Electric folk

All you want to know about Electric folk

The term "Electric folk" is often used synonymously with Folk rock. This page documents a more specific use.
Electric folk music
Stylistic origins
Cultural origins
1970s: UK
Typical instruments
Electric or Acoustic versions of the following Violin, Guitar, Bass guitar/Double bass, Appalachian dulcimer, Mandolin, drums (both as a kit, and Bodhran-like instruments), Recorder, Tin whistle
Mainstream popularity Mainly in the 1970s, but the genre continues today as non-mainstream
Fusion genres
Celtic rock, Psych folk

Electric folk is a genre of music in which British and Celtic traditional music is played in a rock music style.

Electric folk derives from Anglo-Celtic traditional music and Rock as specified in the following list. It should be noted that not all of these features are found in every song. For example, Electric folk groups, while predominantly using traditional material as their source for lyrics and tunes, occasionally write their own (much as traditional musicians do).

Contents

Definition

The specific features drawn from Traditional music and Rock music are:

Traditional music:

  • Lyrics[1]
  • Tunes (including ornamentation)[2]
  • The drone (cf. bagpipes), but usually on a guitar or bass[3]
  • Use of some acoustic instruments[4]
  • Use of traditional music rhythms: Rhythms of 3+3+2 (ie. 8 beats, with the stress falling on the first, fourth, and seventh beats; cf. The Battle of Evermore) are not unusual (but preclude the standard rock backbeat).
  • Blending of multiple songs in the traditional music style: often a short instrumental piece is inserted as an instrumental in a longer lyrical piece (ie. a piece with vocals), both in traditional music and Electric folk

Rock music:

  • Rhythm (specifically the back-beat)[5]
  • The hook[6]
  • Ostinati (plural of ostinato), a melodic and/or rhythmic figure that is persistently repeated throughout a piece or a section of a piece[7]
  • Use of some electric instruments[8]
  • The tempo of some songs may be altered well beyond the traditional boundaries[9]
  • Key changes may be added[10]

History

Background

In the 60s and 70s, England was in a state of social upheaval as a counterculture developed, from which came an explosion of musical innovation derived from American blues, American folk rock, and the simultaneous revival of English folk music, inspired by pioneering artists like the Copper Family. British folk rock was also influenced by some experimental work, found for example in the Scottish Incredible String Band, who found considerable popularity in the university town of Cambridge, Massachusetts. There was mixing between the American folk rock group and the English folk music group. Pentangle is also one of the progenitors of electric folk, although they themselves are more folk-jazz than electric folk. Several temporary groups, such as the duo, Bert and John, also contributed to the development of the genre. Bert and John, in particular, developed a style of intricate acoustic guitar duet sometimes referred to as 'folk baroque'. In Brittany, Alan Stivell created Breton and pan-Celtic types of Folk-rock (since the late 60s).

Electric folk

Bands like Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span pioneered Electric folk. Nic Jones, Davy Graham, Roy Harper, Ralph McTell, June Tabor, Shirley Collins, John Renbourn and John Kirkpatrick were among those who balanced innovation with tradition, and criticized the worst excesses of folk rock. When Martin Carthy "plugged in" in 1971, the English traditional scene erupted in an uproar of criticism. At the same time, in Brittany, Alan Stivell began to mix his Breton roots with Irish and Scottish roots and with rock music. Across the English Channel in Brittany or France, a similar fusion of folk and rock elements can be found in the Breton electric folk music of Alan Stivell (1970s and later) and the French Malicorne, founded by one of Alan Stivell's musicians. Ashley Hutchings and Dave Pegg had been earlier innovators of the fusion, and Hutchings helped propel Fairport Convention into the star position of the electric folk scene, starting with the album "What We Did On Our Holidays". Very shortly afterwards, Fairport bassist Ashley Hutchings formed Steeleye Span in collaboration with traditionalist British folk musicians who wished to incorporate electrical amplification, and later overt rock elements, into their music. Fronted by Maddy Prior, Steeleye Span are arguably the most successful band of the electric folk genre and still perform regularly to large audiences 36 years after forming.

This, in turn, spawned several other variants: the self-consciously English folk rock of the Albion Band and some of Ronnie Lane's solo work.

Of the original electric folk bands, Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, and Oysterband continue today, although Steeleye Span have been using a lot more original material since 1980. Broadside Electric are an American group who have been producing electric folk since 1990, and also continue today.

Derivatives

Celtic rock

The more prolific current of Celtic rock incorporated traditional music of the Celtic world (both Goidelic (Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man) and Brythonic (Wales, Cornwall, and Brittany)), as well as Electric folk and other folk rock influences. Through at least the first half of the 1970s, Celtic rock held close to folk roots, with its repertoire drawing heavily on traditional Celtic fiddle and harp tunes and even traditional vocal styles, but making use of rock band levels of amplification and percussion. Celtic rock led into Celtic punk, Celtic metal, and other sorts of Celtic fusion.

Folk punk

The popularity of English folk declined in the later 1970s, however, losing ground to glam rock, disco, punk rock, heavy metal and lovers rock. In the mid-1980s a new rebirth of English folk began, this time fusing folk forms with energy and political aggression derived from punk rock. Leaders included The Men They Couldn't Hang, Oyster Band, Billy Bragg and The Pogues. Folk dance music also became popular in the 80s, with the English Country Blues Band and Tiger Moth. Later in the decade, reggae influenced English country music due to the work of Edward II & the Red Hot Polkas, especially on their seminal Let's Polkasteady from 1987. In the 21st century, Oxford produced a young duo Spiers and Boden.

Electric folk convention

Fairport's Cropredy Convention (previously Cropredy Festival) has been held every year since 1974 (and continuing to this day) near Cropredy, a village five miles north of Banbury, Oxfordshire and attracts 20,000 fans. It remains one of the key events in the UK folk festival calendar.

Steeleye Span is running a new festival which they are calling Spanfest.

See also

Further reading

A recent book, "Electric Folk" by Britta Sweers (2005) concentrates on Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span.

The seventies were probably the heyday for Folk Music Publications.

References

  1. ^ Refers to Traditional music as "Folk music"; http://mywebpages.comcast.net/jcutting/efolk.htm#mm, From Fol de Rol to Sha Na Na: The Electrification of British Folk Music, Jennifer Cutting, 1993
  2. ^ Ibid Cutting, 1993
  3. ^ Ibid Cutting, 1993
  4. ^ Implied by Ibid Cutting, 1993
  5. ^ Ibid Cutting, 1993
  6. ^ Ibid Cutting, 1993
  7. ^ Ibid Cutting, 1993
  8. ^ Implied by Ibid Cutting, 1993
  9. ^ Implied by Ibid Cutting, 1993
  10. ^ Implied by Ibid Cutting, 1993

External links

v • d • e
Folk music
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_folk"

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