Episode 213: New Music Special

This edition of Folk Roots Radio is all about the music. No interviews, just a great selection of the new music that we’ve received recently.

We started with the blues this week as it is probably a bit under-represented on a show that claims to play …all the best in folk, roots, Americana and Blues. Les Copeland from B.C. kicked things off with “To Be In Your Company”, the title track from his second album – a tribute to his mentor, Delta Blues legend David “Honeyboy” Edwards. We followed that with another track from the delightfully ‘back to the future’ and thoroughly mono Sugar Brown album “Poor Lazarus”. This time we played Sugar’s excellent version of Tom Waits’ Get Behind The Mule. Hamilton Ontario’s Duane Rutter has a new album of roots blues out, “Crazy Things” (2015, Busted Flat Records) and from that we played “I Don’t Ask” before “Leaving” by Steve Strongman with Suzie Vinnick from the 2013 Juno-winning Blues Album of the Year “Natural Fact” (2012, Self). We wrapped the set with “Baby Don’t Forget”, another track from Alabama-based Mitch Mann‘s album “Blackwater Creek” (2015, Crazy Chester Records).

This week’s track from “Joy Of Living”, the double CD Tribute To British folkie Ewan McColl (2015, Cooking Vinyl/Compass Records) featured Rufus & Martha Wainwright with their version of “Sweet Thames, Flow Softly” – written in 1966 for a BBC radio production of Romeo & Juliet. The song also features two other members of the Wainwright McGarrigle clan, Lucy Wainwright Roche & Lily Lanken. Martha has just teamed up with Lucy Wainwright Roche to record a new folk song album “Songs in the Dark” that covers some standards and songs by Loudon Wainwright III, Martha’s mother Kate McGarrigle and Lucy’s mother Suzzy Roche. The album is released on November 13.

Trent Severn have a new album out, “Trillium”. This week we played “King of the Background” – a song written by Dayna Manning as a tribute to Richard Manuel from The Band – who was also from Stratford Ontario, Trent Severn’s hometown. Ian Sherwood has just released a video of “The Fireman’s Ball” from his 2014 album “Everywhere To Go” which has been nominated for Music Nova Scotia‘s Folk Recording of the Year award. And Dave Gunning has a great tribute to the community-building of Pete Seeger with “Sing It Louder” on excellent new album “Lift” (2015, Wee House Of Music).

Another part of my youth slipped away last week. Simon Cowe or Si Cowe as he was known in the 70s sadly passed away in Toronto last week after a long illness. Si played guitar, mandolin, banjo, keyboards with Lindisfarne during their 70s heyday and periodically thereafter. He finally quit the band in 1994 to move to Toronto to start a microbrewery – something I sadly only found out after Si’s death. This week we played the Si Cowe song “Go Back” from their 1972 album Dingly Dell (2004, Charisma Records) best known at the time for the plain cardboard LP sleeve. Still a favourite album of mine from one of my all-time favourite bands.

Well, that’s all we have time for. Check out the full playlist with artist links below and share your love for all the great folk and roots music out there. Thanks to all the artists who share their music with us, and thank you for listening. We have a lot of great music to bring you on future shows. I hope you’ll join us! You can listen to this show again on Mixcloud by following the link below.

Folk Roots Radio – Episode 213 New Releases by Folk Roots Radio on Mixcloud

Nicolas & The Iceni (Theme)
Lucy She Rises (Demo)
Roll Right (expected 2015)

Les Copeland
To Be In Your Company
To Be In Your Company (2015, Earwig)

Sugar Brown
Get Behind The Mule
Poor Lazarus (2015, Self) CDN

Duane Rutter
I Don’t Ask
Crazy Things (2015, Busted Flat Records) CDN

Steve Strongman
Leaving (feat. Suzie Vinnick)
Natural Fact (2012, Self) CDN

Mitch Mann
Baby Don’t Forget
Blackwater Creek (2015, Crazy Chester Records)

Alison Brown
Windansea
The Song Of The Banjo (2015, Compass Records)

Red Moon Road
I’ll Bend But I Won’t Break
Sorrows And Glories (2015, Self) CDN

Dave Gunning
Sing It Louder
Lift (2015, Wee House Of Music) CDN

Rufus & Martha Wainwright
Sweet Thames, Flow Softly
Joy Of Living: A Tribute To Ewan MacColl (2015, Cooking Vinyl / Compass Records)

Chris Rosser
Love With No Words
A Thousand Hands (2014, Hollow Reed Arts)

Trent Severn
King of the Background
Trillium (2015, Self) CDN

Ian Sherwood
Fireman’s Ball
Everywhere To Go (2015, Self)

Lindisfarne
Go Back
Dingly Dell (1972, Charisma Records)

Dirty Dishes
Midnight Fire
And Stay Out! (2015, Self) CDN

Chapin-Wickwar
Bring Me Home
If… (2015, Self)