Iconic Archived News

Bob performs in at Celtic Connections

Iconic artist Bob Fox took a leading role at Glasgow's Celtic Connections when the festival hosted a live performance of the Radio Ballads on Monday, 22 January.

The Radio Ballads shows were first broadcast on BBC Radio 2 last year. In Glasgow, selected highlights from the shows were performed on stage by the musicians and singers involved in the original recordings.

The instrumentalists included Bob Fox (guitar), John McCusker (fiddle,whistle,cittern), Andy Cutting (accordion), Andy Seward (double bass), Barry Coope (piano,percussion), Jez Lowe ( bazouki,mandolin) and John Tams (harmonica). The singers were Bob Fox, Kate Rusby, Karine Polwart, John Tams, Barry Coope, Jez Lowe, Chris While and Julie Mathews.

Getting so many artists together for the show was an achievement in itself. Musical director John Tams and producer John Leonard oversaw development of the musical and vocal arrangements during an intensive two days of rehearsal before to the performance.

Last year's broadcast sessions for The Radio Ballads were recorded over a number of months with most of the musicians contributing without the others present. This made the job of turning the material into a cohesive live show even more daunting. But everyone involved made a big effort and on the night it was more than alright!

The show was staged in the opulent Royal Glasgow Concert Hall. The first set was a selection of songs from five of the Radio Ballads: Song of Steel, The Enemy Within, The Horn of the Hunter, Swings and Roundabouts and Thirty Years of Conflict. After the interval, The Ballad of the Big Ships (which documents the shipbuilding industry on the rivers Tyne and Clyde) was performed in its entirety.

The second set showcased the voices of Bob Fox and Jez Lowe. It also included many of the interviews with ship-builders recorded for the broadcasts: these were expertly interleaved with the songs by Max Leonard. Another feature of the show was a 'big screen' projection of shipbuilding pictures collected and collated by Brian Ledgard. Former shipyard worker Brian Whittingham also appeared on stage to read his own poems.

The Royal Concert Hall audience gave The Radio Ballads show a standing ovation. It was, says Bob, a true folk spectacular, one he hopes can be repeated.

Story published 25 Jan 2007