George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford 2009

Subject: George Blake's Legacy - New CD.
From: RTim
Date: 16 Mar 09 - 07:52 PM

A New CD from TIM RADFORD.
It should be released this week - hopefully and with a fair wind!

GEORGE BLAKE'S LEGACY.
All the songs, tunes and words on this recording were collected from one singer and countryman. This was Mr. George Crutie' Blake, a gardener who was born in the parish of Minstead, The New Forest, Hampshire, in 1829.
It is not known how he got his nickname of 'Crutie', or its meaning.
The collecting was undertaken by Dr. George B. Gardiner, who did so over the years of 1906 to 1907, with musical notation assistance from Southampton musician Mr. J.T. Guyer (L.R.A.M.), This was part of Gardiner's journey of collecting folk songs in Hampshire from 1905 to 1909.
All the songs where collected while Blake was in the later years of his life and living with his children in the Southampton suburbs of St. Denys and Bitterne Park. However he spent most of his life living and working in The New Forest, in and around Lyndhurst.
Gardiner collected 48 songs, one recitation and 4 toasts from Blake, some songs are complete, others are fragments, and in all but a few examples, notated tunes exist for all.

TIM RADFORD: Voice, is an English born singer now living in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, who here performs songs and recitations from the area of his birth The New Forest, and from one man, George Blake.
The songs on this recording are unaccompanied except where indicated, with musical interludes by the guest musicians:
Jan Elliott on English Concertina, Tenor and Bass Recorders
Jeff Davis on Fiddle and Mandocello.

  1.        Young Taylor, Huzza - 2.47
  2.        Twas Over Hills - 2.45
  3.        The Orange and The Blue - Instrumental and Our Queen - Toast - 1.15
  4.        Here's Adieu to all Judges and Juries - 2.50
  5.        The Broken-down Gentleman - 2.13
  6.        Rosemary Lane - Instrumental - 1.19
  7.        My Bonny, Bonny Boy - 2.44
  8.        Jealousy - 3.58
  9.        My True Love is Lost - Instrumental - 1.33
10.        In a British Man O'War - 4.13
11.        Under a Rose - 2.26
12.        Sir Hugh - Instrumental - 1.13
13.        I Am a Sailor - 8.04
14.        Lord Bateman - Instrumental and May a Tree - Toast - 1.27
15.        The Jolly Highwayman - 2.06
16.        George Blake's Alphabet - Recitation - 2.03
17.        Forty Long Miles - Instrumental - 1.00
18.        Maria - 3.16
19.        Charles Dickson - 2.06
20.        Attention Give Both High and Low - Instrumental - 1.25
21.        Colin and Phoebe - 3.21
22.        George Collins - 3.04
23.        The Lost Lady Found - Instrumental - 1.31
24.        Adieu to Old England - 2.29
25.        The Rocks of Scilly - 3.12
26.        Churches & Chapels - Toast and A Virgin Most Pure - Instrumental - 1.54
27.        Hark, Hark Let Us Behold - with Recorder accompaniment - 2.00
28.        To Drink - Toast and Drink Old England Dry - 1.26

The 70 minute long CD comes in a DVD case along with a 60 page booklet containing as much information about George Blake and his songs as I have been able to amass, including all the words and some of the musical notations; particularly for songs he sang that we have not recorded and photographs of where Blake lived during his life.

This recording was produced by Bonnie Milner of The Johnson Girls and recorded at Signature Sounds Studio in Pomfret, Connecticut, USA.
Examples of two of the songs can be heard on Tim Radford's MySpace page:
myspace.com/timradford

This CD is available in North America from myself directly or in the UK from Forest Tracks Records.

For North America, please contact Tim Radford at PO Box 498, Woods Hole MA 02543
Or e-mail me at ELLIFORDTIMatAOL.COM.
The CD cost in US Dollars only is $20 plus $3 postage & packaging.

For The UK & Europe, please contact Forest Tracks Records:
At: www.forest-tracks.co.uk

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD.
From: katlaughing
Date: 16 Mar 09 - 11:30 PM

Congratulations! What I've heard sounds really wonderful. I really like the bright strength of your voice. Thanks for the samples.

kat

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD.
From: RTim
Date: 17 Mar 09 - 01:23 PM

refresh

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: Joe Offer
Date: 17 Mar 09 - 03:07 PM

Hi, Tim-
Hope you don't mind that I added your name to the thread title.

I see at http://www.timradford.com/ that Tim has another CD, Home from Home - looks like that one has some wonderful songs on it, too.

Tim's MySpace site is http://www.myspace.com/timradford - good recordings there!

