Never really listened to folk music before more of a rap music/D'n'B/indie kinda guy but this song is lovely!

http://www.youtube.com/user/philhare#p/u/16/84LMqkRmYnQ

Try some Christie Moore, too! There's a song called "Listen" which I won't get tired of for a long time…

cool cheers fadda

Try Kate Rusby.

try johnny flynn.

'tickle me pinks' a gud-un

Christy Moore is brilliant, got his boxed set of rarities etc which covers some different material to his usual albums. He was also in Planxty and Moving Hearts and they are also worth a listen.

English folk usually sounds a bit boring to me, though Ewan McColl was certainly anything but boring (Green Island, Go Move Shift, First Time Ever I saw Your Face, Dirty Old Town) and Billy Bragg has some form. Irish folk music can be a bit more raw, probably why I liked The Pogues which was a mix of folk with punk attitude.

On a more modern slant, Midlake and John Grant are on heavy rotation at home over the last few months

Midlake – Rulers, Ruling All Things

Midlake – Roscoe

Midlake – Young Bride

John Grant – I Wanna Go To Marz

John Grant – It's Easier

roscoe is a blindingly good tune.

just been giving a show of hands a run out after reading that rocketdog was off to see em.
enjoying it.

few more of my folk favourites,

the tallest man on earth.'walk the line'
hamish imlach.'cod liver oil'
emmy the great. '24'
laura marling. 'ghosts'
moriaty. 'jimmy'
alela diane. 'age old blue'
jose gonzalez. 'crosses'
tim hardin. 'if i were a carpenter'

interested in recomendations from others.

http://www.myspace.com/showofhandsuk

Been listening to a lot of the Dubliners recently. They were around for ever, but it's the 60s original line up that was real class. Probably the most important group for popularising Irish music (also a massive influence on the Pogues) – so much so that you'll have heard a lot of the classics 1000 times, and want to look at their lesser known stuff. Their vocalist Luke Kelly was in a league of his own and has loads of great solo stuff.

A great American folk singer is Bonnie Prince Billy – I used to listen to him nearly exclusively (he's very prolific), but have been disappointed with his last 2 or 3 albums so I'm taking a break. His back catalogue is top drawer.

Yes, Roscoe is a great tune (as is the Beyond the Wizards Sleeve remix).

For folk, try Eliza Carthy for a modern but traditional sound and Fairport Convention with Sandy Denny for a 60's feel.

What about nick drake, anyone into him…?

'Folk' covers a huge variety of styles, like Bellowhead, Laura Marling, Jethro Tull, Smoke Fairies, Fairport Convention, Sandy Denny, Richard Thompson, Julie Fowlis, Karine Polwart, Gemma Hayes, Eddie Reader, Cerys Matthews, Kathryn Tickell, John Martyn, Heidi Talbot, even Led Zeppelin 3 is a largely folk album, and some of 4 and Houses Of The Holy are folk based tunes. There's much more to folk than a fat beardy bloke in a shapeless sweater with his finger in his ear.

Shameless plug for some folky buddies: Doghouse Roses are excellent.

Lots and lots.

Incredible String Band, Shirley and Judy Collins, Deserted Village label (especially United Bible Studies, Magickal Folk of the Faraway Tree), Espers, Charalambides, Dr Strangely Strange, etc.

It's worth trawling through the 'Reviews' and 'Rumbles' section of Ptolemaic Terrascope. It's also choc full of the full range of contemporary and olde worlde pscyhedelia.

How about Blackmore's Night

Heard a few of the tracks and been quite impressed especially with her lovely voice, great rendition of Diamonds and Rust

Go check out son of eagle if you like a bit of modern folk. Bit cheeky as I play bass in the band but hey if you can't blow your own trumpet what can you do!

Garry Lager – agree with your assessment of Luke Kelly. Grew up listening to a lot of him with The Dubliner's but then got into T Rex / Bowie and then Punk. After hearing The Pogues in mid 80's went back through Christy Moore to listening to Luke again who died tragically young.

Recently stumbled across his version of a Town I Loved So Well, beautifully sung, of a song I had sort of dismissed

Go check out son of eagle if you like a bit of modern folk. Bit cheeky as I play bass in the band but hey if you can't blow your own trumpet what can you do!

Like.

Any plans for dates in Scotland?

