Fairport Convention
Foxlowe Arts Centre, Leek

Their bus rolls on – this time taking the band to Leek in Staffordshire – apparently the location of the very first Fairport acoustic gig and one to which the band have since returned a further 31 times – rudely interrupted by a pandemic, but otherwise an unblemished record. With a run like that, it is no surprise that it is very much a case of meet at the gig (the Ledge will come later), as fellow audience members are recognised and greeted, giving the whole evening a sense of an extended family reunion, with the band themselves offering hugs and handshakes during their forays into the crowd, before, between and after the evening’s musical proceedings.

The gentle, good natured familiarity continues as the band take the stage, it’s hard to imagine many new attendees, other than those persuaded along by long-standing fans. The characters of the band members are well established, even the new kids in the block, fiddle player Ric Sanders and mandolin and bouzouki wielding Chris Leslie, approaching a mere 40 years membership, situated either side of the old brigade of guitarist and lead vocals, Simon Nicol and bassist extraordinaire, Dave Pegg. Despite the objective fact of only one original member being present, this is the antithesis of the founder surrounded by hired hands, each is a distinct personality within the band, and all play their roles to perfection. The gentle and often self-deprecating banter between Simon and Peggy, largely centred on their long history, Chris introduces songs that often seem to have an autobiographical leaning and Ric shines in his own spot, prior to his instrumental tour de force, as humorous as ever, but less political than in the recent past – his reference to his Grateful Dead t-shirt and his love of the band deserved more than the ripple of appreciation it received.

The sad loss of drummer Gerry Conway means that the sound is different but not lacking (a quick bit of praise for the crystal clarity) and for those who need to know these things, the chaps are back out in the new year as a 5-piece with the preternaturally young looking Dave Mattacks, and of course there will be the annual Oxfordshire gathering where the band will appear with full pomp and ceremony, and it is worth betting that a significant proportion of tonight’s assembly will be with them then.

Oh yes, the music, we were there for that too. With over 50 years of recording history to choose from, distilling that into 17 songs presents a challenge. For many of the audience sharing a history with the band, there is an emotional resonance with their early work, yet the band continue to write and record – the tension is therefore how to represent the wishes of the people and the ongoing creativity of the band. The faithful are rewarded with an opening trio include Walk Awhile and Now Be Thankful, drawn from the golden period – though Simon is at pains to point out that the band cannot be accused of being stuck in the Seventies, as he introduces ‘Crazy Man Michael’ (1969, Liege and Lief, just in case). The rest of the first half mixes the old, the more recent, the self-penned, the traditional and a contribution from elsewhere, so all bases are covered.

The second set follows a similar pattern, though somewhat reversed – it you know Fairport, you know what is coming! The quality of the musicianship within the band can be overlooked in favour of their status, but the individual members are given their opportunity to cut loose, with the exception of Simon, who, despite being stage centre, plays more of a holding midfielder’s role. With so many decades represented, is also notable given that the set list is populated by the creations of so many song writers, the current line up is represented by the likes of Ric’s Steampunkery, Chris’s Banbury Fair and Peggy’s Bankruptured, there are numerous references back to members past and passed, with particular fond and fondly received mentions of a certain Mr Swarbrick, as well as outsourced songs, traditional or otherwise, the Old, New, Borrowed and Blue theme is completed by James Woods’ ‘Cider Rain’ seemingly now a staple in the set, and James Taylor’s ‘Frozen Man’.

As the evening draws to a close, we are treated to an encapsulation of the appeal of Fairport, with their groundbreaking, yet now so familiar reimagining of a traditional song, followed by a Richard Thompson original, reminding us of what we did in our younger days. That said, renditions of ‘Matty Groves’ can take various forms – and on this occasion, it was a Banjo Matty that prepared the full house for ‘Meet On The Ledge’, always an emotional ending, a powerful reminder of what the band and their songs mean to their audience.

And so, after catching up with a few more gig friends, it was off into the moorlands night, safe in the knowledge that it will all come round again, and hopefully seeing all our friends there.

Visit the Fairport Convention website