-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: RTim
Date: 27 Mar 09 - 08:20 AM

Hi All, I made a very stupid mistake - and put the WRONG PO Box number in this note.
It should be PO Box 598, Woods Hole MA 02543

Sorry - Tim Radford

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: RTim
Date: 31 Mar 09 - 06:57 PM

Just to let everyone know - this CD is now available in the UK from Forest Tracks Records, see link below.
The price is 13 UK pounds inc. postage.

Thanks - Tim Radford

http://www.forest-tracks.co.uk/

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: RTim
Date: 06 Jun 09 - 03:06 PM

    See the first review of my new CD - George Blake's Legacy, on Musical Traditions:
http://www.mustrad.org.uk/reviews/r_index.htm

   Tim Radford

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: GUEST,Lock and Key
Date: 07 Jun 09 - 02:52 AM

Sincere congratulations to you, Tim.

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 07 Jun 09 - 08:58 PM

And you can buy it from CAMSCO. Of course.

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: RTim
Date: 04 Jan 10 - 10:44 AM

New Review of CD by David Kidman

Tim Radford GEORGE BLAKE'S LEGACY (Forest Tracks)

This CD may on the face of it sound an unlikely candidate for wide acclaim, aside from within the relatively narrow specialist field of English traditional folk song.
Its 28 tracks present the majority of the complete known repertoire of one particular Hampshire singer, George Blake, as collected by George B. Gardiner in 1906-07, in performances by a present-day Hampshire-born singer, Tim Radford, who, though like Blake was brought up in the New Forest region of that county, now happens to live in America.
The disc is enclosed within a DVD-case accompanied by an exemplary 52-page booklet containing TimÕs own erudite introductory essays and detailed notes on the 48 pieces on the disc, together with full texts, melodies and notes for the remaining 21 songs in GeorgeÕs repertoire (excluded from the disc simply on the grounds of being already Òfairly commonly found elsewhereÓ); thereÕs also a Blake Family Tree and a selection of photographs of local places.
The standard of the booklet is indicative of the loving care and attention to detail which Tim has lavished on the whole project, and this extends to the disc itself. Some of the songs are mere fragments as collected, and these are given as musical interludes between TimÕs own acappella renditions of the complete songs, in well-managed, idiomatic instrumental performances by guest musicians Jeff Davis and Jan Elliott.
As regards TimÕs own singing, heÕs blessed with an attractive voice, with a clear and even tone and an appealing Hampshire ÒburrÓ, with a slight element of vibrato here and there. TimÕs is very much a ÒrevivalÓ voice, with Ð in some of the songs Ð an additional florid quality, a hint of conscious ÒperformanceÓ that you wouldnÕt necessarily expect to find in a source singer of this kind of repertoire. TimÕs approach works well enough, and his are admirable performances, but their very evenness sometimes engenders a kind of four-squareness or else a certain lack of dynamic contrast and a feeling that there could be a greater degree of dramatic response on occasion Ð particularly when you listen to a longer sequence than three or four songs.
Of course, itÕs not possible to ascertain how closely TimÕs singing might approximate George BlakeÕs own delivery; yet even so, the breadth of the repertoire on this disc may well suggest that a broader measure of expressive or interpretive variety is called for, certainly over the course of an eveningÕs entertainment. Having said that, nowhere do I feel that any of TimÕs renditions are at all lacking in terms of understanding of the text. The songs themselves are an interesting bunch: some (like My Bonny Bonny Boy, George Collins and Adieu To Old England) are relatively well-known, though not necessarily quite in these variants (the item here named Maria is a version of Through The Groves, for instance).
Tim also turns in a stirring performance of In A British Man OÕ War. But the most valuable aspect of the disc for many enthusiasts of traditional song will be the more unusual or rarely-heard items, among which there are several songs IÕd not come across before (like Young Taylor, Hussa and the long ballad I Am A Sailor, which here forms a centrepiece to the collection). Finally, in truthfully representing the wide range of George BlakeÕs repertoire, Tim also includes on the CD a whimsical moralistic recitation and a handful of brief toasts.
I hope IÕve managed to convey the artistic and historical importance of this release, for itÕs a superbly presented labour of love on TimÕs part, no less (the culmination of many yearsÕ research), and richly deserves your close attention.

www.forest-tracks.co.uk

David Kidman

Subject: RE: George Blake's Legacy - New CD by Tim Radford
From: RTim
Date: 01 Jun 21 - 09:31 PM

Hello - You should all be made aware that the Forest Tracks Record label and ALL it's associated websites and pages NO longer exist, as since the death of a founder Paul Marsh, it has been wound up.

The only place for information of the CD's excetera is on the Mainly Norfolk site ie - https://mainlynorfolk.info/folk/records/timradford.html
https://mainlynorfolk.info/folk/records/timradford.html

Thank you

Tim Radford