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Lammas Fair

by Henry Parker

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distant planet
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distant planet Psych-folk with a late 60s / early 70s flavour. If you like Nick Drake or Fairport Convention you will enjoy this. It's an observation of change and a celebration of a hazy, high summer harvest. The music transports you to the moorlands and mill towns of Northern England. Dark and open and embellished with beautiful melodies and thoughtful lyrics.
This is album of the year 2021 for me. Favorite track: Fools Gold.
Deadpixie
Deadpixie thumbnail
Deadpixie More proof that psych /folk didn't pass with the 70s. Brilliant albums are still being made in the genre... like this.
keith c Hargreaves
keith c Hargreaves thumbnail
keith c Hargreaves A brilliant brilliant album full of deep folkie loveliness through the prism of a seventies sensibility
Loved it
sethgsully
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sethgsully Keep coming back to this record. One of my favorites of 2021. While influenced by the British folk rock of the late 60s and early 70s, Parker manages to not simply parrot the style of Jansch, Drake, or Thompson. Instead he has a sound of his own and a really solid batch of tunes. Favorite track: Nine Herbs Charm.
bobby_lee
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bobby_lee Hits that real sweet spot between pristine trad and the headier strains of 60s psych folk. Dude knows a few licks too. Favorite track: Nine Herbs Charm.
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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Re-press of the 2021 album "Lammas Fair" on gold vinyl, limited to 250 copies. LP comes in printed inner sleeve containing the full lyrics to the album and photos.

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  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    High quality 4 panel gatefold digipack with 8 page lyric booklet.

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  • "Lammas Fair" T-shirt (Black)
    T-Shirt/Shirt + Digital Album

    The first piece of merch to support my music - a rad Lammas Fair T-shirt designed by Bobby Lee, based on my original artwork

    Printed on Earth Positive black T-shirts - carbon neutral manufacturing, organic cotton and ethically traded.

    Size Chest (to fit):
    S - 39.5” // M - 42” // L - 44” // XL - 47” // XXL - 50.5”

    Includes unlimited streaming of Lammas Fair via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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  • Limited Edition 12" Vinyl
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    Vinyl limited to 250 copies - Spined outer sleeve with full colour inner sleeve with printed lyrics. High quality pressing on black vinyl.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Lammas Fair via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

    Sold Out

1.
Lammas Fair 03:59
The wind blows through The Hitching Stone And sounds for Lammas Fair We’ll bless the grain And burn the wheel Breathe the harvest air The site we camp Will blur the lines From the red rose To the white Send out smoke to the parting sky On a waning summer’s night The sound of hooves Upon the lanes Will echo across the moor And so we gamble Make our claim On the racing of the horse So take the road From Buckstone gate And over Cowling hill For Lammas Fair Will mark the time Of the new grain and the mill
2.
In the valley spills The running of the hills The rain has left it’s scar upon the ground Flow into the town Below and overground Drain the glass you held in your hand And wait for passing clouds To stop you in their shroud Halt you on your way across the land It’ll be a long way around Since falling to the ground To make your way back up towards the sky The Winter never came And Summer cried for rain But seas are rising faster by the year And away into the North A frozen land has thawed The water here was never meant to run So cycle and spin With no end you can’t begin We’ll see you as you make your way around Return to the sky Disappear as you fly And fall again tomorrow just the same
3.
Well the ground it is cold now The harvest is done We’ll move with the seasons Rise with the sun And we’ll walk to the town For to see out the year We’ll starve in the lanes If we try to stay here With our scythes we cut wheat In the cruel August sun We moved on to crops when The scything was done And we dug in your ground For the root crops and leeks Breaking our backs boys For ten bob a week We’ll toil the next year Just the same as before Though travelling people We always stay poor And we’re welcome to camp When there’s jobs to be done But when the work’s over It’s get up move along It’s the same for all those Who have left their own lands Travelled to work here Offered their hands Though the skills they are needed There’s those who complain It’s a deep rooted illness A national shame
4.
Fools Gold 04:31
Spending your days You’re wasting away You’ve been looking for fools gold Chasing the line And all of this time You’ve been looking for fools gold Up at the top of the hill You look around for the life you sold Down with your head in the well You’re getting tired and growing old You left yourself blind With nothing to find You’ve been looking for fools gold Deeper you fall Believe in it all You’ve been looking for fools gold All of your love it has gone You look around for the life you sold Run from the glare of the sun You’re getting tired and growing old Trap and ensnare Pretending to care You’ve been looking for Fools Gold Keep them in line You never were kind When you were looking for fools gold Up at the top of the hill You look around for the life you sold Down with your head in the well You’re getting tired and growing old
5.
Blackthorn 04:01
6.
As I was walking one day one day I met an aged man all on the way His head was bald and his beard was grey His clothing made of the cold earth and clay His clothing made of the cold earth and clay I said old man what man are you What country do you belong unto My name is death have you not heard of me All kings and princes bow down unto me And you fair maid must come along with me Oh I’ll give you gold I’ll give you pearls I’ll give you costly rich robes to wear If you will spare me but one little while And give me time my life for to mend And give me time my life to amend Oh I want no gold I want no pearls I want no costly rich robes to wear I will not spare but one little while Or give you time your life for to amend Give you time your life to amend In six months time this fair maid died Let this be put on my tombstone she cried Here lies a poor distressed maid Who in her blooms she was led astray Her clothing made of the cold earth and clay Her clothing made of the cold earth and clay
7.
Nine herbs charm recite the spell Nine herbs charm will serve you well Against all poison of the land That takes your mind and binds your hand Binds your hands Nine herbs charm will heal your soul Nine herbs charm prepare the bowl Strip the leaves from off the stalk The face of death will never talk Will never talk Take the mugwort leaves combined With fennel mayweed cress and thyme Three times whisper Woden’s word Taste the magic take the herbs Take the herbs
8.
Given Time 04:45
We’ll try and find what they call A basic grasp of understanding For right now all I seem to recall Are the basic modes of new distraction It’s seeming harder to hold back the flow This endless stream of information Meanwhile our anxiety grows From all these ways of interaction Given time we’ll try Given time we’ll find A clarity of mind Step into our lives There’s seldom time to question our own Well worn path or new direction But look beyond the surface we’re shown To the place we’re all too scared to mention Given time we’ll try Given time we’ll find A clarity of mind Step into our lives
9.
Oh I am a brisk lad and my fortune is quite bad In fact it is wondrous poor And it’s I do intend my fortune to mend And I’ll build me a house down on the moors my brave boys And I’ll build me a house down on the moors My father he keeps fat oxen and sheep And a neat little nag on the downs And in the middle of the night when the moon does shine bright There’s a wonder of jobs to be done my brave boys Oh there’s a wonder of jobs to be done So it’s I’ll roam around on some other man’s ground And take a fat Ewe from his pack And with the aid of my knife I’ll shorten it’s life Carry it home on my back my brave boys Oh Ill carry it home on my back My children shall pull the skin from the wool And I’ll carve it up to the bones And when the constable do come I’ll stand there with my gun Swear all I have is my own my brave boys Swear all I have is my own
10.
Intuition brought me here I supposed you wouldn’t mind We’ll take the road for hours But I had to much time And you might leave the table But I won’t leave the wine I won’t leave the wine Belief it took me there Blown in by the wind A chance for conversation A time to hear you sing The changes of the weather The coming of the spring The coming of the spring With a winter spent in words Writing of the lines A new beat inspiration was never far behind A meeting of two worlds and A joining of the minds Joining of the minds

