Seth Lakeman
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Seth Lakeman | |
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Origin | Dartmoor, Devon, England |
Years active | 1994 - present |
Genres | English folk music |
Labels | iScream Music (pre 2006) , Relentless (2006 — present) |
Seth (Bernard) Lakeman is an English folk singer, songwriter, and musician from Yelverton, on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon. He was born on March 26, 1977.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Seth Lakeman began playing music with his parents and brothers Sean and Sam at an early age.
As The Lakeman Brothers the three brothers released their debut album Three Piece Suite in 1994. Later that same year they were invited by Kathryn Roberts and Kate Rusby to join them as a backing group on a tour of Portugal. After the tour the five musicians became a permanent group and called themselves Equation. The group swiftly garnered much praise and hype and signed a supposedly £1M record deal with Time Warner in 1995. After 3 full albums ('Return to me' - 1996, 'Hazy Daze' - 1998, 'The Lucky Few' - 2000), and touring around the UK, Europe and the USA, Seth left Equation in 2001. He joined his brother Sam and Sam's wife Cara Dillon to record Cara's acclaimed, self titled debut album, which featured Seth on fiddle, guitar and vocals. The album won two awards at the 2002 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, including Best Traditional Track for "Black is the Colour" which Seth helped arrange. Cara and the brothers also won the Hot Press award for the Best Roots Act and the Big Buzz award for the Best Traditional Act.
In 2002 Seth Lakeman released his first solo album, The Punch Bowl, which received wide critical acclaim including a review in fRoots magazine which said: "The songs don`t just glide smoothly by.....they get their claws into you".
Kitty Jay, Seth Lakeman's second solo album was released in 2004. The title track of the album tells the story of Jay's Grave, a well known location on Dartmoor. The album was recorded for a cost of less than £300. That same year he collaborated with Devon singer-songwriter Steve Knightley and young local singer Jenna Witts on the album Western Approaches.
A sell out UK tour in Autumn 2005 followed his Mercury Music Prize nomination, after which Seth and his band toured extensively with folk-rock giants The Levellers, who took to closing their set with a "fiddle off" between Seth and Levellers' fiddler Jon Sevink.
In March 2006 Seth Lakeman began a UK tour in order to promote his new album Freedom Fields which was released on iScream. He then changed to a major record company called Relentless and has released his new single Lady of the Sea in early August 2006.
[edit] Awards
- In July 2005 Lakeman was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize for Kitty Jay.
- On 5 February 2007 Lakeman won 'Singer of the Year' and 'Best Album' awards at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards [1].
[edit] Style of music
Seth Lakeman's primary musical instruments are the violin, the tenor guitar, and the viola.
[edit] Discography
Name | Type | Date of release | Remarks | |
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as principal performer | ||||
The Punch Bowl | Album | 2002 07/06/2004 |
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Kitty Jay | Album | 2004 01/08/2005 09/10/2006 |
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Freedom Fields | Album | First edition: 20/03/2006 Re-release: 21/08/2006 |
UK chart position (27/08/2006) 32. Re-release cover: | |
Lady Of The Sea (Hear Her Calling) | Single | 07/08/2006 | UK chart position (07/08/2006) 52. Lakeman's first single proper. | |
The White Hare | Single | 21/10/2006 | UK chart position (30/10/2006) 47. Released in 2 CDs and 7" versions. | |
King & Country | Single | 05/02/2007 | ||
in The Lakeman Brothers | ||||
Three Piece Suite | Album | 1994 | ||
with Equation | ||||
In Session | Promotional | 1995 | ||
Return To Me | Album | 1995-96 24/03/2003 |
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Hazy Daze | Album | 02/02/1998 | ||
The Lucky Few | Album | 2000 17/11/2003 |
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The Dark Ages E.P. | Album | 2001 14/06/2004 |
As guest musician | |
First Name Terms | Album | 2002 07/06/2004 |
As guest musician | |
with Cara Dillon | ||||
Cara Dillon | Album | 16/07/2001 | ||
Sweet Liberty | Album | 22/09/2003 | ||
with Steve Knightley and Jenna Witts | ||||
Western Approaches | Album | 27/09/2004 |
[edit] External links
- Seth Lakeman official website
- Equation official website
- BBC report on Mercury Music Prize nomination
- BBC Radio Devon interview
- BBC Devon Entertainment interview: New album for Seth
- BBC Devon: Jailhouse Rock
- The Independent: Seth Lakeman: Troubadour of the moors
- Performance/ Audio interview recorded February 2007
Seth Lakeman |
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Discography |
as principal performer |
Albums: The Punch Bowl | Kitty Jay | Freedom Fields |
Singles: Lady Of The Sea (Hear Her Calling) | The White Hare | King & Country |
in The Lakeman Brothers |
Album: Three Piece Suite |
with Equation |
Promo: In Session |
Albums: Return To Me | Hazy Daze | Lucky Few |
Albums (as guest musician): The Dark Ages E.P. | First Name Terms |
with Cara Dillon |
Album: Cara Dillon | Sweet Liberty |
with Steve Knightley and Jenna Witts |
Album: Western Approaches |