Favourite Member of Fairport Convention?

As a part of FC and solo/other projects. I'm giving 3 options so Richard Thompson doesn't just run away with it.

Also stopped after Babbacombe Lee lineups, vote Other if there is someone beyond these you prefer.

 

I am familiar with Richard Thompsons work with Linda and his solo career, Iain Matthews Southern Comfort and solo, Albion Band, Steeleye Span, Sandy Denny, Fotheringay, but beyond that I know very little of the Strawbs, Judy Dyble or the 3 Daves (Swarbrick, Mattacks and Pegg) outside of FC.

 

Thompson, Pegg, Mattacks

 

No offence thread starter, as I get you set boundaries in your OP about limitations , but a poll of Fairport personnel that doesn't include Chris Leslie is plain silly, as he was way more significant to Fairport than many on that list above and "other" simply doesn't cut it.

(Fairport also made many great albums beyond 1971 - worth checking them out)

 

Simon Nicol is probably my favourite member of the band. He's their best singer, in my opinion at least, a super musician and a wonderfully sardonic stage presence. David Pegg is my second choice. Fairport would fizzled out decades ago without his belief and hard work, Great bassist and harmony singer too.

Gone with "other" for choice three. A tie between Ric Sanders & Chris Leslie. They both add so much to the current incarnation of the band.

Got to say, every member who's recorded with the band have made their mark so whoever gets a vote will deserve it.

 

To me Fairport in all their configurations have always been about the idea of a band , never individual musicians - so this poll is pretty pointless to me , sorry

 

Head says Swarb but my heart will always say Sandy.

 

Fair enough. And this would be an opportunity for some light to be shed on their history beyond their original incarnations. Perhaps I should have said original members, as my guidelines stopped once the last original member quit. I could have made a massive list and included everyone, but note I also said to include side projects and solo projects of the original lineups, ie. Every line up before Nicol quit originally.

Gotta be some guidelines or this would be pretty huge... but feel free to share your opinion.

 

Without Sandy or Judy they were kinda pointless.

 

Again, I said their work outside of FC as well as within.

If someone doesn't "like" the thread, don't post in it. Every thread on this board you have to wade through the "thread police" who pick apart the concept, or post a link to a thread that was similar in the past 10 years, or the inevitable Beatles fanatics vs Beatles critics arguing to get to the meat of the thread. Frustrating.

 

Also the thread doesn't say "best" it says your "favourite".

I'm sure I'm not in the minority here of people who aren't as familiar with FC later on, and who branched off with side projects from originals instead.

I also understand the frustration of FC diehards, however, being a Byrds fan I almost prefer the later version of the group who gets no mention typically.... so I get it.

 

Not at all.

As excellent as Sandy and Judy were, Fairport have made numerous wonderful albums without them.

 

Shocked Ashley has one vote (and it was me).

 

Well you should have known better then. LOL. (PS - I also love McGuinn, Battin, White, Parsons line up more)

I meant no malice with my post, I just use it to try and encourage those with an interest in Fairport to hopefully check out their more recent work. My avatar makes it clear I am a Swarb fanatic, however some of the more recent Fairport albums are actually better than those "classic" albums (which I also love). Chris Leslie is IMO one of the most unheralded but brilliant "folk" song writers here in the UK, and I would argue, has been the most significant member of Fairport creatively (Pegg doing a fantastic job keeping the mechanics going).

 

1. Clarence White may be my favourite musician ever, so he even trumps Gene Clark for me.

2. Sorry if I put tone to your message. There just always seems to be this original flood of negativity with threads 'round here. And I didnt mean any disrespect to latter day FC.

3. If nothing else, this is a good place to open some people up to Swarbrick and latter day FC.

 

They all made (and some still make) an important contribution to the band so it's really hard for a Fairport fan (especially one who likes both the early and current band) to choose just three from the list - and as some have noted, there are other names who were or are still in the band. By choosing some I have to miss out other fine musicians, songwriters and characters. But I'll go for:

Simon - his vocals have really matured into a fantastic, warm and expressive instrument, he's an underrated guitarist, he was there at the beginning, and he always comes across as an all round good egg.
Richard - of course a fine guitarist, one of the best with a unique style with a mix of English, Scottish and American influences, equally good on acoustic and electric; a unique songwriter; and on top of that a witty and amusing chap.
Sandy - one of the finest voices ever to have come from these shores, and if that wasn't enough, a great songwriter as well.

But how can I miss out Swarb, such a brilliant fiddler, a characterful singer and a great, roguish character, Peggy, a fantastic bassist and the force behind Cropredy and the continuation of the band, Ashley and all the great music he's made with Steeleye, the Albions and many solo projects which I've enjoyed so much, Mattacks, such a skilful and understated drummer... Not to mention all the rest like Ric, Chris, Jerry, Trevor, Martin, Judy, Ian, Maart and all the others in the Fairpor "family". I love them all really!

 

Also, I think there are some fans who just followed Richard Thompsons career path after, some who stuck with FC, some who followed Iain and some who went with Ashley or Sandy.

I personally went down the Richard and Ashley path first, so this thread is as much a curiosity and a discussion as much as anything.

 

I'm open, and willing, fill this thread up with youtube postings.

 

In order of preference...

~Richard Thompson
~Sandy Denny
~Dave Swarbrick

 

Fair enough , but I gave a reason why I think this poll doesn't make much sense to me , namely that I have always seen Fairport as a proper band , where the whole is far more important than the individual contributions , if you want to include solo/other projects fine by me , but then you should leave out the two drummers

I did not say the thread was pointless in general but pointless to me , because I look at Fairport's music as the music of a band and not the contributions of individual members - I think this is valid statement

 

So....back to the Poll

I obviously went with Swarbrick first - his work before, with and after Fairport is a phenomenal collection of work, and I rate his musicianship up with Louis Armstrong and Charlie Parker as the best of the best. A major driving force in Fairport and his ability to not only write great songs, but to also adapt traditional works cannot be understated.

I then went "other" for Chris Leslie and have made comments above to support this.

I then went for Sandy - I suspect her magic is what captured a lot of us in the first place in this web called Fairport.

Beyond Fairport, and of course the 3 above, I have also followed the solo careers of Richard Thompson & Simon Nicol (his two solo albums are great)

 

Without hesitation - Sandy.

 

Funnily enough, I'm not much of a fan of Richard Thompson, solo performer. For me, he's Neil Young-like inasmuch as I like his quieter material but remain unconvinced by his attempts at being a rocker.

He's made some great records but there are many more that contain only an EP's worth of good stuff, at least according to my tastes. He was marvellous in Fairport, though.

 

I think Swarb is an underrated singer too. It's often stated that Fairport, from Full House to Tipplers Tales, were weak vocally but I think that's nonsense. Swarb was always great and if Simon was a bit tentative on lead in the early days, the harmonies were always sublime.

 

Again, I didnt mean to put tone to your message as much as I did. Clearly predisposed to expect negative posts. Apologies.

I included the drummers because I didn't want to look like a dick in leaving them out. Invariably someone would mention it.