Fairport Convention - Liege & Lief

Decade - 1960's


Fairport Convention - Liege & Lief


Fairport Convention are are folk-rock band formed in England in the late 60's. They were one of the first (if not the first?) to mix traditional English songs with rock. I'd vaguely heard of them before this list but hadn't ever bothered to listen to an album. I didn't realise how popular they are either, as according to wiki " In 2002 the band was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and in 2006, Liege & Lief was voted the most influential folk album of all time in a public ballot".

I really didn't like this album on first listen, but occasionally on a second listen one song will stand out, and that song seems to open up a door to the others. I really liked "Crazy Man Michael", both the melody and lyrics are fascinating, and then this lead to me rather liking "The Deserter" and then soon enough, I pretty much liked them all. There is something oddly familiar about it all after the first listen too....the lyrics are well told stories with a hint of the magic of Olde England and the music is pretty timeless.

Another nice find.


Score - 8.7/10

Genre - English folk/rock

Best tracks - Crazy Man Michael, The Deserter, Quiet Joys of Brotherhood

Recommended - Yes