Tom was a central part of the London folk scene when I used to live there in the late 1970s, as indeed he has been right up until very recently. Last time I saw him was at Islington FC - on the front row as usual. For such a distinguished musician he was very modest and softly-spoken, but would often come up at the end of one of my performances to share a vital snippet of information about some song I'd just played. I also remember a late-night session at Whitby a few years back, at which he sang a very moving song he'd written himself. Loved his 'Old Time Moonshine' CD as well.

He's obviously a hugely important figure, but mostly I'll just miss seeing his face around those London clubs.