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An Hour With Cecil Sharp and Ashley Hutchings

An Hour With Cecil Sharp and Ashley Hutchings
Ashley Hutchings

Dambuster Records DAM 014 (LP, UK, 1986)
Dambuster Records DAMCD014 (CD, UK, 2000)
Talking Elephant Records TECD448 (CD, UK, 30 October 2020)

Ashley Hutchings: An Hour With Cecil Sharp and Ashley Hutchings (Talking Elephant TECD448)

Recorded at Dambuster Studios, Essex;
Produced by Ashley Hutchings;
Mixed and edited by Richard Digance;
Engineered by Dave Bubb;
Mastered by Bob Jones, CTS, Wembley;
Front cover, photography and artwork by Garry Owen;
Photograph of Cecil Sharp supplied by EFDSS;
Sleeve design by: Dave Bubb;
All outdoor and sound effects recorded at locations in Gloucestershire and Essex using a Uher report monitor;
Thanks to Val Miles for the loan of the bicycle

Musicians

Martin Carthy: guitar and vocals;
Richard Thompson: guitar
Dave Whetstone: concertina, one row melodeon, guitar

The Cylinders

Very little is known about the cylinder recordings used on this recording. The original cylinders, from which they were taken, were found mostly unlabelled and in a dilapidated condition at Cecil Sharp House. They were made by Cecil Sharp and Ralph Vaughan Williams and date from the very early years of the 20^th century.

Particular thanks to Jim Lloyd, the English Folk Dance and Song Society and Ursula Vaughan Williams for their consent to use these rare recordings.

Tracks

Side 1	Side 2
Among the New-Mown Hay cylinder recording, possibly of Alfred Edghill, Chew Magna, Somerset, by Cecil Sharp Sharp arrives and observes starlings Among the New Mown Hay sung and played by Martin Carthy Hutchings introduces Sharp Bushes and Briars cylinder recording of Mrs Humphries, Ingrave, Essex by Ralph Vaughan Williams Sharp avoids being killed by a gypsy Banks of the Nile cylinder recording Sharp illustrates the evolution of a folk song on a bicycle wheel Sharp opens his case and relates its contents Martin Carthy, Richard Thompson and Dave Whetstone play a jig, learnt from the cylinder recordings, on three guitars Hutchings reveals a catalogue of Sharp's illnesses The cylinder recording of the previous jig, whistled by “as good a whistler as ever cocked a lip” Sharp finds his lunch and holds forth on vegetarianism, politics, collecting folk songs and the acceptance of popularisation More cylinder whistling Sharp extols the virtues of bicycle travel and meets a bird-starver Hutchings offers an opinion on moulding music to suit its audience's taste Rambling Sailor performed by Martin Carthy Sharp muses on John Short and the sea Rambling Sailor cylinder recording, possibly of Mrs Verrall, Horsham, Sussex by Ralph Vaughan Williams	Richard Digance and British Telecom decide that Sharp has slept enough Sharp continues where he left off, then moves on to pipe-smoking idiosyncrasies in the Appalachians. He decides to smoke his pipe. His lungs object. Instead he turns to morris dancing. Black Joke morris tune played by Dave Whetstone on concertina and Martin Carthy on guitar. Hutchings on the disagreement between Sharp and Mary Neal Cylinder recording by Sharp of Herefordshire fiddler John Lock playing a hornpipe Sharp believes that fiddlers are a strange breed and illustrates why. He also paints a picture of the Running Set on a moonlit Pine Mountain. All My Chickens Have Gone crows an authentic American string-band Sharp relates more adventures in the Appalachians Part of George Butterworth's Idyll for Orchestra, The Banks of Green Willow. Sharp, the delighted botanist, gives way to Sharp, the sad loser of three dead colleagues Turtle Dove sung by Martin Carthy accompanied by himself and Richard Thompson on guitars Sharp laments the passing of old-fashioned songs and kindly manners Turtle Dove cylinder recording of Mr Pendfold, landlord of the “Plough Inn”, Rusper, Sussex, by Ralph Vaughan Williams Instrumental version of Turtle Dove played on guitars by Martin Carthy, Richard Thompson and Dave Whetstone Hutchings sums up and gets himself off the hook A rousing instrumental Among the New Mown Hay to finish from Dave Whetstone, one row melodeon, and Martin Carthy and Richard Thompson, guitars

Side 1

Side 2

Among the New-Mown Hay cylinder recording, possibly of Alfred Edghill, Chew Magna, Somerset, by Cecil Sharp
Sharp arrives and observes starlings
Among the New Mown Hay sung and played by Martin Carthy
Hutchings introduces Sharp
Bushes and Briars cylinder recording of Mrs Humphries, Ingrave, Essex by Ralph Vaughan Williams
Sharp avoids being killed by a gypsy
Banks of the Nile cylinder recording
Sharp illustrates the evolution of a folk song on a bicycle wheel
Sharp opens his case and relates its contents
Martin Carthy, Richard Thompson and Dave Whetstone play a jig, learnt from the cylinder recordings, on three guitars
Hutchings reveals a catalogue of Sharp's illnesses
The cylinder recording of the previous jig, whistled by “as good a whistler as ever cocked a lip”
Sharp finds his lunch and holds forth on vegetarianism, politics, collecting folk songs and the acceptance of popularisation
More cylinder whistling
Sharp extols the virtues of bicycle travel and meets a bird-starver
Hutchings offers an opinion on moulding music to suit its audience's taste
Rambling Sailor performed by Martin Carthy
Sharp muses on John Short and the sea
Rambling Sailor cylinder recording, possibly of Mrs Verrall, Horsham, Sussex by Ralph Vaughan Williams

Richard Digance and British Telecom decide that Sharp has slept enough
Sharp continues where he left off, then moves on to pipe-smoking idiosyncrasies in the Appalachians. He decides to smoke his pipe. His lungs object. Instead he turns to morris dancing.
Black Joke morris tune played by Dave Whetstone on concertina and Martin Carthy on guitar.
Hutchings on the disagreement between Sharp and Mary Neal
Cylinder recording by Sharp of Herefordshire fiddler John Lock playing a hornpipe
Sharp believes that fiddlers are a strange breed and illustrates why. He also paints a picture of the Running Set on a moonlit Pine Mountain.
All My Chickens Have Gone crows an authentic American string-band
Sharp relates more adventures in the Appalachians
Part of George Butterworth's Idyll for Orchestra, The Banks of Green Willow.
Sharp, the delighted botanist, gives way to Sharp, the sad loser of three dead colleagues
Turtle Dove sung by Martin Carthy accompanied by himself and Richard Thompson on guitars
Sharp laments the passing of old-fashioned songs and kindly manners
Turtle Dove cylinder recording of Mr Pendfold, landlord of the “Plough Inn”, Rusper, Sussex, by Ralph Vaughan Williams
Instrumental version of Turtle Dove played on guitars by Martin Carthy, Richard Thompson and Dave Whetstone
Hutchings sums up and gets himself off the hook
A rousing instrumental Among the New Mown Hay to finish from Dave Whetstone, one row melodeon, and Martin Carthy and Richard Thompson, guitars

Tracks 1, 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, 23, 30 Copyright EFDSS;
Track 3, 17 trad. arr. Carthy;
Tracks 10, 31, 33 trad. arr. Carthy / Thompson / Whetstone;
Track 22 trad. arr. Carthy / Whetstone;
Tracks 25, 27 Copyright Control;
Track 28 trad. arr. Carthy / Thompson