For the last 42 years my home town has had a folk festival every September, when I was younger I never really liked all the weirdy beardies and the morris men and the wailing mournful music. But over the last few years there has been a real revival, with many younger singers coming onto the scene, now I can't wait for the festival. It's on this weekend 😀 , just off tonight to see Martin & Eliza Carthy, and many of the above named are also around this weekend!Last year seth lakeman brought the place down!

Whiskey is the life of man :o)

null

But my favourite remains Kate Rusby

"I wish I whrrr back on the Lochranza ferreeeey
with long leg-gged Maryyyyy…"

And so on

I go to the Portpatrick Folk Festival every year which is a fantastic weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLH_f31vns4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uCSjpzY1dI

(that's me with the hat on)

If you like the above, give Show Of Hands a look.

They blend folk, blues, rock, and roots with amusing and contemporary lyrics.

Seen them twice and can highly recommend

1952 vincent black lightning

English folk at its best

A little leftfield http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzAVdiGzmtY

Even George Michael puts in an appearance

daveevs – Member
If you like the above, give Show Of Hands a look.

They blend folk, blues, rock, and roots with amusing and contemporary lyrics.

Seen them twice and can highly recommend

🙄

Larry/son of eagle, will try to make the Hare and Hounds gig

Anyone else think there's a bit of a folk resurgence on just now, or is it just that it's always like this and I'm usually oblivious to it? Lots of folk influenced music around that's more in the popular press, Emmy the Great was mentioned up the page there, Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, you've got assorted folk/punk or punk/folk folks like Frank Turner and Chuck Ragan, or Crazy Arm, Against Me and the likes… Obviously folk music never goes away but it doesn't usually get mentioned in Kerrang magazine. (Frank Turner tells the story of being the only man ever to play the Cambridge Folk Festival and the Reading Festival punk stage in the same year)

I like Emmy the Great, Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn, Mumford & Sons and that sort of 'pop' folk. Anybody got any recommendations along those lines? Not my normal kind of music, so I'm finding it hard to locate similar stuff.

i think the current interest is because people appreciate musicians who can play an instrument and write lyrics that actually mean something rather than a computer generated dirge with banal words shouted repeatedly over the top

Garry Lager – agree with your assessment of Luke Kelly. Grew up listening to a lot of him with The Dubliner's but then got into T Rex / Bowie and then Punk. After hearing The Pogues in mid 80's went back through Christy Moore to listening to Luke again who died tragically young.

Recently stumbled across his version of a Town I Loved So Well, beautifully sung, of a song I had sort of dismissed
Luke is peerless tbh, no one comes close. That song you mention is a great example of something that would sound a bit corny being sung by a lesser voice, but he's that good he always transcends the sentimentality.

Another one is 'scorn not his simplicity', written by the same guy (Phil Coulter). Potential for a disastrous mawk-fest here, but Luke Kelly just puts it over the top – heartbreaking song.

Saying that, there's a lot of Dubliners stuff that has to be sung by Ronnie Drew. Not a world class voice, at all, like Luke, but can be just as powerful in its own way.

I like Emmy the Great, Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn, Mumford & Sons and that sort of 'pop' folk. Anybody got any recommendations along those lines? Not my normal kind of music, so I'm finding it hard to locate similar stuff.

See above: Midlake, John Grant, The Czars, Harper Simon, The Avett Brothers, The Low Anthem, The Leisure Soceity, Cat Power etc

Fleet Foxes and The Acorn have very strong folk influences, then there's Altan, Capercaillie, Eileen Rose, Jesca Hoop, The Wailin' Jennies, Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin, Kris Delmhorst, Red Bird, (Kris and her husband are two-thirds of this band, the album was recorded in a house with a single mic and there's all sorts of ambient background noise, like a local Evangelist arriving at the door…). There's plenty more out there, I just can't remember all the names of artists whose cd's I own, and I can't be arsed to go downstairs and look through them at the mo'. :0)

A couple more:

Carrie Tree, Sharron Kraus (my favourite singer of the last few years, particularly sombre windswept stuff), Morito Doji, Fit & Limo (particularly awesome), Kayno Yesno Slonce, The Magic Carpathians Project, Floating Flower (definitely from another world), The Iditarod, Atman (like Kayno Yesno, Fit&Limo, and the Carpathians, European and a long way from being precious traditionalists).

And of course, Comus.