Fairport Convention "Liege & Lief" Island ILPS 9115 UK 1st Press 1969 white "i"
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Description
Fairport Convention ? "Liege & Lief" Island Records ?ILPS 9115 UK 1st press Vinyl, LP, housed in a gate-fold sleeve and released in 1969.
The vinyl has one or two surface marks which can cause a little crackle in the run-in and between tracks, but it plays through on my stereo with no hop, stick or jump. The gate-fold sleeve shows minimal signs of wear and is in great shape - no rips or writing. The spine is a little worn but intact and legible. Matrix / Runout Side One : ILPS 9115 * A//1 Matrix / Runout Side Two : ILPS 9115 * B//1
"Liege & Lief" is Fairport Convention's fourth album. It is the third and final album the group released in the UK in 1969, all of which prominently feature Sandy Denny as lead female vocalist (Denny did not appear on the group's 1968 debut album). It is also the very first Fairport album on which all songs have either been adapted (freely) from traditional British and Celtic folk material (for example "Matty Groves", "Tam Lin"), or else are original compositions (such as "Come All Ye", "Crazy Man Michael") written and performed in a similar style. By introducing songs of this genre into the group's repertoire Denny, who had previously sung and recorded traditional folk songs as a solo artist, was instrumental in this transformation. Although Denny quit the band even before the album's release, Fairport Convention has continued to the present day to make music almost exclusively within the traditional British folk music idiom, and are still most strongly associated with it.
The album was moderately successful, peaking at number 17 on the UK Albums Chart during a 15-week run. It is often credited, though the claim is sometimes disputed, as the first major "British folk rock" album (this term is not to be confused with American-style folk rock, which had first achieved mainstream popularity on both sides of the Atlantic with The Byrds' early work several years prior). The popularity of "Liege & Lief" did a great deal to establish the new style commercially and artistically as a distinct genre. In an audience vote at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2006, the album was voted "Most Influential Folk Album of All Time".
Following the motorway accident that had killed Martin Lamble, the band were left without a drummer. After the release of "Unhalfbricking", Dave Mattacks took over the role and, having previously been a drummer at Mecca Ballrooms, had to "learn a whole new style of drumming." Dave Swarbrick, a little older than the rest of the band, had already been in a successful duo with guitarist Martin Carthy. After his appearance on "Unhalfbricking", he too joined Fairport full-time.
The band rehearsed and put together "Liege & Lief" over the summer of 1969 at a house in Farley Chamberlayne, near Braishfield, Winchester, launching it with a sold-out concert in London's Royal Festival Hall late in 1969.
The title is composed of two Middle English words: liege meaning loyal and lief meaning ready. The cover, a gate-fold in grey and purple, featured cameo images of the band along with track listing and credits.
Soon after the release of "Liege & Lief", Ashley Hutchings left to further pursue traditional music in a new band, Steeleye Span; Sandy Denny also left to form Fotheringay.
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