about

Lammas Fair is an album of transformation, movement and fluidity. One that encompasses landscapes, nature and wilderness and intertwines them with stories and characters that brings those places bursting to life. Much like the flow of water from the hills to the local towns near Parker that inspired ‘Return to the Sky’, Lammas Fair is an album that travels seamlessly, connecting worlds along the way.

The record was made in scattered sessions between 2020-21 and while Parker’s voice and guitar are the guts of the machine, the contributions from other players are key and elevate the album to a place that goes far beyond singer songwriter territory. Richard Curran adds delicate yet forceful presence with his violin and cello, the ghostly hum of the Fender Rhodes, flute and piano comes from Theo Travis, Hugh Bradley’s double bass dances quietly, Brendan Bache adds deft percussion work, Robert McNicholas’ bass work is both reserved yet rhythmic and Louis Berthoud’s drum work thoughtfully sets much of the pace and tone for it all to swirl around.

The album explores an intersection between past and present, using the groundwork of folk music set out decades and centuries ago and moving it into new terrain, as it explores ideas, themes and lyrics that explore both historic and contemporary settings. The title Lammas Fair refers to a historical annual celebration held across Europe on the 1st August, which heralded the first harvest of wheat.

While on his debut Silent Spring, Parker paid homage to guitar greats such as Bert Jansch and John Renbourn, here he’s evolved into a style that is distinctly his - a meeting between 60s and 70s folk music, the northern moorland landscape and the heavy metal background of his childhood. - In House Press (2021)

credits

released November 5, 2021

Henry Parker - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar
Robert McNicholas - Electric Bass
Louis Berthoud - Drums
Hugh Bradley - Double Bass
Brendan Bache - Congas, Percussion
Theo Travis - Flute, Piano, Fender Rhodes
Richard Curran - Violin, Cello

Recorded and Engineered by Kurt Wood at Corner House Studio, Keighley March 2020-February 2021
Produced by Kurt Wood and Henry Parker
Mastered by Peter Fletcher at Black Bay Studio, Outer Hebrides

//Cup and Ring Records//
All songs by Henry Parker © 2021
Expect tracks 6 & 9 traditional arranged by Henry Parker

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Henry Parker Leeds, UK

Henry Parker's contemporary take on folk, which he explores via thoughtful yet deeply accomplished guitar playing, unfurls and moves much like the landscape itself - mirroring the unpredictable, yet beautifully flowing, rolling hills and valleys of his hometown, the Aire Valley in West Yorkshire.

RnR Magazine - ★★★★★

Shindig! Magazine -★★★★
"guitar virtuosity and confident song-craft"
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