Tilham

Forty-five years and counting, with this their 14th album, Blowzabella are an institution of the English folk revival to stand beside Fairport Convention. The only remaining founding member, bagpiper Jon Swayne, leaves his mark on this latest project in both sound and space. The Tilham of the title is a farm in Swayne's native Somerset within sight of Glastonbury Tor, where these tunes were recorded in two long sessions after the long hiatus of lockdown. Swayne lives and crafts bagpipes close by. It's a suitably English setting for a collection of traditional tunes and self-composed numbers that add to the already rich legacy of this leading English dance band.

The rest of the band consists of Andy Cutting on diatonic button accordion, Barn Stradling on bass, Dave Shepherd on violin, Paul James on saxophone and pipes and Jo Freya on saxophone and clarinet. James also sings ‘The Green Bushes’ and Freya a couple of songs (including ‘Les Trois Jolis Mineurs’ in French). The mix of tempos in tunes and songs gives good variety and the sax brings another dimension to the English traditional dance sound.