Roy Bailey announces first ever live album

Roy Bailey

Six years on from his acclaimed album of children’s songs, Tomorrow, singer and activist Roy Bailey returns with Live At Towersey Festival 2015.

As the title suggests, the 11-track collection was recorded live at the long-running Oxfordshire festival, and will be officially launched at the 2016 event, on Monday 29 August.

Roy’s relationship with Towersey stretches back over 50 years. Friends with the festival founders, he was present at early planning discussions and appeared at the very first festival, in 1965. He’s been a much-loved regular visitor ever since, with his firmly established Monday afternoon concerts drawing capacity crowds.

Live At Towersey 2015 finds Roy interpreting songs by Bob Dylan (‘With God On Our Side’), Tom Waits (‘In The Neighborhood’) and John Tams (‘Rolling Home’), along with three compositions by American singer-songwriter Si Khan. Among them is Si’s ‘What You Do With What You’ve Got’, which opens the album.

“’What You Do With What You’ve Got’, as I understand, was written on behalf of disabled people,” says Roy, who first met Si at a Canadian folk festival during the early 1980’s. “For me it has almost become my signature tune, as I invariably sing it at the beginning of my concerts and have done so since about 1984/85! It has a central theme that applies to us all.”

Joining Roy on several tracks are guitarist Martin Simpson and melodeon player Andy Cutting, plus Marc Block (bodhrán) and Ian Brown (guitar), as well as Roy’s daughter and grand-daughter, Kit Bailey and Molly Simpson.

The 2015 show was recorded in secret by Roy and co-producer/ engineer ‘Ich’ Mowatt, who then edited the 90 minute concert down to 11 tracks. Expertly capturing the intimacy and warmth of a live performance, it’s remarkably Roy’s first live album.

“I wanted to do one … but never go around to it,” says Roy simply.

Roy Bailey is one of the UK folk and acoustic scene’s most admired and accomplished performers. He began his long career performing skiffle in student union bars in the late 1950s before falling in love with traditional songs and the stories they tell. Quickly developing a unique repertoire of songs of dissent and hope, he’s gone on to perform on stages, TV and radio all over the world. En route, he’s been joined by such artists as Leon Rosselson, Martin Carthy, Chumbawamba and MP Tony Benn (a collaboration which won them a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award).

Today, he remains as committed as ever to his life-long principles of Equality, Liberty, Justice and Internationalism.

‘I Thought I Had No Voice’ – live with Martin Simpson: