors. Or you can find them at theoutdoorsfix.com
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The trans pipe and fiddle player Malin Lewis grew up on a magical island off the West coast of Scotland. There were no roads or cars and their family were the only permanent residents. Home schooled till the age of seven, Malin had an idyllic childhood roaming the forests, building dens and splashing in the shallows on the white sand beaches. In this episode this rising star of the Scottish folk scene - with a hotly anticipated debut album about to be released - makes an emotional return to the island to play on the shore and stage a homecoming concert in the abandoned village hall.
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Find out more about Malin at https://hudsonrecords.co.uk/artist/malin-lewis
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Joe Boyd and John Wood were the producer and sound engineer behind some of the greatest folk rock albums of the 1960s and 70s. They worked with Pink Floyd on their first single Arnold Layne, with Fairport Convention on Unhalfbricking and Liege and Lief and with Nick Drake on Five Leaves Left, Bryter Later and Pink Moon. John produced John Martyn’s Bless The Weather and Solid Air while Joe worked with the Incredible String Band. In this conversation with Matthew Bannister on stage at the Indoor Festival of Folk, they tell the extraordinary stories behind the creation of these classic albums.
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Come with us to the glorious Mountains of Mourne in Northern Ireland to meet the band TRÚ. Taking their name from a mythological trio of poet-musicians from ancient Ulster, Zach Trouton, Dónal Kearney and Michael Mormecha combine Irish nationalist, Ulster-Scots and British-Ukrainian heritages, crossing boundaries which have often divided Northern Irish communities in the past. In this beautiful episode they are united in creating sweet close harmonies as they sing traditional songs against the backdrop of some of the UK’s most spectacular countryside.
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We rely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about TRÚ at http://www.tru-music.com/
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The beloved baggy cloth cat Bagpuss is fifty years old in 2024. We celebrate his birthday by visiting Sandra Kerr at her home in the Northumberland village of Warkworth. Sandra co-wrote and arranged the music for the series and provided some of the voices. In her cosy music room she shows us her Bagpuss souvenirs, reflects on the show’s enduring appeal and sings one of the songs. Then, on a walk along the River Coquet, Sandra looks back to the folk revival of the 1960s, recalling working as a nanny for Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger in exchange for music lessons. Finally, she’s joined by her daughter Nancy Kerr to play traditional Northumbrian dance tunes. A warm, fascinating and entertaining meeting with one of the enduring stars of the folk world.
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Sandra at https://www.sandrakerr.net/
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This year’s seasonal episode takes us to the village of Mallwyd in mid Wales to join the ancient tradition of the plygain carols. On a dark, cold night, local people gather in the warm and welcoming St Tydecho’s Church to sing Welsh language carols which have been handed down through successive generations of their families. They’re joined by Gwilym Bowen Rhys who unearthed his carol in a second hand book shop and by Owen Shiers (Cynefin) whose singing group travels around several plygain services at this time of year. Asked why she joins in, one singer exclaims: “I just feel part of the ages!”
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Gwilym at https://www.gwilymbowenrhys.com and Owen at https://cynefinmusic.wales
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Come to “The Edge of the Land” with the wonderful singer, songwriter and guitarist Katie Spencer. She was born and brought up in East Yorkshire. In this episode she takes us to one of her favourite places: Spurn Point, a narrow spit of land that stretches three miles out into the sea. As we head for the lighthouse at the end, she sings some of her gorgeous songs on the beach and talks about her musical inspiration, but will we be cut off by the tide?
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
Become a patron and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot
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Find out more about Katie at https://www.katiespencer.net/
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Jon Wilks is singlehandedly bringing folk music to a wider audience, through his excellent TradFolk website and Old Songs Podcast and of course by singing and playing the music itself. In this episode, he takes us for a walk around the stomping grounds of his youth in the centre of Birmingham, sharing his fascinating insights into the history of music making in the city and performing songs on the very spot where they were originally collected. Oh, and then there’s the sausage roll incident in Greggs!
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Jon at https://jonwilks.online/
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When the Scottish Burmese sound artist Fiona Soe Paing discovered that one of her ancestors was a traditional singer, she resolved to make a contemporary electronic album reflecting the music and folk tales of her home county of Aberdeenshire.
On this walk up Bennachie and then along the coast, she sings some of the songs on the very spot where they were inspired, including John Hosie’s Well (said to have sprung from the ground where his tears fell when he returned from a long imprisonment to find his lover was married to another) and the rock where Maggie Machlin is said to have died from exposure after being ostracised for falling pregnant out of wedlock.
Then it’s off to the fishing village of Pennan, for an atmospheric performance of The Fisher’s Lullaby on the beach and a 40th anniversary screening of the classic film Local Hero in the village hall.
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
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Find out more about Fiona at https://www.fionasoepaing.co.uk/
Walk with Fiona's album via the Echoes app: https://explore.echoes.xyz/collections/sov0xzgBQYdoAfFr
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On August 4th 2023, Folk on Foot host Matthew Bannister set off on his biggest walk yet. Over two weeks, he covered 186 miles from Wickham Festival in Hampshire to Folk East in Suffolk, raising thousands of pounds for the charity Help Musicians. Every evening he was met (in a pub, of course), by some of the folk world’s finest musicians. This bonus episode treats you to the musical highlights that spurred Matthew on his way. You will hear:
Day 1: Rosie Hodgson and Rowan Piggott of The Wilderness Yet: “The Bee Boy Song”
Day 2: Steve Knightley, Johnnie Kalsi and Eliza Marshall: “Dakota” (by Kelly Jones)
Day 3: Eliza Marshall: “The Rhythms of Migration”; Jon Wilks: “Greek Street”
Day 4: Martin Simpson: “Skydancers”
Day 5: Janice Burns and Jon Doran: “As I Roved Out”
Day 6: Kirsty Merryn: “The Larks They Sang Melodious (Pleasant and Delightful)”
Day 8 (breakfast!): Honey and the Bear with Toby Shaer: “Around the World”
Day 8 (evening): Megson: “And Finally”
Day 9: Sid Goldsmith and Danny Pedler of Tarren: “Sunk”
Day 10: Bird in the Belly: “Neighbours and Sisters”
Day 11: Katie Spencer:”The Edge of the Land”
Day 12: Knight and Spiers: “Halsway Schottische”
Day 13: Bella Hardy: ”Rhapsody on the Peak of Derbyshire”
Day 14: The Young Uns: “Three Dads Walking” and “John Ball”
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On 4th August 2023, Folk on Foot host Matthew Bannister set off on his biggest walk yet: from Wickham Festival in Hampshire to Folk East in Suffolk. Over two weeks, he covered 186 miles, took 465,137 steps and raised thousands of pounds for the charity Help Musicians. Each evening, he was joined in the pub by some of the folk world’s finest musicians, who sang and played to revive his flagging spirits. This episode tells the inside story of the walk, using Matthew’s private audio diaries and highlights of the glorious music that carried him on his way.
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We rely entirely on support from our listeners to keep this show on the road. If you like what we do please either...
Become a patron and get great rewards: patreon.com/folkonfoot
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