Folk music
Why Joni Mitchell sounded different from the start
Polio in childhood weakened her left hand, leaving her to devise alternative tuning, surprising phrasing and ‘chords of inquiry’ that hang like question marks in the air
Dense, melancholic, hypnotic: Brighde Chaimbeul, at Summerhall, reviewed
The hip end of the folk spectrum is in rude health right now. Dublin’s mighty Lankum lead the way, but…
The quiet radicalism of the Chieftains
Pop quiz time: which act was named Melody MakerGroup of the Year in 1975? The answer is not, as you…
Moments of pure wonder: Folk Weekend Oxford reviewed
Has any musical moment extended its tendrils in so many unexpected directions as the English folk revival of the mid-1960s?…
Bob Dylan — from respected young songwriter to Voice of a Generation
Bob Dylan didn’t just assimilate the Great American Songbook – he vastly increased its size and variety, says Andrew Motion
What Mary Wollstonecraft writes about motherhood is still so relevant
Walking into Fingal’s Cave, after scrambling across the rocks to reach it from the landing stage where the boat from…
Podcasts still have a long way to go to challenge the best of conventional radio
Here’s a thought. Matthew Bannister, former Radio 1 controller turned presenter of programmes such as Outlook on the World Service…
Big names and broken souls: storm clouds gather over Woodstock’s summer of love
In 1963, when the bloom was still on the rose, Bob Dylan described Woodstock as a place where ‘we stop…
The times really were a-changin’ — when Dylan electrified his fans
Five songs, only three of which were amplified. Thirty-five minutes, including interruptions. That’s how long Bob Dylan played for at…
The sickeningly talented Johnny Flynn
James Mumford talks to the sickeningly talented actor and folk singer Johnny Flynn
