Martin Carthy

Martin Carthy (born May 21, 1940 in Hatfield , Hertfordshire ) is a British folk singer , guitarist and mandolin player.

Martin Carthy and Norma Waterson in Cranleigh, April 2006

Life

Carthy performed in various cafes in London in the late 1950s and early 1960s, initially with a skiffle band called The Thameside Four . After three years he got offers from several London clubs, so that he separated from the group and began performing as a soloist in a folk club called Troubadour . At this time he also recorded a first EP for Topic Records , which, however, went largely unnoticed.

At one of Carthy's performances, Paul Simon heard Carthy's version of the old folk song Scarborough Fair and asked for the lyrics and the arrangement, which he received. Scarborough Fair , based on Carthy's version, would later become a big hit for Simon and Garfunkel . The copyright belongs exclusively to Paul Simon, which annoyed Martin Carthy because he was actually the "traditional source". A reconciliation between the two only came about in 2000 when Paul Simon sang the song with Carthy at a concert in London.

In 1962, Bob Dylan was also in London and heard Carthy's version of Lord Franklin . Dylan edited the song slightly and released it under the name Bob Dylan's Dream on The Freewheelin 'Bob Dylan . In the same year Carthy got a recording contract with Fontana Records and released the album Martin Carthy , on which Dave Swarbrick also played. Between 1966 and 1969 the two recorded five albums and one EP together, on which they stuck to a traditional way of playing folk songs. Then Swarbrick joined the Fairport Convention . Carthy then became a member of Steeleye Span in 1970 . The band began to cover some of the songs that Carthy had already released on his solo albums. Overall, Carthy's experience with old folk songs was very beneficial to the band. But in 1971 he left Steeleye Span again, but was back in 1977, when he replaced the guitarist Bob Johnson, until the group was temporarily dissolved in 1978.

In 1970 he married Norma Waterson and subsequently joined her musical family band , The Watersons . He also briefly became a member of Ashley Hutchings ' The Albion Band and was involved in their 1973 album Battle of the Fields . In the 1970s, Carthy was also involved in the theater. He co-founded the folk band Brass Monkey in the 1980s and began performing with Swarbrick again. He continued to release solo albums regularly in the 1990s and 2000s. His daughter, Eliza Carthy , is a successful folk musician.

Martin Carthy has received the BBC Radio 2 Folk Award several times .

Discography (solo)

• Martin Carthy (1965 on Fontana)
• Second Album (1966 on Fontana)
• Byker Hill (1967 on Fontana)
• No Songs (1967 on Fontana (EP))
• But Two Came By (1968 on Fontana)
• Prince Heathen (1969 in Fontana)
• Round Up (1970 on Fontana (EP))
• Landfall (1971 on Philips)
• Shearwater (1972 on Pegasus)
• Sweet Wivelsfield (1974 on Deram)
• Crown of Horn (1976 on Topic)
• Because it's there (1979 on Topic)
• Out of the Cut (1982 on Topic)
• Right of Passage (1988 on Topic)
• Life and Limb (1991 on Green Linnet; live)
• Skin & Bone (1992 on Green Linnet)
• Signs of Life (1999 on Topic)
• Both Ears & the Tail (2001 on Gadfly; live)
• Waiting for Angels (2004 on Topic)

Web links

• Official website