If you listen to the first albums by Jansch and Renbourn, the influence of Davy Graham on both is manifest. As far as creative impetus is concerned - "Angi" apart - Jansch, in my opinion, was the best songwriter of the three - "Needle Of Death" and "Strolling Down The Highway" are still songs that spring to mind 40 years on. Graham's power was in taking tunes from different genres and making them his own. His "The Guitar Player" album - a Pye Golden Guinea vinyl release with a really cheesy cover - was his first flowering and, if you want to hear subtle playing, take a good hard listen to "Blues For Betty" and it's lovely bass line. "Buffalo", from the same album, was covered by John Renbourn who, after his stint with Jansch in the "Bert and John" album and with Pentangle, I lost interest in. I also lost interest in Bert Jansch's career after a few years. As for Davy Graham - whom I idolised as a young guitarist and knew fairly well - we know what sorry path he travelled. In spite of all that, I never forgot the stuff I'd learned from "The Guitar Player", "Folk, Blues and Beyond" and "Folk Roots, New Routes", and still play these things today now and then.

Guitar playing apart, Jansch had the most interesting voice. Graham, frankly, had a poor voice, but he got by with it on top of the wonderful playing.

Dear days for a young player - guitar heroes all around you - sitting in the Cousins at the all-niters until 4am with DG improvising amazingly, hour after hour...